Faces of Fear

“They won’t,” Alison said. “I already tried.”

When they all had glasses in their hands, Risa raised hers high. “To us,” she said. “First, to Scott, not for just finding Henrik and doing everything he could to make this day perfect, but for taking such good care of Michael, too. And to Michael, for still being my best friend.” She turned to Alison. “And most of all, to you, sweetheart, for putting up with your father and me while we sorted things out.” They all took a sip, then Risa stepped over next to Alison and raised her glass once more, this time to Michael and Scott. “May Conrad and I be half as happy as you two.”

“Now I really do want to give you away,” Scott grumbled, though the slight tremble in his voice belied the sarcastic tone he’d aimed for. “Aren’t we all just the image of the perfect American family?” Giving Risa and Alison each a careful peck on the cheek, he ushered them to the front door. “Now get out of here, both of you — you don’t want to be late for your own wedding.”

Risa followed Alison through the courtyard and gardens of the hotel, reveling not only in the perfect spring afternoon, but in everything else as well.

She was getting married.

She was going down to the edge of the swan lake, to be married to Dr. Conrad Dunn.

And it all felt right.

ALISON WATCHED Conrad kiss her mother after the judge pronounced them husband and wife, barely able to believe it had all happened. Even as she stood behind her mother under the bower next to the swan lake, the afternoon sun warming the air to a perfect temperature, the air itself perfumed by the profusion of flowers that filled the hotel grounds, it was still almost impossible to believe it was all real. And yet it was — the next words she heard brought the reality home with enough force that she almost cried.

Almost, but not quite.

“It is now my great pleasure to present Dr. and Mrs. Conrad Dunn,” Judge Rousseau said, and everybody who had been sitting in the white satin-covered folding chairs rose and began to applaud.

Alison handed her mother’s bouquet back to her and prepared to take the best man’s arm, to follow the bride and groom out from under the bower and down the aisle toward the lawn on which the reception would be held. But before she knew what was happening, Conrad smiled at her, put his arm around her, and drew her up so she and her mother were both beside him.

Not even close to what they had done at the rehearsal, and as Conrad’s hand tightened around her waist, Alison resisted an urge to pull away from him.

This was her mother’s wedding day, and she would do whatever it took to not let anything spoil it. Her mother loved Conrad, and she would learn to like him. Or at least she would find a way to tolerate him for a couple of years until she went to college. But even as she forced herself not to pull away, her skin crawled at his touch. Stop it, she told herself. Mom loves him, and he loves her, so just deal with it.

Still, relief flowed through her as she moved next to her mother in the receiving line while Conrad stayed on the other side with his best man, someone named Alex Fox, who hadn’t even bothered to show up for the rehearsal yesterday. For the next twenty minutes she stood almost mute as her mother met one after another of Conrad’s friends, colleagues, associates, and clients, and then introduced them to her.

Her mother, she knew, would remember every one of their names from now on. She herself couldn’t remember a name the second after she’d heard it, and the twenty minutes in the receiving line seemed to go on for hours.

When the last of the well-wishers had finally filed by, Alison heard her mother tell Conrad she was going to the ladies’ room to repair her makeup, and she felt a new wave of relief at the prospect of getting away from the mass of people, even if only for a couple of minutes.

“Don’t be long, Mrs. Dunn,” Conrad said, kissing the tips of his wife’s fingers. “And while you’re gone, I’ll introduce Alison to some of her new classmates.”

Alison’s relief ebbed as quickly as it had flowed over her a moment ago as Conrad took her arm to steer her through the throng of people on the lawn, some of them already picking at the tables laden with food, but far more of them edging toward the bar. They passed the head table, adorned with an exquisite centerpiece of white orchids so perfectly arranged that they wouldn’t interfere with anyone’s sightlines even when the table was full. Alex Fox was already sitting there, two drinks in front of him, and for a moment Alison had a horrible feeling that Conrad was about to abandon her to the nearly empty table. Instead, though, he steered her over to a table where five kids about her own age were chattering together, at least a dozen empty champagne glasses in front of them.

“Hey, guys,” Conrad said. The group at the table fell silent, a couple of them glancing guiltily at the empty glasses, but Conrad paid no attention to them. “This is Alison Shaw. She’ll be joining you at Wilson after spring break.”

Alison flushed as one of the girls eyed her appraisingly. “Love your dress,” the girl finally said.

Unsure if she meant it or was being sarcastic, Alison decided she didn’t care. At least it was an opportunity to escape from Conrad, and she seized it in an instant.

“Thanks,” she said, dropping into one of the empty chairs at the table, but not relaxing until Conrad headed back to the head table to join his best man.

“I’m Tasha,” a deeply tanned girl with thick brown hair said. She nodded toward the small blonde sitting next to her, the one who had commented on Alison’s dress. “This is Dawn, and these guys”—Tasha swept the three boys with a look of mock scorn—“think they’re far hotter than they are. We only put up with them because so far nothing better’s come along.”

“Plus,” one of the boys put in, “almost all our parents have been married to each other at one point or another, which means dating each other would be incestuous.” He leered at Dawn. “Not that I’m always opposed to incest. Just as long as we don’t have any two-headed babies.” He grinned at Alison. “I’m Trip, and these two are Cooper and Budge.”

“Budge?” Alison echoed without thinking, then wished she could take it back when she saw the boy, who was shorter than the other two boys and looked a lot younger, blush.

“His real name’s even worse,” the lanky boy, Cooper, said. “That’s why we call him Budge. Back when we were all in first grade, we thought it was cool. So now he’s stuck with it. Right, Budgie-poo?” he added, grinning maliciously at the shorter boy, who responded by punching Cooper in the arm, hard enough to make it hurt. “All right, all right,” Cooper cried. “Budge! I’ll never call you Budgie-poo again!”

“Right,” Budge replied. “And you’ll also invite me to wherever you’re going for spring break. And you’ll go liberate some more champagne for us.”

“That’s what we were talking about when Dr. Dunn brought you over,” Dawn said as Cooper got up and headed for a waiter who was just leaving the bar with a tray full of champagne.

“So where are you all going?” Alison asked.

“Dawn and I are going to France,” Tasha said. “Dawn’s dad isn’t using their jet, so we get it all to ourselves.”

“Maybe I should go with you instead of Cooper,” Budge said. “Or not,” he added when Tasha rolled her eyes.

“I’m going skiing,” Trip said.

“Yeah?” Budge asked. “Where?”

“St. Moritz,” Trip replied as Cooper returned bearing the tray he’d “liberated” from the waiter. “With the fam.”

“Can I come?” Budge asked.

Everybody ignored him.

“St. Moritz!” Cooper said. “I’m only going to Key West.”

“Okay, so I guess I don’t want to go with you,” Budge said. “My dad has a house in Aspen, so that’s where we’re going. I hate it, but it’s better than Key West.”

“What about you, Alison?” Tasha asked.

“Nowhere,” Alison said. “I’m staying with my dad for the week, and then when Conrad and my mom get back from their honeymoon, we’ll be moving.”

“And then,” Tasha said, “you’ll get all the liposuction, implants, nips, and tucks you want for free.”