Read Online Marriage Can Be Murder -- Every Wife Has A Story (A Carol and Jim Andrews Baby Boomer Mystery) by Susan Santangelo - Free Book Online
Authors: Susan Santangelo
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hotel with all these bigwigs from the firm and their ultra-rich wives. I didn’t know a soul, but I tried to make the best of it. Jeff had given me strict instructions to mingle, and talk to as many people as possible. Especially about him. What a jerk.”
My maternal instinct immediately kicked in. “Honey, what a terrible situation for Jeff to put you in.”
Jim echoed me. “I never liked him,” he said. That wasn’t the way I remembered things, but in the interest of family harmony, I let his remark pass without one of my usual snappy comebacks.
“Anyway, I walked around the room a few times, smiled at a few people, said hi, and made a real effort. But I was very uncomfortable. I decided that holding a glass of wine would give me something to do with my hands and make me feel less self-conscious, so I went outside to the bar to get a drink. I came back to the reception by a different entrance. There was an empty chair at a table near the door, so I sat down and introduced myself. I was amazed at how friendly the people at this table were to me, compared to the ones I’d met before.”
She paused dramatically. “Here comes the punch line now. Jeff came to find me about half an hour later, and it turned out I was at the wrong wedding. The wedding I was supposed to be at was in the next room. And most of the guests were a bunch of stuffy people who had absolutely no connection with the bride and groom. They were business associates and clients of the bride’s father.
“I made up my mind right then that if I ever got married, I didn’t want my wedding to be like that. The only people who’d share in this special day were the ones who meant the most to me.”
She looked at Mark. “To us.”
To his credit, Mark jumped in to support his bride. “Keeping the wedding small is just as important to me as it is to Jenny,” he said. “It’s hard for me to talk about this, but the last time I was engaged,” he grimaced a little at the memory, “Patti’s mom was way over the top with the planning. It was a huge event, with no expense spared. Kind of like what you’d see on a reality television show. The guest list was more than four hundred people. Patti and I didn’t even know most of them. And when I wanted to invite a few of my college buddies, her mom and dad said they couldn’t afford to include any more people.
“I should have stood up for myself right then and there, but I didn’t.” Jenny covered his hand and gave it a squeeze.
“Then, the night before the wedding, Patti didn’t show up for the rehearsal. At first, I thought she was just late. She never was on time for anything. We all stood around the church for an hour waiting for her. Finally, a messenger arrived with a note for me saying she couldn’t go through with the wedding. That she was sorry, but it wasn’t going to work. I never felt so stupid in my life.”
Wow. I knew Mark had been through a bad experience, but he’d never shared the details with Jim and me before.
After hearing what Jenny and Mark had gone through, I felt petty. Small-minded. Selfish. Controlling.
I vowed to be the most supportive parent any wedding couple could ask for. From that moment on.
No matter what.
Chapter 12
You’ll always be my best friend. You know too much about me.
I admit it. Sometimes my mouth has a mind of its own. If you’ve been hanging out with me a while, this will make perfect sense to you. If you haven’t, well, stick around for a few more chapters and you’ll figure it out.
Jim and I had agreed – it was his idea, but I knew he was right, darn it – that we should not get sucked into Nancy and Bob Green’s marital problems. Which meant that I was not, under any circumstances, to tell Nancy that the wedding planner she was so impressed with was also the home wrecker who had destroyed her marriage.
If you think this was easy, think again. Nancy and I had been very best friends since we sat side by side in Sister Mary
My maternal instinct immediately kicked in. “Honey, what a terrible situation for Jeff to put you in.”
Jim echoed me. “I never liked him,” he said. That wasn’t the way I remembered things, but in the interest of family harmony, I let his remark pass without one of my usual snappy comebacks.
“Anyway, I walked around the room a few times, smiled at a few people, said hi, and made a real effort. But I was very uncomfortable. I decided that holding a glass of wine would give me something to do with my hands and make me feel less self-conscious, so I went outside to the bar to get a drink. I came back to the reception by a different entrance. There was an empty chair at a table near the door, so I sat down and introduced myself. I was amazed at how friendly the people at this table were to me, compared to the ones I’d met before.”
She paused dramatically. “Here comes the punch line now. Jeff came to find me about half an hour later, and it turned out I was at the wrong wedding. The wedding I was supposed to be at was in the next room. And most of the guests were a bunch of stuffy people who had absolutely no connection with the bride and groom. They were business associates and clients of the bride’s father.
“I made up my mind right then that if I ever got married, I didn’t want my wedding to be like that. The only people who’d share in this special day were the ones who meant the most to me.”
She looked at Mark. “To us.”
To his credit, Mark jumped in to support his bride. “Keeping the wedding small is just as important to me as it is to Jenny,” he said. “It’s hard for me to talk about this, but the last time I was engaged,” he grimaced a little at the memory, “Patti’s mom was way over the top with the planning. It was a huge event, with no expense spared. Kind of like what you’d see on a reality television show. The guest list was more than four hundred people. Patti and I didn’t even know most of them. And when I wanted to invite a few of my college buddies, her mom and dad said they couldn’t afford to include any more people.
“I should have stood up for myself right then and there, but I didn’t.” Jenny covered his hand and gave it a squeeze.
“Then, the night before the wedding, Patti didn’t show up for the rehearsal. At first, I thought she was just late. She never was on time for anything. We all stood around the church for an hour waiting for her. Finally, a messenger arrived with a note for me saying she couldn’t go through with the wedding. That she was sorry, but it wasn’t going to work. I never felt so stupid in my life.”
Wow. I knew Mark had been through a bad experience, but he’d never shared the details with Jim and me before.
After hearing what Jenny and Mark had gone through, I felt petty. Small-minded. Selfish. Controlling.
I vowed to be the most supportive parent any wedding couple could ask for. From that moment on.
No matter what.
Chapter 12
You’ll always be my best friend. You know too much about me.
I admit it. Sometimes my mouth has a mind of its own. If you’ve been hanging out with me a while, this will make perfect sense to you. If you haven’t, well, stick around for a few more chapters and you’ll figure it out.
Jim and I had agreed – it was his idea, but I knew he was right, darn it – that we should not get sucked into Nancy and Bob Green’s marital problems. Which meant that I was not, under any circumstances, to tell Nancy that the wedding planner she was so impressed with was also the home wrecker who had destroyed her marriage.
If you think this was easy, think again. Nancy and I had been very best friends since we sat side by side in Sister Mary
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