Wish Upon a Star (24 page)

I'd learned my lesson with logic and Annie's treatment. I let
the matter drop, with a plan to appeal to a higher power.

Miranda.

A couple of days later, I cornered her before she and Annie
went for a walk. We were on the patio while Annie was getting
dressed. "I need your help. Annie won't do radiation."

Miranda gave me a sharp look. "What do you mean she
won't do radiation?" Her tone was even sharper.

I told her about my phone call with Julia and Annie's
subsequent response. After running my fingers through my hair, I
leaned on the patio railing. A bead of sweat from the July sun tricked
down my neck.

"I know it's going to be hard, but I really think she needs the
radiation treatments. I've tried a half a dozen times the past few
days, but she won't budge. After some of the blow ups we've had, I'm
afraid to push her any more on this. Will you talk to her?"

"Leave it to me." She put her hand on my shoulder. "I think I
can get her to come around."

On their way out the door, Miranda gave me a thumbs-up. A
little later, I grabbed my grocery list and headed out the door. If
anybody could get Annie to do something she didn't want to do, it
was Miranda. She'd cajoled my North Star into doing some crazy
things over the past few months. Things I'd never imagined Annie
doing in a million years, like the weekend they'd spent tent camping
in Turkey Run State Park or the evening early in Annie's treatment
when they'd sampled progressively more intense hot sauces until
neither of them could feel their tongues.

Sure, I was Annie's fiancé. But Miranda was her best friend.
She could reach Annie in ways I couldn't. It reminded me a little of
how Gloria would complain to me sometimes about how I was the
only person on the planet who could talk sense into Evan.

The thought made me smile. Yeah, Miranda had this.

I was loaded down with two full bags of groceries when I got
back. Annie took unfair advantage of my defenseless condition and
threw a damp, balled up bandanna at me on my way to the kitchen. It
bounced off my forehead and landed in the bag that contained the
milk and eggs.

"You ratted me out."

With an air of deliberate dignity, I placed the groceries on
the counter and tossed the bandanna in the sink. "So Miranda, it's
mission accomplished, then?"

Our friend joined me as I put the groceries away. "Yes,
barely. I've had an easier time reasoning with my five year old
niece."

I put a box of granola in a cabinet. "Yeah, it's that spoiled
entertainer in her. Did she stomp her foot?"

"Hello, I'm right here."

Miranda didn't miss a beat. "Oh, yeah. You know that thing
where she crosses her arms and huffs? She did that a couple of times,
too."

"That's a classic. Did she try elbow you in the ribs?"

"Excuse me."

Miranda put the milk and eggs in the fridge. "She threatened
me with that. I just told her I'd put my hand on her forehead and she
wouldn't be able to touch me."

"You've definitely got the reach."

Annie slapped her hand on the counter. "Enough." Her shout
echoed off the condo walls.

Miranda and I turned. Red-faced, Annie was shaking out the
hand she must have used to get our attention.

Miranda sighed. "And she's definitely got the temper."

Annie glared, first at me and then at Miranda. When we
remained still, she stuck out her lower lip and crossed her arms.
"You guys are mean. I can't believe you're picking on me after I
agreed to the stupid radiation."

We wrapped her in our arms. "Yes, and thanks to that stupid
radiation, your fiancé and I will be able to pick on you for years to
come."

We made our way to the patio and spent the rest of the
afternoon simply hanging out. There was no discussion of Annie's
condition. Neither the record nor the wedding came up. We
just...talked. About simple things, like the latest summer movies and
how Miranda's garden was coming along. It was as if the world had
granted us a time-out for a few hours and we could sit back and just
be.

When it was time for Miranda to go, I walked her to her car.
I chose not to ask her how she'd gotten Annie to change her mind
about the radiation treatments. Maybe Annie had been close to
making the decision and Miranda had nudged her over the line. Or
possibly Miranda had resorted to strong-arming her into the
decision.

Again, I thought of Gloria. Whenever I'd convinced Evan to
do what G had requested, she'd never asked how I'd done it. She'd
just thanked me and moved on.

So I did the same and moved on with renewed confidence
that Annie and I would be in Miranda's debt for the rest of our lives.
And the longer we were in her debt, the better.

"I'll be back in a week." Annie kissed me on the cheek.

"You're sure you're up to this?" I didn't even attempt to hide
the doubt in my voice.

She opened her car door. "It's only three appearances: L.A.,
Chicago and New York. I'll be fine, I promise."

"I just don't want you to get worn down and end up getting
sick. What with everything coming up."

"I'm fully aware that as soon as I get back, it's non-stop
radiation treatments until a week before the wedding." She paused,
which let me know she still wasn't crazy about this additional course
of treatment. "Which is why I need to go now. You know Doctor
Francis is on board with this."

With a sigh, I shrugged. She was bound and determined to
make this publicity tour. Thanks to the wedding planning to-do list
she'd left for me, there was no way I could go with her.

"I know. It's just we've got a pretty tight deadline and I can't
have my bride-to-be getting sick." I kissed her and held her tight.
"Have fun. See you soon."

She gave me her heart-melting smile and slipped into the
car. "I promise I'll call or text every night. I love you, Mister Almost
E.J. Wilson."

"And I love you, Miss Almost Annie McCarty." My heart did a
little flip as she pulled out of the garage. She gave me a little wave
and drove out of sight.

I turned on my heel to dive into my wedding prep to-do list.
Before that fateful train trip, if someone would have told me I'd be
getting married so soon, I'd have ended up rolling on the floor with
laughter. Instead I chuckled, ecstatic beyond belief I didn't have to
apologize for being so wrong.

I spent most of the day on the phone handling tasks as
Cassandra Lawrence's assistant—making sure hotel arrangements
were set, confirming car service pick-ups, keeping Samantha and Ira
in the loop.

The last call was of a more personal nature. It was with Julia.
She'd left a message asking if we had questions additional about
Annie's radiation treatments. She knew our schedule was tight.

I returned the call to confirm my understanding of the
course of treatment was correct. Annie had met with the radiation
oncologist, Doctor Margaret Francis, and all of her questions had
been answered. Beginning on August twentieth, Annie was to receive
a dose of radiation every day Monday through Friday through
October fifth. That gave her a whole week until the wedding to let the
radiation-induced scar tissue start to heal.

Oh boy.

While Annie jetted across the country promoting her new
record, I worked my way down the wedding to-do list. Invitations
had been mailed a few days after we'd returned from the West Coast
and the RSVPs had been drifting in. It was time to go through them.
Given Annie's desire for privacy, the guest list wasn't long: business
associates of hers, friends of mine and a handful of relatives on both
sides.

Over Annie's protests, we'd sent an invitation to her mom.
"Our paths diverged years ago, E.J. Why are you making me do this,"
she'd asked.

"Because she's your mother and it's the right thing to do. If
she declines, fine. At least you'll be able to say you made the
effort."

Her mom's RSVP was in the first batch I went through. It
thanked us and wished us well, but said the travel all the way from
France and back made it unworkable.

We'd tried. At least she'd written her note in English. Or had
somebody do it for her.

My spirits actually rose a little bit as I put her mom's note in
the decline pile. Annie had done the right thing by inviting her to the
wedding. We'd left the door open, and it was her mom who'd closed
it.

I still had a hard time accepting that the division between
them had grown so wide that even her cancer diagnosis hadn't
bridged the gap. My heart had almost broken in two when I'd
listened to the business-like tone the two women had maintained
when Annie had called her mom about the diagnosis.

And now another opportunity for reconciliation, even if it
was a remote one, had passed them by. As disappointing as that was
to me, I knew it wouldn't be disappointing to Annie. Ah, family.

* * * *

During my tour of the Art Center to confirm the layout for
the ceremony and reception, an issue came up. The wedding planner
was concerned about the weather. Mid-October weather in Indiana
is notoriously unpredictable. I'd remembered everything from sunny
skies and temps reaching eighty to days of driving rain where the
mercury hovered in the mid-forties.

The planner explained that since we hadn't booked the
courtyard area until late in the game, the Center didn't have indoor
facilities available for a group our size if it rained.

"Yeah, Annie's been pretty insistent about an outdoor
wedding on the grounds here, hasn't she?"

The planner nodded and looked the other way. I shook my
head, fully aware of just how insistent my control freak of a fiancé
was being about the whole affair.

It had been surprising she'd trusted so many of the wedding
arrangement tasks to me while she was gone. Of course, I was
providing her nightly updates. She hadn't turned into anything
resembling a bridezilla by any means. She just couldn't help her
nature. That was part of what made her one of the most amazingly
popular successful artists in the world. It was who she was and I
loved her for it, even if it made life challenging at times.

The planner flipped through her notes. "Do you have a plan
B?"

"Nope."

"Mr. McCarty, it's my duty to inform you and Ms. Wilson the
peril you and your guests face if the weather turns on you."

"I appreciate it, Eileen. But like I said, Annie can be
incredibly insistent when she wants something. And what she wants
is an outdoor wedding and reception. I'll be happy to sign off on
something absolving you of any responsibility if the weather turns
south."

She tapped her pen on her notepad. "It's just this is an
important day for you two and I want it to be memorable. For all the
right reasons."

"Your concerns are duly noted and appreciated." I brought
the matter to a close by asking for a status report on the decorations.
That led to a discussion of the seating arrangements, and finally the
catering. We wrapped up the meeting with a plan to touch base in
early September, by which time we would have a pretty good idea of
a final head count.

What the wedding planner didn't know, or anyone else for
that matter, was that Annie and I had struck a grand bargain. She'd
gotten steamed when I'd refused to tell her what my tuxedo looked
like, so I'd made a deal with her. She gave up a little bit of control and
refrained from asking, or cajoling, or withholding sex to find out
what my tux looked like. In exchange, I let her have her way with
everything else. I got to have a special surprise and she got to have
the wedding just the way she wanted, almost.

Dinner was on the table and a bottle of wine was in the
chiller when Annie came through the door. She went straight to the
couch and lay down, covering her eyes with her hand.

"Sorry for the lousy greeting, but I've got a massive
headache and I'm exhausted. Would you mind getting me some pain
meds?"

After giving her the requested medication, I retrieved her
bags from the car. She was sitting up when I returned. There were
dark circles under her eyes and her skin had a pasty sheen to it. Her
scalp looked a little different, though. It wasn't as shiny as when I'd
last seen it. I ran my fingers over it with as light a touch as I could
muster.

"Is this some sort of weird greeting you picked up while I
was gone?"

"No. I was checking out your new hair. There's not much yet,
but it's definitely there." I took her hand and guided it over this latest
sign of her recovery.

"Oh my God." Annie's eyes lit up and she let out a little
giggle. "You're right, I can barely feel it, but I
can
feel it." With
a cry of what I'm pretty sure was joy, she threw her arms around me.
"Oh E.J., this is the best welcome home I could ever imagine. Thank
you."

As if she'd just replaced worn out batteries with brand new
ones, she popped up and glided into the kitchen. She pulled out a
couple of wine glasses and worked her way back to the couch with a
hip-swaying little dance. The dark circles hadn't magically
disappeared, but her eyes had a gleam that hadn't been there
before.

After I poured, she tipped her glass in my direction. "To you,
my Lucky Star."

While I took a small sip, Annie took a lengthy pull before
plopping down on the couch with a satisfied-sounding, "Ahhhh." She
gave me a peck on the cheek and drained her glass.

"With a reaction like that, I take it you're pleased to have
your hair again."

"Totally. I mean, everybody said it would grow back, but in
the back of my mind there was always a tiny kernel of doubt.
Sometimes I'd catch myself wondering what if I had some freak
reaction to the chemo and it never grew back. Well, I can kick that
little issue to the curb right now." She kissed me again.