“No.” I shook my head. “I can’t believe it. I sure hope you stood your ground.”
“I didn’t know what to say without crying, so I just handed the phone to Phillip.” Crystal sighed yet again. “I only wish I was as thin as my patience right now.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at that one.
She plopped the fork onto her plate. “Of course, if I keep eating like this, I won’t be. They’ll have to let the seams out in my dress.”
“It’s not that bad, Crystal.”
“Wedding. Planning. Is. Stressful.” Just that quick she picked up the fork again and took another bite, pinching her eyes shut.
Tell. Me. About. It.
Her eyes opened and she stared at her plate. “I shouldn’t feel so intimidated, I guess. I should stand up for myself. And I should have a maid of honor I can count on, one who shows up for stuff and actually acts interested. Sienna’s not here, is she?”
“It’s going to be okay, Crystal. I know it is. Everything will come out fine in the end.”
“I hope you’re right. I only plan to get married once.”
“I know.”
She grew quiet for a moment, then looked into my eyes. “I made a mistake letting Mrs. Havenhurst talk me into choosing Sienna, didn’t I?”
I paused to think through my response. “Sienna is Sienna. Nothing much ever changes with her. I’m sure you felt pressured, and no doubt Phillip’s mom sang her praises.”
“Yes, she did. And I wanted to believe every word. I really thought things would be different, that maybe she’d be able to focus on me. On the wedding.” Crystal took another bite, then spoke around the cheesecake. “Guess I was wrong.”
“Maybe she’ll come around.” I tried to sound hopeful.
“Ooh, there’s cheesecake in there?” Derrick’s voice sounded from behind me.
“You girls are missing the party.” I turned just in time to see Phillip enter the kitchen with Derrick on his heels. “What are you girls doing in here?”
Crystal slid her plate in front of me and handed me her fork. “Thanks for the nibble of your cheesecake, Mari, but I’m not really that hungry.”
“W-what?”
She slipped her arm through Phillip’s and changed the subject, talking about the weather.
Derrick watched as my sister and her fiancé left the room, then glanced down at the half-eaten cheesecake. “Um, that’s not yours, is it.” He spoke the words more as fact than question.
“Not even.” I shook my head.
A smile lit his face. “Well, I hate to see good cheesecake go to waste. I say we split the rest of that piece.”
I nodded, excited by that possibility. “Great idea. I’ll get a couple of clean forks.”
Derrick and I sat down at the kitchen table, and somehow he managed to turn my angst into laughter. The guy had a real knack for that. He shared the plans the guys had just made for Phillip’s bachelor party. Then he shifted gears and started telling me about his recent trip to Haiti with an international mission team. I could see the passion in his eyes as he talked about a young man there he supported monthly, about how much he wanted to help him.
“I don’t really talk about it much, but my parents’ divorce really got to me. I was sixteen when it happened.”
“I’m so sorry, Derrick.” Seeing the pain in his expression, I longed to reach out and put my hand over his.
“I buried the pain in . . . bad behaviors.” He shrugged.
“Bad behaviors?”
“Poor choices.” He clenched his jaw. “I . . . well, I got involved in drugs, Mari. And drinking.” He paused and stared into my eyes, as if waiting for me to respond in shock or disbelief.
“You’re obviously not the same person now. Something must’ve happened to change all that.”
“Yes, something definitely happened. It’s been a long journey back from a tough place. And I never would’ve made it if Phillip hadn’t been praying for me.”
“Wow.”
“Yeah, he was there through it all, good and bad. Your sister’s getting a great guy.” He paused and gave me a thoughtful look. “I’ve done all the talking. Sorry about that. What about you, Mari? What were you like as a kid?”
My dad happened through at that very moment and laughed. “I could tell you some stories.” And so, much to my embarrassment, he did. Talk about humiliating. On the other hand, Derrick laughed in all the right places, and even made me laugh a time or two with his responses to Dad’s crazy tales.
After my dad left the room, I told Derrick a couple of stories about my teen years, including a funny one involving a family vacation at a dude ranch when I was fourteen.
“Sounds like fun.” Derrick leaned in close, as if hanging on my every word. It felt good to talk about something other than the wedding.
“Crystal and I had the time of our lives on that trip.” I paused as the memories flooded over me. “You just haven’t lived till you’ve traveled with our family. Things get crazy, trust me.”