"Who gives this woman away to be married to this man?" asked the minister, shaking Christina out of her admiration of Richard.

"I do," Alek answered. He looked at Christina who returned his gaze. He knew that his niece was a modern woman, and she didn't look upon the ceremony the same way that he did. For Christina, this was an opportunity to wear a pretty dress in front of the whole town and live out the fantasy wedding that she'd been dreaming of. For Alek, the traditional implication of the ceremony was all too clear. He was giving his precious child away to the care of another man, and he knew that things would never be the same again.

In Concert, by Karin Bishop

Part 7

Chapter 21: Teachers

"Hey Andrei," Steph said with a poorly veiled sense of trepidation. "I got a major 411. Ollie heard through the grapevine that the cops found Christina's car last night. They had it towed to the lot at public services."

"They found her?" he said in disbelief. Andrei did not notice that the rest of the family, including the large German Shepherd that was lurking behind the couch, took notice.

"No," Steph answered. "They just found the car. No Christina."

It was the end of the summer, which was one of the best times on the mountain. The air was still warm enough that no one needed to wear a coat and there were still a few weeks of life left in the world before the chill set in and all the trees that weren’t evergreens started to lose their leaves. To Christina, it felt as though she were walking through an insubstantial world of dust. While everyone else in town was holding on to the last vibrant breath of summer, Christina felt the onset of fall on every inch of her skin.

"I can't believe you," Christina said as she shook her head. "You're so disgusted that you went through all this just to make sure no one in Oak Grove found out about me."

"Is that what you really think?" Richard said with a mix of hurt and anger.

"Why else, then?"

"If I was so ashamed, do you really think I would have told all of my business partners?" he shot back. "Why do you think I cashed in every last favor I had with them to convince them to keep up this charade against their best instincts?"

Christina shook her head. She didn't want to listen to a word he was saying. She eventually asked, "Why?"
 

She of the Jade Skirt

by

Sleethr & Draflow

	Dani makes some plans and buys some hardware for her favorite hobby, blowing stuff up. Melody checks them into a hotel so they can dress for success and spend a ton of money shopping. The Navy SEALS make their own plans.
Image Credit: photo_5466834 from 123rf.com.