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“Of course we made it,” Hands said. “We had to weave our way through traffic cursing the whole time, but hopefully we aren’t too late.” He gave me a big hug, nearly crushing me.

When I could breathe again, I spoke. “You’re not late. We’re just getting started. Slash got stuck in traffic, too.”

He studied me for a moment. “Well, it’s good that you’ve survived long enough to get to this day. I wasn’t sure it was going to happen.”

“Well, things have occasionally gotten a bit…crazy.”

“Abitcrazy?” Hands roared with laughter. “I’ll tell you what. Slash has his hands full with you. You have an uncanny knack for getting yourself in trouble. But you’re also smart, resourceful, and not afraid to face danger when you must.”

“Hey, look who’s talking. You put yourself in far more dangerous situations than me.”

“I would challenge that presumption.”

Gray pushed him aside. “Oh, just ignore him, Lexi.” She gave me a hug and then stepped back with both of her hands on my shoulders. “You look beautiful and content. I can’t wait to catch up with you.”

“Me, too. A lot has happened since I last saw you both.” I turned to my dad, who was still eating his sandwich. “Hands, Gray, this is my father, Winston Carmichael.”

Hands held out a hand, and my dad switched his sandwich to the other hand before grasping it. “Nice to meet you, young man,” Dad said. “I understand you were Lexi’s commander while she was overseas.”

“That’s correct, sir,” Hands said. “She did an amazing job. You should be proud of her.”

“I’m very proud of her. Why do you call her Keys?”

“Oh, because the first time I met her she was head down, banging on the keys of her keyboard. It just kind of stuck.”

From inside the church, we could hear the music began to play. “Come on, we better go inside.” Gray tugged on Hands’s arm. “We can talk more later.”

The two of them disappeared inside the church, leaving Dad and me alone again. “Dad, we have to go in momentarily. What are you going to do with the rest of your sandwich? Give it to the birds?”

“Oh, heck no, I’m not finished with it yet.”

“Well, you can’t take it in with us. How would that look, even if it’s just a rehearsal? But if you leave it out here, it won’t be there when you get back.”

“Don’t worry.” He wrapped the sandwich up in the paper holding it and stuffed it into the back pocket of his pants, with half of it still bulging out. Then he waved at the vulture wannabes above us. “Sorry guys, you’ll have to check out the buffet somewhere else.”

Amanda had finally worked her way back to us with her final instructions. “Make sure you don’t follow too quickly. You want your appearance to be dramatic. So, when you think it is time for you to go, wait an extra beat and still don’t go. When it’spainfullylong, then it is time to go. I’ll help you by cuing the music.”

“That’s it? That’s all I need to know? Wait until it’s painful and then the music cues?”

“Of course that’s not all. You need to smile like you’re really enjoying the moment. If that’s too difficult, just imagine you’re letting everyone know how proud you are to be walking with your dad down the aisle. Remember to go slowly—it’s a small church, and you don’t want to get to the front before the music is finished.”

A seagull swooped down behind us, and Amanda swiped at it until it flew away. “Damn birds. They’re worse than pigeons. At least pigeons pretend to be afraid for a few minutes. The gulls just move out of your range and wait. Come on now, it’s almost your turn.”

She turned and went back into the church. A minute later the Brazilian Wedding Song (Setembro) started playing. Slash and I had chosen it, not only because it was a lovely song full of feeling, but because we felt it was totally appropriate and yet uniquely personal for us.

My father held out his arm, and I slid mine in it. I glanced at him and was surprised to see the joy and pride on his face. And this was only the rehearsal. What would it be like on Saturday? I suddenly understood why they say weddings are more for families than the actual bride and groom. I didn’t owe this moment to my father and mother but sharing it with them was the best gift I could offer them for all the love they’d given me.

We walked slowly into the church and reached the back pew. I was still reflecting on the relationship between the wedding ceremony and families when the seagulls struck. I didn’t see the first one land on the pew near my father and start yanking at his sandwich, but I heard him squawk. I turned just as the seagull yanked on the paper enough to topple the sandwich to the floor. That was the moment the rest of the birds struck. Before I knew it, we had a least a half dozen of the little savages trying to unwrap his sandwich and carry it off.

“Hey!” Dad shouted, dropping to the floor on his hands and knees to recapture the sandwich. They were pecking at him so ferociously I saw blood on the back of his hands.

I shouted at the gulls to get away from him and looked for the nearest thing to help. I picked up one of the metal flower stands from a nearby pew, held it upside down, and swung it at the birds like I was trying to hit a piñata. I wasn’t a good shot, though, as the birds would give way grudgingly and then immediately return when I went after another one.

I lost it when I heard my father go, “Ow, ow, ow.”

Furiously, I swung the flower stand harder. I could hear several other people coming to our aid, but I wasn’t done with the vicious birds. I chased several birds together and swung the stand with the intent of getting rid of them for good.

Unfortunately, that was the moment when my dad decided the sandwich wasn’t worth all the pain. He tried to stand up—right in the path of my swing.