A few days later, David and Leona's wedding day finally arrived. But Alex still did not know that Leona would be the bride that day. As far as he knew, it was Lindsey and David who would be wed.
After breakfast on that day, Alex gathered the Moon girls around him. "There's a big wedding in town today," he said. "It could be a lot of fun. You should go and have a look."
Alex felt bad for the girls. They had hardly left the house since they moved in, and they only had each other for company.
He had asked them to go out and have fun many times, but they had been afraid to fail in their duties. They were always close by. Celeste was always there watching the other three.
Celeste brought him a cup of hot tea and said, "Serving you is the best thing we could ask for, Mr. Alex."
Selene nodded and smiled sweetly.
Alex was touched. "You're so kind to me. Is it because of what happened to Georgina?"
All four of them shook their heads. Celeste said, "At the beginning, it might have been because of what happened to our old master. And because you're our new one. But you've been very kind to us, and we like doing things for you."
Selene also spoke up. "Mr. Alex, you've been so good to us. You're not only our Lord, but you care about us. You let us rest and go to bed early every night. You're so considerate, and we want to do what we can to pay you back. It makes us feel less guilty."
Callisto and Luna nodded in agreement.
Alex felt very grateful. "You've been truly kind to me, girls. I'll never forget it."
The girls all blushed.
Celeste leaned forward slightly and whispered, "Mr. Alex, there's still a way we could go. We've talked about it. As long as we're around you and see that you're happy, it doesn't matter where we are."
Selene, Callisto, and Luna nodded.
Alex didn't know what to say, but he felt very happy. He knew what Celeste was trying to say. He clapped his hands and stood up. "Girls, today I'll take you to play in the city! Get ready!"
The girls were excited, and they ran to their rooms to prepare themselves for a day in town.
When they were gone, Alex took out his phone. He had been expecting a wedding invitation from Lindsey, but he hadn't heard from her.
But today's her wedding day, he thought. Even if she doesn't want me there, I should at least call and congratulate her.
**
At that same moment, Lindsey was in her sister's room. She was standing in front of Leona, who sat on the bed in her wedding dress. Because she was overcome with pre-wedding jitters, she had asked her sister to come and talk to her.
"Leona, please remember how you're feeling today," Lindsey said and took Leona's hand. "Then, when I get married, I'll be prepared for what it's like."
Leona smiled. She felt a little less nervous.
Just then, Lindsey's phone rang. It was Alex calling. Lindsey and Leona gave each other and look, and then she answered.
"Hey, Lindsey. Congratulations on your wedding today. I can't come, so I wanted to call and congratulate you."
What do I do? Lindsey asked herself. Should I tell him that it's Leona who's getting married, and not me?
Leona could sense what Lindsey was thinking, and she took her sister's hand and shook her head. She knew that if Lindsey told Alex that she was the one getting married, he might do something stupid.
Lindsey calmed down. "Thanks, Alex. I'm sorry I didn't invite you. I hope you're not angry."
"No, of course not. I only want you to be happy. Well, I'm sure you're busy, so I'll let you get back to it. Bye!" With that, Alex hung up the phone.
"Goodbye," Lindsey said, but Alex was already gone. She suddenly felt very guilty.
Leona saw it on her face and decided to comfort her. "It's okay, Lindsey. You know I don't like him. If you'd told him, he could have done something stupid. Once I marry David, maybe he'll finally get that I'm not his girlfriend 'Debbie.' You're protecting him."
"But I—" Lindsey tried to protest, but she couldn't finish. She was still feeling so guilty that she didn't know what to say.
"Listen, today is my wedding day," Leona said. "If you're not happy, then I won't be either. Just listen to me and smile, okay?"
But Lindsey was still unhappy, and she could only make the faint trace of a smile. Leona saw this and tried to encourage her. "There you go! Isn't everything better when you're smiling?"
Leona turned to her bedside table and took out the beautiful jade pendant. She handed it to Lindsey. "Lindsey, please take this and have it on you at the ceremony."
Lindsey was surprised. "But Dad said that it must always stay in your room. You should put it back."
Leona shook her head. "It's important to me. Marriage is a big event in life, and I want it there when I get married. Besides, I'll take it with me anyway when I go to live with David. Lindsey, please hold it for me. If you don't, I'll feel like my wedding is missing something."
Lindsey didn't know what to do. Their father had once told her that her sister's pendant must be hidden from anyone outside the family. But the way Leona was looking at her, she couldn't refuse. "All right," she said. "I'll take it with me."
**
After Alex had hung up the phone and the girls had gotten ready, they left the house and took a taxi to the centre of Washington D.C. The taxi dropped them off on a busy street where there were many tourists.
Alex could tell that many of the men on the street were looking at him enviously. One young man, in particular, was staring at Alex and the girls while walking down the street and eating a sandwich. He was so preoccupied that he walked right into a lamp post and smeared sandwich dressing all over himself.
The Moon girls saw this and started giggling. Alex was glad to see that they were enjoying themselves.
When they had been walking around for about thirty minutes, Celeste and Selene went to get them all something to eat. Alex sat down on the sidewalk, and Callisto and Luna knelt and started rubbing his shoulders.
Alex was a little uncomfortable with this, and he said to them, "Don't worry about me. You should also sit down and rest a little."
Callisto and Luna smiled at him, and Callisto said, "Mr. Alex, you've been out walking with us for such a long time. You're sweating, and you must be tired. Let us give you a little massage."
"You don't need to give me massages out in the open," Alex protested. "It makes me uncomfortable."
"There's nothing wrong with it," Callisto responded. "Just sit still and relax for a few minutes, and you'll be good as new."
While she was talking, Celeste and Selene came back with hamburgers and bottles of soda.
Alex took a hamburger and a bottle of Coke, and then he told the girls to also sit down and eat. He was worried that they might leave all the food for him, but they all took a hamburger and sat down to eat.
Suddenly, Alex noticed that well over ten men had gathered around them. They were staring at him and murmuring about this lucky guy who was out by himself with four beautiful girls.
Their words made Alex even more uncomfortable than he already was, but the four girls were enjoying their food and hadn't noticed what was happing around them. The whole thing was so surreal that Alex couldn't help but laugh.
They finished their meal under the watchful eyes of the crowd, and then they went back to wandering the streets.
After a little while, they found themselves in a much bigger crowd, but these people were not focused on Alex. Instead, they were watching something that was happening further down the street.
Suddenly, someone in the crowd exclaimed, "The wedding car is coming!"
Several cars came driving slowly down from the far end of the street. Most of them were black Porsches of the same model, which were positioned in the front and back of the motorcade. In the centre was the main car of the bride and groom. It was a white Rolls Royce decorated with heart-shaped flowers.
The whole crowd took out their phones and started taking pictures.
Alex and the girls were standing at the back of the crowd. He tried to get a good look at the wedding car, but he could not see what was happening inside it. At one point, he caught a glimpse of David, but he could not see his bride.
The whole thing was over in only a few minutes, and the crowd stood buzzing with excitement after the cars had passed. The wedding party's schedule was common knowledge. "They'll drive to David Drake's house now," Alex heard one girl saying. "The ceremony will be held there at twelve. I'm going over there. Does anyone want to come?"
Many people seemed to be having similar thoughts, and the crowd started dispersing.
Alex could tell that the girls were all itching to go. "If you want to go, I'll take you," he said to them. "I actually know the bride. She's a friend of mine."
The girls were very excited, and Celeste said, "Thank you, Mr. Alex! We've never been to a wedding like this. We really want to see it."
Alex shook his head slightly. He hoped that he was treating the girls well, but they seemed overly happy with everything he did or said. He couldn't tell if they were really pleased or just trying to please him.
Just when they were about to leave for David's house, his phone rang. He recognized the number. It was someone from his family, but he couldn't remember who.
Who could it be? He hesitated for a moment, and then he answered the phone.
"Alex! Hey! You haven't forgotten your favorite cousin, have you?" said the voice on the other end. It was the voice of a handsome and intelligent young man, clear and full of confidence.