As Chase was explaining that there were some cool parts of Astoria and it was closer to Midtown than people thought, Alexa searched her Penny’s face for some sign that this was all conjecture and that when the two of them, mother and daughter, got a moment alone, they would make the real plans together like they always had. But Penny gazed at Chase as if he were going to save the world, but first, he was going to save her.

This was all Alexa’s fault.

She never should have let Penny wear all that pink and be a cheerleader in high school instead of on the debate team. When she picked college in Dallas instead of Berkeley, Alexa kept her mouth shut. She joined that sorority and Alexa played along, flying in for endless events that made no sense to Alexa, mother-daughter this and mother-daughter that. Alexa, motherless since fifteen and not used to American-style education, was shocked at the outlay of money and effort that went into activities unrelated to academics. Penny, on the other hand, seemed to genuinely embrace the Kappa lifestyle.

Then there was the move to New York after graduation. Alexa could see now that was a mistake. Too much freedom and independent choice. She should have made Alexa intern at Odyssey for at least two years before agreeing to supplement her rent on the Upper East Side. She never thought Penny would love New York. Or meet a man up to her standards. And she never thought she’d move to Queens.

Every Greek immigrant in America knew Astoria, Queens, of course. It was the first stop in the country for thousands of immigrants from her homeland and many put down new roots there and never left. Alexa had made a conscious decision not to move to Astoria, a place where the old-school values still ran deep. She had wanted a fresh start in California. Now it felt like her daughter was rejecting her unconventional upbringing. She was moving to Queens but not inviting her Greek family to the wedding? That would go over well with the Diamandis clan in Athens!

Penny interrupted her thoughts. “Mom, we’ll have all day tomorrow to go over everything. I know we’ll need to talk budget. I understand,” she said, as if her mother were a small child instead of the woman who had raised her all on her own and paid her college tuition in cash because that’s how much she loved her.

Alexa was trying hard to keep a smile on her face when George piped up. “Count the Blakemans in for the rehearsal dinner. And, if you need a tent for the big day, we’ll cover that. Won’t we, Abby girl?”