519 Invitations Had Her Name, I Cancelled the Wedding novel · Chapter 1 of 24
Chapter 1: The Stationer's Boxes
Seven days before the wedding, 520 invitations arrive at Della's door: 519 name Lacey, one names Della with an empty line; she cancels in front of Colin's staff and Conroy waits at her car.
Seven days before the wedding, a stationer's van backed into my driveway and a man carried four boxes up my steps.
"Schuler?" he asked. "Bride's address. Sign here."
I signed and carried the boxes to the kitchen table.
I cut the tape on the top one with a butter knife.
The cards were thick cream paper with a gold edge.
Colin's mother had picked them in August and told me not to worry about the rest.
I took one out and read it.
"Together with their families, Colin James Rutledge and Lacey Anne Drummond request the honor of your presence at their wedding."
Lacey was my maid of honor.
She had slept on my couch last winter when her lease ended, and she had come to every one of my dress fittings.
I read the card again.
Then I opened the second one, and the third, and the fourth.
My phone buzzed on the counter.
Lacey had texted: "Did the cards come?? Send me a photo of the first one, I need to see the gold edge!!"
I didn't answer her.
I texted Colin instead: "The invitations are here. The first one has Lacey's name where mine should be."
He wrote back before I had set the phone down.
"Printer mixed up the files babe. Don't open any more, I'll fix it tonight. Love you."
I looked at the table.
I had already opened every card in the first box, and every one of them said Lacey.
Nobody mixes up a name once. Nobody mixes it up hundreds of times.
I opened the other three boxes and sorted the cards into two piles.
One pile grew until it fell over.
The other pile stayed at a single card.
It was the last one in the last box.
It said "Della Elise Schuler and," and after the "and" the printer had left an empty line.
There was no groom's name, only a gap the width of a name, and then the same gold edge.
Colin was always too busy to finish things.
I thought it was one more thing he had left half done.
The delivery slip said: Quantity 520. Deliver to bride's address. Client: J. Merrow, for Mr. Rutledge.
Conroy Merrow was Colin's best man, and he did every errand Colin was too busy for.
In the big pile, there were 519 cards with Lacey's name on them, and one with mine.
Colin had told me he would be at the staff toast at Rutledge Marine Supply from four o'clock, and that dinner would be at seven.
It was ten past four.
I put the 519 in a banker's box, put my own card on top, and drove to the showroom.
Forty people stood among the display outboards holding paper cups of champagne.
Colin was on a stool by the sales counter with his tie loosened, laughing at something.
Everybody clapped when I came in.
Somebody said, "There she is!"
I set the box on the counter and took out the top card.
"Hi, everyone," I said. "Colin, I'm sorry to interrupt. I want to read you our invitation."
Colin stood up. "Nor, babe, I told you, it's the printer."
I read it out loud.
"Together with their families, Colin James Rutledge and Lacey Anne Drummond request the honor of your presence at their wedding."
Nobody in the showroom moved.
A woman by the register put her cup down.
In the back row, a man lifted his phone and held it up.
Colin tried to smile. "We can talk about this in the car."
"There are five hundred and nineteen of them," I said. "Every one says Lacey."
I held up the last card.
"And this one is mine. It has a blank where you go."
"Della."
"You didn't even finish it."
His face went pale and then stubborn.
"You're embarrassing yourself in front of my staff."
I looked around at the forty people.
Nobody looked back at me, except the man with the phone.
I slid my engagement ring off my finger and laid it on top of my own card.
"The wedding is cancelled," I said.
Colin opened his mouth.
I didn't wait to hear what came out.
So I stepped out.
The parking lot was cold, and the light was going orange over the lake.
Conroy Merrow was leaning against my car with his hands in his jacket pockets.
He must have left through the loading dock.
He didn't look surprised.
"You opened all of them," he said.
"Did you order these?"
"My name's on the slip." He pushed off the car. "They were never supposed to come to your house, Della."
I stared at him.
He opened the passenger door and waited.
"Get in," he said. "I'll show you where the other 519 were going."
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