Page 43 of Kiss the Bride

He braced himself. “Bad news?” His head filled with images of police cars and firetrucks.

The young groom studied his toes. “Sort of. I was given an extra month of leave when we were selected for Wedding-in-a-Week. That meant I was supposed to report to Camp Geiger at the end of July. But I just got new orders. I have to report in nine days. Brianna, she’s having a hard time with that.”

“I am not!” The slim blonde tugged on her ear while she stamped her foot. Her eyes wide, she stared at Daniel. “I just asked if you told your boss you’d be in Hawaii then.”

“And I told you, I can’t argue with my CO!” Defiant, Daniel lifted his head to meet his fiancée’s gaze.

“You were going on your honeymoon,” Ryan said, fitting the peg into the hole. No wonder they were upset. No matter how committed they both were to Daniel’s military career, canceling the trip had to be a huge disappointment.

Brianna hung her head. “Daniel doesn’t think I’m cut out to be a military wife. He’s giving up on us.”

“You’re making me out to be the bad guy here.” The young man’s expression stiffened. “I’m having just as hard a time with the change as you are, Bri.” He turned away from his fiancée. “I was all set. I knew life in the Marines was going to be tough. They tell us that in boot camp—how hard it is on wives and families. But knowing what to expect is half the battle, right? That’s what I thought until I got these new orders. Now, I have to report two weeks earlier than we’d planned. It’s made me see how I could get sent halfway around the world at a moment’s notice. It’s not fair to do that to Brianna.”

The kid was talking in circles. Ryan had to straighten him out. “What do you mean?”

“I think … I think we should call off the wedding,” Daniel said, looking like he’d just agreed to have a root canal without Novocain.

Brianna’s shoulders slumped as if she was on the verge of collapse. “If that’s what you want …”

“Whoa! Wait a minute.” Ryan held up his hand. He got that the news was upsetting, but how had these two people who obviously loved each other gone from disappointment to canceling their wedding in under sixty seconds? He stole a glance at Evelyn, who stood white-faced and in shock like the rest of them. As he watched, she shook herself and squared her shoulders.

“Let’s all just sit down and talk about this, shall we?”

Her no-nonsense tone cut through the room like a drill sergeant’s, and Daniel didn’t argue. His movements stiff and unnatural, the young man headed for one of the tables. In silence, he pulled a chair out for Brianna. She slid onto it without complaint. Daniel sank onto the seat beside her. By unspoken agreement, Ryan and Evelyn sat opposite the unhappy duo.

“Okay, let’s all take a breath,” Evelyn began, her voice softening. Across from her, tears seeped from between Brianna’s closed eyelids, while Daniel merely stared at a spot on the wall. Ryan fought the urge to drum his fingers on the table. The next time he saw Alicia, they were going to have a little talk about making Wedding Counseling 101 a prerequisite for working with Wedding-in-a-Week couples.

The silence stretched out for a bit. When he thought everyone had calmed down, Ryan cleared his throat. He directed his first question to Daniel. “Want to tell me what’s going on here?”

Tight-lipped, he held up his hands, his palms empty. “She expects me to argue with my CO and get him to change my orders. Will you tell her I can’t do that?”

Ryan felt his pulse thud while he studied Brianna closely. Admittedly, he didn’t have a whole lot of experience with angry young women, but if he had to guess, he’d say this one wasn’t demanding anything.

“I don’t think she’s asking you to.”

“Ryan’s right. Isn’t he, Brianna?” Evelyn interjected.

The thin blonde steadied herself with a shuddery breath. “I admit I could’ve reacted better when you first gave me the news, Daniel. It came out of the blue. I was so shocked, I needed a minute. That’s all it was, I swear.” Brianna swiped at her cheeks and straightened. “I may not know a lot about what it means to be a Marine, but I know you have to go where you’re told, when you’re told. And if the Marines want you in Camp Geiger, you’ll be there.”

“Yeah, but …” Daniel’s face flushed. “I know how much you were looking forward to Hawaii. You deserve to be with someone who can take you on a proper honeymoon.”

“Daniel Johnston.” Brianna tapped the table with one finger. “If you think you’re getting rid of me that easy, think again. We’ll take our honeymoon later. The next time you have some vacation.”

“Leave. In the military, it’s called leave.” The harsh lines in Daniel’s face softened.

“Leave, then. We’ll go to Hawaii the next time you have leave.”

Daniel’s head swung from side to side. “That’s the problem. I can’t promise you we’ll ever get to Hawaii. Or that I’ll be home for Christmas. Or our anniversary. Or any of the other holidays or special dates. I love you. You know I’d do anything in the world for you. But you deserve a better life than the one I can give you.”

“So your answer is to leave me?” Fresh tears welled in Brianna’s eyes.

Ryan shook his head. He’d never taken a counseling class in his life, but he knew a thing or two about love and marriage. To begin with, if he was ever lucky enough to find his soul mate, he wouldn’t walk away from her at the first sign of trouble. He might have to make some adjustments. There might be compromises. But he’d stick with it. No matter what.

The real question here wasn’t whether Brianna was better off without Daniel. It was whether they cared deeply enough to make their relationship work. “I know you two love each other. But marriage takes more than that. It takes commitment. Brianna just said she’s in it for richer or poorer, for sickness and in health, for the rest of her life. Can you say the same thing, Daniel?”

The young groom grasped his fiancée’s hands. His voice thick with emotion, he said, “If it was up to me, I’d never leave your side.”

“Well, I’m glad that’s settled.” Relief washed through Ryan, and he took a deep breath. A breath that froze in his chest when Daniel spoke again.

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