To Have and to Hold (2 page)
Read To Have and to Hold Online
Authors: Laura Dower
“And, of course, they want me to go,” Madison said.
“Of course,” Mom said, matter-of-factly.
“But I won’t,” Madison replied.
“Maddie …” Mom said, making a face.
“I won’t go! I swear!” Madison said.
“Where is the wedding going to be held? With Stephanie’s family in Texas?”
“How did you know that?” Madison asked.
“Lucky guess. So your dad will probably get you a plane ticket….”
“Mom, I said I won’t go!” Madison yelped.
“Rowrorooooo!” Phin yelped, too.
Mom bent down to quiet him.
Madison frowned. “Mom, I don’t
want
Dad to get married again. I don’t want things to change any more than they already have. Don’t you understand? Are you even listening to me?”
Mom’s face softened. She let go of Phinnie and took Madison into her arms. “Of course, I’m listening….”
As they embraced, Phin started to growl. He didn’t like being ignored. Phin nuzzled Madison and Mom with his cold, wet nose.
“Phinnie! Get down!” Madison said, half laughing and half crying.
Mom stepped away. “You’ll be okay, honey bear,” she said. “These things take time, that’s all. You’ll go to the wedding. Everything will work out. I promise.”
Madison nodded, even though she was getting tired of hearing promises she wasn’t sure her parents could keep. She said good night and headed upstairs for bed with Phinnie. Mom disappeared into her office to finish up some last-minute work.
As they reached the top of the stairs, Phin immediately jumped onto the bed and made a comfy spot for himself smack in the middle of Madison’s stack of pillows. Madison went to her desk.
The orange laptop was waiting. It hummed as Madison powered it up.
Madison stared at a framed photograph on the filing cabinet by her desk that had been sitting there so long it had dust around the edges. She hadn’t
really
looked at it for a long time.
It was a photograph that had been taken at Mom and Dad’s wedding, almost fourteen years earlier. Mom was smiling. Dad was smiling. The sun was shining.
Madison leaned up, grabbed the picture, and shoved it into the top drawer of her desk.
The laptop screen flashed and she got online. It was a little after nine o’clock. She hoped that, since it was summertime, her friends would still be on the Internet.
Sure enough, Aimee Gillespie and Fiona Waters, Madison’s two best friends in the world, were chatting online. Madison dropped in on them.
Madison stared at the monitor. She didn’t know how to feel. And she only had two weeks to figure it out.
From: MadFinn
To: Bigwheels
Subject: The Countdown Has Begun
Date: Fri 12 July 8:10 AM
Hey! U aren’t appearing on my buddy list this A.M. But I know it’s early and you prob aren’t even up since ur halfway across the country and it’s like 5 o’clock in the morning there so sorry.
Yesterday we got the invitations for my dad’s wedding. I wanted to throw up. This whole week I thought I was getting used to the idea of him getting married but I guess I thought wrong. They were fancy invites too which is bizarre since Dad keeps saying only like fifteen or maybe thirty people max will be there. And BTW the guest list is mostly STEPHANIE’S family. There are hardly any Finns coming. Dad says it’s no big deal but I think it is. Don’t you?
At the end of the invite there’s this line “regrets only” and I wanted to call him up and shout I HAVE REGRETS, DAD! DON’T DO IT!!! Yeah, but I won’t.
I can’t believe the wedding is now only ONE WEEK AWAY. I don’t even know what I’m wearing. Mom wants to take me dress shopping this week.
I think I will wear all black. How’s that sound? LOL.
I laughed at the jokes u sent me about stepmothers mainly because I can’t believe Stephanie will be my stepmom.
My dad told me that there will be other kids my age at the wedding. I wonder who? Stephanie has nieces and nephews. Hmmmm. I wonder if any of them are cute? (That is so perfect—the worst day of my life so far is coming up and all I can think about is guys? LOL.)
Write again soon, okay? U know I will.
Yours till the wedding bells,
Maddie
P.S.: I cannot believe ur parents let u get another kitten! That is so crazy. Does Pepper the new cat like your cat Sparkles? I am so glad u like animals as much as me. I wish u could meet Phinnie!!!
After logging off, Madison trudged downstairs in her Lisa Simpson T-shirt and slippers. The house was steamy. Summer—along with other upcoming events—was really heating up.
“Good morning, sunshine,” Mom teased when she saw Madison’s gloomy expression.
“Can we put on the air conditioner, please?” Madison asked.
“Just wait until you feel the temperatures in Texas next week!” Mom said, laughing. “I imagine it must get up to ninety degrees or more in July.”
Madison scrunched up her nose and stuck out her tongue. “Dad already told me to pack light. I can’t believe I have to be sticky the whole time. It’s like I’m being punished….”
“Madison,” Mom said seriously. “This week isn’t about you. We’ve had this discussion a few times now. This is your dad and Stephanie’s big day. You are a part of it, but …”
“Okay, okay,” Madison said defensively. “I know, I know.” She poured herself a glass of orange juice. “Where’s Phin?” she asked.
“I think he went down to the basement so he could lie on the cool tile floor,” Mom said.
“Maybe I’ll go spend the day in the basement, too,” Madison joked.
“Very funny,” Mom said. “Actually, I have a big day planned. I need your help in the garden.”
“Oh, Mom, it’s so hot—”
“Maddie,” Mom said, crossing her arms in front of her. “I have had just about enough of your complaining. You’ve been moping around for a week since your dad told you about the wedding.”
“So?” Madison grumbled.
“Honey bear, I really need your help today,” Mom said sweetly. “I have some weeding to do and I need to transplant some of the flowers from the side of the yard. Phinnie can hang outside with us.”
“Okay! I’ll help!” Madison said. She could tell there was no way out.
“I know this has been a hard week with the wedding planning and all,” Mom said.
Madison realized that maybe she wasn’t the only one who had to deal with Dad’s big news. She stared hard at her mom.
“Is it hard for you, too?” Madison asked.
“What? The wedding?” Mom answered.
Madison nodded. “Aren’t you jealous or something? I mean, Dad is getting married, and …”
“And what?” Mom asked.
“And you’re not….” Madison said with a gulp.
“Maddie,” Mom said gently. “You have to understand. Your dad and I have separate lives now. We both love you and share our time with you, but otherwise, our lives are different. And right now, I have no plans to get married. I told you, I’m happy for your father. Believe me.”
“Okay, okay, I believe you,” Madison said, even though she didn’t believe a single word Mom said.
Around ten o’clock that morning, Madison, Mom, and Phin headed into the garden with tools in hand. Mom carried a hoe in one hand and gloves and some small trowels in her portable green gardening bucket. Madison toted a handheld fan that sprayed water. She liked to aim it at Phin. The spray tickled his whiskers, and he did a little doggy dance.
Luckily, the weather wasn’t as hot as Madison had feared it would be. The sky looked clear, and there weren’t many bugs flying around, either. Sometimes, Madison dreaded spending time in the garden, because she was paranoid about bees. Once, when she was younger, she’d disturbed a bees’ nest by accident and sent the entire hive into a frenzy. That was one experience Madison wanted to forget.
Madison loved watching Mom dig in the garden dirt. Mom carefully checked the leaves and roots on her perennials.
“We should cut some of those and put them on the dining-room table,” Mom said, pointing to an array of big, wide-eyed daisies in bright fuschia, gold, and orange (Madison’s personal favorite). Mom had planted the flowers at the beginning of the summer, but they had only just exploded into colorful blooms.
Phinnie sniffed at Mom’s feet. The yard was fenced in as a safety measure, but he always lingered close by whenever anyone was out planting or playing.
Mom shooed Phin away from some of her flowers, and he trotted over to Madison, who was down on her hands and knees digging new holes for transplanted perennials.
“Hello?”
Madison turned around to see her friend peering over the fence gate in the back.
“Aimee!” Madison cried, standing up.
“And Fiona!” another voice called out.
“Hey!” Madison replied.
“Can we come in?” Aimee asked.
Madison unlatched the garden gate. “Of course,” she said. “I was just helping my mom plant.”
“Your flowers look so nice,” Fiona said, complimenting Madison’s mom. “It’s like a rainbow back here. Wow.”
“Thank you, Fiona,” Mom said as she stood up. “Can I get you girls something to drink?”
No one seemed very thirsty, so Mom invited everyone to help plant instead. Aimee and Fiona seemed eager to help.
“I wish I’d brought Blossom,” Aimee said. “She could have played with Phinnie.”
They glanced over at Phin, who was chasing a butterfly near a bush.
“Got your dress for the wedding yet?” Aimee asked.
“Almost,” Madison replied. “Mom and I are shopping this week.”
“I can’t believe the wedding is
soooo
soon!” Fiona squealed.
“I guess I’m getting used to the idea,” Madison admitted halfheartedly. “My dad calls me every day just to make sure I’m feeling good about it.”
“Things will work out, Maddie,” Aimee said, leaning in to give Madison a hug. Fiona joined in.
“I have an idea! Let’s have lunch together. How does that sound, girls?” Mom asked.
Aimee and Fiona brightened. “Totally,” they both said, almost in unison.
Madison giggled. Her BFFs could cheer her up.
The girls knelt down near Madison to help with some of the plantings. Madison showed them how to shake off the dirt and separate the roots.
Mom scurried inside to get the girls’ sandwiches and Phin’s kibble. As soon as she disappeared, Aimee grabbed Madison by the shoulders.
“Tell us everything about the wedding, Maddie!” Aimee said. “I didn’t want to ask when your mom was here, but is Stephanie making you a flower girl, or what?”
“I don’t think she’s even having flower girls,” Madison said.
“I was a flower girl at my cousin Darla’s wedding,” Fiona said. “Last summer in California. I had to wear this ugly, pink dress and take all the braids out of my hair. I hated it.”
“I’ve never been in anyone’s wedding!” Aimee complained. “What’s so bad about being a flower girl anyway?”
Madison hung her head. “Being a flower girl is not as cool as being a bridesmaid,” she said.
“Don’t you have to be in high school to be a bridesmaid?” Fiona asked.
“I didn’t know there were rules about all that stuff,” Madison said.
Aimee plucked one of the flowers from the pile of plants they were replanting and presented it to Madison on bended knee. “For the flower girl,” she said, laughing.
Madison stuck the yellow bud in her ponytail. “Very funny, Aim.”
“What are you getting Stephanie and your dad for a present?” Fiona asked.
Madison’s face went blank. “A present?”
Aimee rolled her eyes. “Maddie! It’s a wedding. How could you forget that you need a wedding gift?”
“I only have a little money saved from baby-sitting,” Madison said. “I can’t afford a real gift.”
“There’s a major sale at the Far Hills Shoppes next weekend,” Aimee said.