Honeymoon for Three

at the mirror and the map, he ate with one hand and used the other hand to hold the map as he tried to figure out where they might be headed. The minutes dragged by, and no VW appeared. Why was he so sure they were still in the campground? A map of the campsites was posted in front of the office. He had at least been smart enough to note the number of their campsite last night. He got out of the car and found the number on the map. It was close to the entrance.
    He walked along the side of the narrow campground road, keeping out of the way of the vehicles of families who were departing to explore exotic Lake Tahoe, or gamble in the Nevada casinos. He spotted the green car through the trees. No need to go any closer. He saw Penny as she walked around the car, and his heart gave a bound. She was dressed in shorts and a sweatshirt. She and Gary were packing up. Their tent had disappeared. Only a stove remained on the table. They were about to leave.
    Alfred scurried back to his car. Within five minutes the VW appeared in his rearview mirror. He started his car as the other one rolled by. It paused at the campground entrance and then turned onto Route 50.
    Route 50 went north along the east side of Lake Tahoe, into Nevada, and east through a mountain pass to 395. If they continued north on 395, they would come to—Reno. An awful thought occurred to Alfred, not for the first time. They might be going to get married. But all he could do right now was to keep them in sight.
    ***
    “ Well, here we are in Reno.” Gary drove the car slowly along Virginia Street. “What do we do now?”
    “ Uh, find a place to get married.”
    “Shall we stop at a phone booth and look in the yellow pages?”
    “That won’t be necessary. Look.”
    Gary followed Penny’s pointing finger and saw the freshly painted white building to their right. A sign on it read “Park Wedding Chapel.” A red neon sign that said “Weddings” emphasized its purpose. A fake spire at the top of the building enclosed another neon sign with the outline of a bell.
    Gary parked on a short street in front of the chapel. Penny remembered to take her sweatshirt off before she got out of the car. Gary put a few coins in the parking meter, and they walked hand in hand up four steps and through the front door of the chapel. They entered a small room with red, patterned wallpaper on the lower part of the walls. The carpet was also red. The rest of the room was painted white, including a number of doors.
    The smiling receptionist sat behind a counter. Her hair and clothes were as immaculate as her surroundings. She told them that they could get married as soon as they obtained a marriage license.
    “ The courthouse is closed for lunch. It opens again at one o’clock. It’s right across the street. I suggest that you wait by the entrance so that you’ll be able to get your license when it reopens. Then you can come back here and get married.”
    “Just like that,” Gary said. Events were moving very rapidly.
    “ Just like that.” Her sympathetic look said that being a little nervous was par for the course.
    “Where can we change our clothes?” Penny asked.
    “Right here in our dressing rooms. I suggest you change right now before you go to the courthouse.”
    “They’ve thought of everything,” Gary said, as he and Penny walked back to the car. Even to locating the chapel across the street from the Washoe County Courthouse, an impressive building, complete with Greek columns and a dome.
    “ This is exciting.” Penny carefully removed her dress and Gary’s suit from where they were hung up inside the car.
    Gary took his suit from her. “Look out, world. Here we come, ready or not.”
    ***
    Alfred was frozen. This time it wasn’t cold air; it was the events that were happening right before his eyes. He sat in his car, parked on the street to the side of the chapel, and kept his eyes on the front door. In a few minutes, Penny and Gary would come through that entrance, and when they did they would be married.
    He’d watched as they’d made their initial foray into the chapel, his car partially shielded by another car parked on the other side of the street. Shortly after, he saw them come out, get their wedding clothes out of the car, and return to its hallowed depths. There could be no doubt as to what was happening. Why couldn’t he do something? Many times he had pictured himself getting married to Penny. Standing at the altar, watching her walk