Born Under a Lucky Moon by Dana Precious Page A

chance we might be on time.” Elizabeth whisked out of the room. She was nothing if not efficient. We followed her orders. She was a TV commercial producer in L.A., and man, she knew how to produce. She was used to problems on set like, “The props have been misrouted to Taiwan and we shoot in an hour. The props person is crying in the corner and downing Vicodin. Unless we find a fifteenth-century coat of armor for a horse we’ll lose the shoot day and three hundred thousand dollars.” Our family had probably prepared her pretty well for her job, too, come to think of it.
    Everyone hustled out the door with the exception of Mom and Dad, who were waiting for Evan and Ron. We drove the six minutes across the Causeway Bridge and arrived at the Century Club. Predictably, we got Doris Day parking at the curb, right in front of the oversized doors.
    The Century Club had been a formidable men’s club in its day. The lumber barons of Muskegon, and later the auto parts barons, would gather in the drawing rooms to smoke cigars and sip scotch and sodas. The club began to decline in the seventies and most of the older men blamed it on the admittance of women.
    Elizabeth strode in as though she were storming the citadel, with Sammie and me meekly following. I split off from them to go check the place cards. Elizabeth called over her shoulder, “Jeannie, go check the place cards.” Before I could tell her I was already doing just that, she disappeared with the social director to go over the menu my mom had already gone over.
    Sammie gave a cursory glance at the cards, moving her own from next to Anna to next to Evan. I went through them more carefully, comparing the cards to the seating chart Mom and I had worked out earlier in the day. Sammie stopped at Lucy’s and Chuck’s place cards. They were not at the head table but at a table next to Mom and Dad. Mom, after much thought, had decided not to torment Evan and Anna more than necessary and had made sure they had the place of honor to themselves.
    â€œThis just doesn’t seem right. Did anybody consult with Elizabeth on the protocol for this?” Sammie asked.
    â€œThere is no protocol for two weddings in the same family on the same weekend when one of them is a surprise. Mom had to go without a safety net on this one.”
    Elizabeth motioned to me from the doorway. I walked over. “They say they need a check right now for the caterer.”
    â€œTell them to wait until Mom gets here.”
    â€œThey can’t. The caterer needs to leave and he won’t leave the food without a check.”
    â€œWhere’s your checkbook? If I write a check it’ll bounce.”
    â€œI don’t have one.”
    â€œYou don’t have one?” I have a bad habit of repeating people when I’m sure they can’t be saying what they’re saying.
    â€œI’m not a signatory on our checking account,” she hissed. “Ron just gives me cash when I ask.” I stared at my sister, the one who wore her hair in a French chignon, who hobnobbed with celebrities, who had started her own company just a few years out of college.
    â€œYou’ll have to ask Sammie.”
    â€œWill you ask her? And please don’t tell her that I don’t have a checkbook.”
    I went back over to Sammie. “Got a check? Caterer needs it. Mom’ll pay you back.” Sammie rummaged in her purse and wrote out the check, which I ran back and gave to Elizabeth.
    â€œYou didn’t tell her?” Elizabeth asked anxiously.
    I shook my head as Elizabeth took a deep breath, then calmly took the check to the back. The big doors opened and Anna, her parents, and her two brothers stepped in. Since I was standing directly in front of them I couldn’t do anything else but play hostess in my mother’s absence.
    â€œWelcome. Hi. How are you?” I grasped each of their hands and did the European air kiss on both sides thing.