“Yes,” Jilly said, caution in her voice. “What are you thinking of doing?”
Graydon smiled in a way that let her know he wasn’t going to reveal what was in his mind. “I think I should find out about this, don’t you?” He picked up his aunt’s hand and kissed the back of it. “I think I’ll be seeing more of you in the coming weeks.” He looked at Ken, nodded, then walked away.
Ken looked after the young man. “I don’t mean to be nosy, but what was that all about?”
“It seems that our dear Toby can tell the twins apart.”
“You have to give me a clue as to what that means,” Ken said.
“It’s just that identical twins run in our extended family, and there’s a silly—ridiculous, really—saying that whoever can tell the twins apart is a person’s True Love.”
“And Toby can do this with this young man? Graydon, is it?”
“Yes, it seems that she can,” Jilly said.
“Does this mean our Toby has met her True Love?” Ken was smiling at the idea.
“I don’t know, but Graydon is certainly curious.”
“Why do you look so apprehensive?” Ken asked. “Is there something wrong with this young man?”
“With him personally, no. It’s just that the circumstances of his birth are rather extraordinary.”
“What does that mean?”
“Graydon is the crown prince of Lanconia.”
Ken’s eyes widened. “ ‘Crown’ prince? Doesn’t that mean he will be …?”
“That someday he’ll be king? Yes, it does.”
Ken thought about that for a moment. “The first time I held Toby she was about four hours old, and I’ve watched her grow up since then. In my opinion, if your prince can win her, he’s the one who’ll get the prize.”
“I’m not sure, but I think Graydon may feel the same way.”
Smiling, Ken kissed her cheek. “Queen Toby. Sounds good to me.” He took a deep breath, looked at his watch, and the smile left him.
“Is it time to go?”
“Yes,” he said, “it is.” Together, they walked toward the chapel.
Feeling as though he was going to the gallows, Ken walked to the front of the chapel and looked out at the many guests. The little building was packed with chairs full of people and there were more guests standing around the perimeter. They’d brought in generators so the building was lit with soft lights, and the walls were hung with ribbons and what looked to be bouquets of wildflowers. And candles were everywhere.
Standing beside him were three women wearing dresses the color of spilled grape juice. They were to have been Izzy’s bridesmaids and he’d heard that she hadn’t chosen them. The women weren’t pretty to begin with, but their sour expressions made them worse. They?
?d been loudly complaining because no one had given them bouquets to carry. No wonder Izzy ran away! Ken thought.
Since he taught at a major university, Ken knew he should be used to speaking before a crowd, but as he looked at the many men and women, he felt nothing but fear. The people in the little wooden chairs were mostly Izzy’s and Glenn’s relatives.
On the front row, separated only by a narrow aisle, were Glenn’s and Izzy’s mothers. Both women were wearing silk suits and they looked like they had tried to outdo each other with the amount of jewelry they had on. In a dark room they’d still sparkle.
Both women were frowning, glaring really, at each other, and when Ken stepped to the front, they turned their glowers on him. The wedding was already late and there was still no sign of the bride or groom, but Ken knew that Jared was just outside the side door.
“I have an announcement to make,” Ken said loudly, but no one paid any attention to him—which made him look at his ex-wife. She sat at the end of the front row, beside Dr. Huntley, and every once in a while she’d look at the man with a dreamy expression on her face.
What is wrong with her? Ken wondered. She hadn’t taken one potshot at him all day. Usually she couldn’t go fifteen minutes without making a crack about whatever Ken said or did. But not today. He wondered what she was up to.
Louder, Ken called the room to attention and a few people in front stopped grumbling and looked up at him.