Southern Lights: A Novel

Tom saw Savannah and Alexa, and he left the reception line for a minute to kiss them both.

“You look fantastic,” he told Alexa with a tender expression. “I love the dress. Save me a dance.” She was tempted to say “Whatever,” as Savannah would have, but didn’t. It was nice of him to say hello, and Henry came over soon after and crushed his sister in a bear hug.

“Oh my God, I’m going to eat you up, you look so good.” He nuzzled her neck with kisses, and she laughed, and then he grinned at her mother too. “You look beautiful too, Alexa. Really, really great. Sexy dress.”

“Not too much so, I hope,” she said, looking nervous.

“You’re a media star from New York. Screw them,” Henry said, looking dashing in his tuxedo. His was more modern than what most of the men were wearing there, and he had bought it in LA. The groom was wearing white tie and tails.

As predicted, Luisa was too busy to notice Alexa and Savannah. The crowd filtering in to the reception was huge. Scarlette’s parents’ estate was vast. And as people drifted by them, Henry introduced Alexa as his stepmother, which touched her heart. People vaguely remembered the story when he said it, but had forgotten until then that his father had been married before. They thought it was lovely that she and the boys were still close.

She and Henry milled around together for a while, Savannah came and went, Tom appeared for a moment again and reminded her about the dance. And then the family disappeared to take photos with the bride and groom, and Alexa wandered around alone, with a glass of champagne in her hand. She saw some vaguely familiar faces in the crowd, but no one she knew well, and she was relieved.

Henry surfaced again half an hour later, and walked her in to dinner.

She had been given an escort card at the door, with her seat and table number.

“Ooops,” Henry said, as he glanced at hers. “You’re in Siberia. To be expected. My mother must have helped them with the seating.” They were both laughing, because she had expected it too.

“Bless her heart,” Alexa added, and they laughed even harder.

“Precisely. She’s ignoring me tonight because I refused to bring a woman. I can always tell her I brought you.” Alexa was happy to be with him. He was great company and very attentive when he took her to her seat, and then left her for his own at the other side of the tent. Savannah wasn’t at Alexa’s table either. Before he left her, he had warned her that many dignitaries would be there that night, probably the President, the Queen of England, and almost surely the Pope. He was as much fun as he had been as a child, and she had always loved him, although she loved Travis too. Travis had been a much quieter child, but Henry had always been funny and outrageous.

The people at Alexa’s table seemed perfectly pleasant. There were four older couples, most of them her mother’s age, and she was seated next to a Catholic priest, who was very interesting and nice to talk to as they chatted. But contrary to her mother’s hope for her, she was not about to meet Prince Charming tonight. She hadn’t expected to anyway, and didn’t care.

Henry came to visit her several times throughout the evening. She caught glimpses of Savannah and Turner now and then in the distance, and when the music started after dinner, Henry led her onto the floor for a dance. The entire wedding reception was in an incredibly enormous tent.

“Do you suppose they got it at the county fair?” Henry asked her as they started dancing, and she giggled. The tent looked like ten thousand miles of white satin. They had had two dances when Tom spotted them and cut in. The music had just changed to a fox-trot and Tom glided her gracefully around the floor. It was a strange feeling for Alexa to be dancing with him, but she decided to be a good sport and ignore it. They had just made a turn when they crashed heavily into a man walking across the dance floor, probably to get to the bar. Tom ignored him at first and then realized he knew him. He kept Alexa’s hand in his own, but pulled her a few feet with him so he could say hello to the man and not lose her. He looked vaguely familiar to Alexa, but she had no idea who he was. He was about fifty years old, tall and distinguished, with salt-and-pepper hair, and he smiled when he saw Tom, and then even more broadly when he saw Alexa.

“What are you doing here?” he said with a smile, and she assumed he had mistaken her for someone else. Hopefully not Luisa. “I’m sorry?”

“I’ve been watching you on the news for the last month. That was quite a case you won, counselor. Congratulations!” She was amazed that he had recognized her here, and both embarrassed and pleased to be complimented on the case. She had been worried for a minute that his smile of acknowledgment and delight had been aimed at her cleavage, not her brain. This was better.