Daughters Of The Bride (31 page)

She’d done her own fluffing at her place. Sienna was easy—she also did her own makeup, and her short hair didn’t require much. Courtney had taken a bit of time. They’d decided on a sleek, low ponytail and a smoky eye. Her baby sister was getting more beautiful by the day. Now Rachel finished up with her mother and reached for the can of hair spray.

“Are you nervous?” she asked.

Maggie covered her face with her hands as Rachel sprayed her hair. “I’m excited and fluttery, but only in a happy way. I’m so blessed. Neil’s wonderful.”

“He is.”

Rachel finished spraying. “All right, Mom. You’re gorgeous.”

Someone knocked on the bride’s room door. Rachel crossed to it and saw Joyce in the hallway.

“I had to come and see your mother,” she said happily. “Can I come in?”

Maggie rushed to greet her friend and they embraced.

“Are you excited?” Joyce asked.

“Yes. Everything is beautiful.”

“I’m so sorry about the bees.”

“Don’t be. They’re not a problem for me and they’ll be a wonderful story to tell.”

Rachel left the two women talking and retreated to the bathroom to get dressed. She’d done her hair simply—half up, half down with a few curls. She pulled off her yoga pants and T-shirt and put them in her tote, then stepped into the dress.

It fit well, skimming her curves without being so tight that she needed shapewear. Today was officially her cheat day, and she planned to enjoy it.

She checked her makeup, then returned to the bride’s room. Joyce was holding up Maggie’s dress.

“Come on,” the older woman said. “Let’s get you into this.”

They retreated to the bathroom. Rachel started cleaning up her supplies. There was another knock on the bride’s room door.

“Busy place,” she murmured as she went to open it for the second time.

She was surprised to see Greg in the hallway, looking handsome in his medium gray suit and white shirt. He was even wearing a tie. She couldn’t remember the last time that had happened.

“I have to talk to you,” he said, his dark gaze urgent. “Now.”

He took her hand and pulled her out into the corridor, then down the hallway to a door marked
Linens
. He opened it, drew her inside and then locked the door behind them.

The room was small—maybe ten by ten, lined with shelves filled with stacks of linens. There was a maid’s cart at one end and a big desk at the other.

She looked at her ex. “What’s going on?”

“This.”

He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. No, that was wrong. He
claimed
her with his mouth, taking everything she had in those few seconds of contact. Heat and need and a deep emotion she was terrified was undying love swelled up inside her. Just when she was about to give in, he drew back.

“We have got to work on our communication skills,” he told her. “Dammit, Rachel, I have been trying to get us back together. I thought you knew that. I thought I made it clear.”

“Well, you didn’t. You weren’t clear at all. You were smug, but not clear.”

“I was courting you.”

He was? “I totally missed that.”

“Apparently. When you said you called me last, I thought there wasn’t any hope. I gave up. I’m sorry. That was wrong.”

She thought about how she’d changed over the past few months and what she’d learned about herself. This was it—the moment to be brave.

“Then let’s start over.” She stared into his eyes. “Greg, I really didn’t want to bother you at work. That was all. Had you not been at the station, I would have called you in a heartbeat. I swear.” She pressed her lips together, offered a brief prayer for strength, then admitted, “I love you. I’ve been in love with you from our very first date. That hasn’t changed for me. Even when we got divorced, I loved you.”

One corner of his mouth turned up. “Yeah?”

“Yeah. I’ve been hopeful and scared and angry, all at the same time. I want things to work out between us. I want us to be good together. I don’t want to lose us.”

“Me, either.” He cupped her face again. “Rachel, you’re my world. You and Josh. But one day he’s going to grow up and get his own life and then it will be us. I want that with you. I want forever. I’ve been trying to show you that I’m a better man now. That I’m worthy. I love you so much.”

Tears filled her eyes. “You’ve always been worthy.”

“Before,” he began.

She stopped him with a kiss. “We’ve said all we have to say on that. It’s done. We need to move on.”

He gazed into her eyes. “Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Because forgiveness made them both stronger.

He urged her to take a step back, then another. “You never lost me, Rachel. After the divorce, I didn’t go out with anyone else. Not even once.”

“Me, either.”

“You’re the one for me. I love you.”

She bumped into the table.

Greg kissed her again. “Just to be clear, we’re getting back together?”

Her heart pounded in her chest. “I’d like that.”

“Me, too.” He grinned. “I’ve been saving money for us. We can pay down the mortgage, if you want. Or cut back on work and we can have another baby. Or go to Europe. I want you to be happy, Rachel.”

“Oh, Greg. Yes to whatever you want. I love you.”

She flung her arms around him. He held her tightly against him.

“I swear I’ve learned from my mistakes,” he whispered fiercely.

“I have, too. I’m going to ask for help and tell you what I need.”

He kissed her again. Desire filled her, making her weak and desperate.

“Greg,” she breathed, reaching for his hands and putting them on her breasts.

He groaned and rubbed his erection against her belly. “I want you, Rach. Always.”

“I know. Me, too.” It had been five lifetimes since they’d made love. “But the wedding.”

“Screw the wedding.” He chuckled. “So to speak.”

She laughed, then gave a little shriek as he lifted her onto the table. “We can’t!”

“Sure we can. I can make you come in less than a minute.”

Well, that was true. He knew exactly what to do to her. “I can do the same with you.” Then she remembered and pushed him away. “I’m not on birth control. I went off to give my body a rest. Unless you brought condoms with you.”

He gave her a slow, sexy smile. “I didn’t.” He reached behind her and drew down the zipper of her dress. “I love you, my beautiful wife. And I want more babies with you.”

“I want that, too.”

“Then I would say this is our lucky day.”

31

COURTNEY TOLD HERSELF
that as long as she kept moving and breathing, she would be fine. It was a simple combination. Even single-celled creatures had some sort of respiration system, right? So she was fine. Perfectly fine. And later, when the wedding was over and everything had gone brilliantly well, she was getting incredibly drunk.

The reception had been moved to the ballroom. All the decorations were up, and the tables and chairs were in place. The problem of the ceremony had been solved. The photographer was already taking pictures, the guests were due to arrive within the hour and then there would be a wedding, and really, everything was going to be just fine.

Lucy, one of the maids, hurried toward her with the strangest look on her face. Courtney told herself not to panic.

“What’s up?” she asked, hoping she sounded calm.

“I need your help with something.”

“Okay.” Courtney thought about pointing out she had a wedding to put on, but why state the obvious?

“I need to do turndown service for the bungalows,” Lucy told her.

The high-end rooms were provided with evening turndown service. Courtney wasn’t sure what that had to do with anything.

“And?”

“I can’t get in the linen closet. The door is locked with the bolt, so my key won’t work.” Lucy looked away, then back at her. “One of the bellboys said that he saw your sister and brother-in-law going into the linen closet.”

That was it. A couple of sentences and she stopped talking. Courtney processed the information before blurting, “Oh, my God! Are you saying Rachel and Greg are having sex in the linen closet?”

Lucy flushed. “I think so.”

Courtney didn’t know if she should laugh or simply curl up in a ball and surrender. “Fine,” she said at last. “I’ll deal with it.” Even though she didn’t have the faintest idea how.

* * *

David’s flight had been delayed, which meant Sienna hadn’t had time to speak to him yet. She’d been forced to shift her breakup plan to post-wedding. All of which was fine except she’d totally forgotten about pictures. There were going to be pictures.

There was no way David could be in them. Not when she was ending things. But as her fiancé, he would expect to be right there with the family. And everyone else would expect it, too. Which was why she was pacing at the rear of the resort, waiting for him to arrive.

Talk about tacky. She was going to break up in a hotel parking lot. It was a new low. Still, the tackiness of the moment didn’t change her resolve. David had been wrong for her from the start. Although the bigger mistake had been hers. She should have told him no when he proposed. Or at least the next day. But she’d gone along. She’d been too afraid to believe her feelings, to accept the fact that, yes, she would have three broken engagements in her past. She hadn’t been willing to be brave.

All that was different now, she promised herself. She was only going to do what was right. She wasn’t going to care about what other people thought. Or at the very least, she wasn’t going to let that caring influence her actions. She wanted to be strong and impressive—like her sisters and her mom.

So there she stood in her bridesmaid dress, waiting for her soon-to-be ex-fiancé to arrive. When she saw his car pull into the parking lot, she pressed her hand to her belly to quell any nerves, then raised her chin and walked toward him.

“Sienna!” He closed his car door and walked toward her.

She came to a stop and searched her heart—she wanted to be sure she was making the right decision. As he approached, she realized she wasn’t sad. She was resigned. This was going to be difficult, but everything about it felt right.

“Hello, David.” She clutched the tiny velvet bag that contained his grandmother’s ring. “I’m glad I caught you.”

“Sorry I’m late. There was bad weather in St. Louis.” He leaned in to kiss her. She turned so his mouth brushed her cheek. He drew back and frowned. “What’s up?”

She held out the bag. “I’m sorry to do this now. This way. But with you being out of town and then your flight delayed, I didn’t have another choice. You’re a great guy, David, but you’re not for me. I’m returning your ring. We aren’t right for each other. I’m not sure we ever were.”

She had more she was going to say. About how she wished him the best and that she never meant to hurt him, but those words got held up by the incredible rage that drew his features into a tight mask of fury.

“Are you breaking up with me?” he yelled. “What the fuck, Sienna? My mother warned me you were a mistake, but I didn’t listen. I defended you.” He moved toward her. “How could you do this? What’s wrong with you? Do you think you can do better? You can’t. Sure, you’re beautiful now, but then what? You were right about that. I can’t stop thinking about what you said about your looks fading. They will. You’re going to get old and fat and then what will I have?”

He grabbed the bag from her and looked inside, as if checking to see if the ring was really there. “Fuck it. I would have had to divorce you, anyway. Go to hell, Sienna. I don’t need you or your ridiculous family. I’m done. You were a mistake. Stay away from me.” He shook his finger at her. “I mean it. Don’t think you can come crawling back and begging me to forgive you. It’s not gonna happen. Bitch.”

With that he turned and walked back to his car.

Sienna realized she’d been holding her breath. She exhaled and then gasped for air. Her body trembled, her mind was spinning and she had a moment where she was afraid she was actually going to faint.

Had that really happened? Had David really turned on her like that? She looked up and saw him racing out of the parking lot. He nearly hit a car driving in, then turned right and was gone.

“You’re okay,” she whispered as she made her way back to the hotel. “You’re fine. Everything is fine.” Or it would be. She would go sit in the lobby for a few minutes and calm down. Then she would spend the rest of her life being grateful she hadn’t made a horrible mistake.

She’d barely walked into the main building when she spotted Courtney. Her sister crossed to her.

“Whatever you think you’re doing, you’re coming with me,” Courtney said forcefully. “Come on.”

Sienna welcomed the distraction. “What’s wrong?”

“Rachel and Greg have locked themselves in the linen closet. My staff thinks they’re having sex. Not only do we need them for pictures, but Lucy has to start turndown service, so she needs to get in there. I’m going to interrupt them. There’s a very good chance I’ll see something that will scar me for life. If I have to see it, you do, too. So you’re coming with me.”

Sienna pulled Courtney to a stop, then hugged her. “I love you so much. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Being exactly what I needed this second.” What a great distraction. Screw David. He was out of her life and that made her happy. If Rachel and Greg were having sex in the linen closet, good for them, too.

“After we break up the sex thing, let’s grab a glass of champagne,” Sienna said with a laugh.

“Absolutely!”

* * *

The lobby of the grand old hotel had been transformed into a pink paradise. Pink flowers and pink bunting hung everywhere. Pink wooden chairs had been set up to create a center aisle with a pink runner of family photos. The champagne fountain flowed with pink, um, rosé, champagne.

Hotel guests were being checked in at the portico outside and then led to their rooms. Once the ceremony was over, the lobby would once again get back to what it was, but for now it was the perfect place for the ceremony.

In the ballroom, the tables were set for the dinner. There was more champagne. Pink settees made up conversation areas. The white dining chairs had been draped with pink covers.
Monogrammed
pink covers. Rose gold–colored chargers decorated the table. The DJ had embraced the spirit of the event and had shown up in a pink tux. Courtney was going to tip him extra for that.

Now she stood in back of the lobby and watched as the last of the guests were seated. Everything had come together perfectly. She should be happy and relieved. Instead, she felt...empty. The deep sense of loss had started a few days ago and only grew. Once the panic of pulling off the event had faded, she found herself feeling it acutely. It had taken her a while to figure out what was wrong, but now she knew.

Quinn.

She looked at him, at the end of the aisle, with a beaming Neil. Quinn wore all black—his tux, his shirt, his tie. Her body ached for him, but while that was interesting, it wasn’t as important as the pain in her heart.

She missed him. Worse, she was starting to realize what she’d lost with him. He’d offered his heart and she bolted. Out of fear. He’d terrified her. Love—how could anyone do that? How could anyone take the chance?

Rachel moved next to her. The three of them would be walking down the aisle one by one, in order of age. Greg walked by with Josh. Greg grabbed a quick kiss from Rachel, then winked at Courtney before taking his seat.

“I don’t care what you say,” her sister murmured. “Yes, I had sex in the linen closet. I would do it again if I could. In fact, I may do it later. I’m in love and there’s nothing you can say to make me feel guilty.”

Courtney smiled. “I’m mostly happy for you. A little embarrassed and a lot grateful you weren’t naked when Sienna and I found you.”

Rachel grinned. “It was so hot. Seriously. You work here. I can’t believe you’ve never done it in the linen closet. There’s a table and everything.”

Courtney gave her a little push. “That’s your cue.”

Sienna came up to her next. Her sister had already told her about the breakup.

“Still okay?” Courtney asked.

“Never better. I’m a little jealous about the hot sex, though. I won’t be getting any of that for a while.” They hugged. “I love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Sienna started walking.

Courtney squared her shoulders, clutched her pink bouquet in her hand and waited until it was her turn. She did love her family, she thought happily. They were—

She loved them. The thought repeated itself about fifteen times in her head. She loved them and it was fine. Sure, there had been tough times, but they’d gotten through them. She loved them. So was her problem romantic versus regular love?

She followed Sienna, smiling as she went, but all the while her mind was swirling and spinning as she tried to grapple with the question. Why could she love them and not love Quinn? Because if there was ever a man for her, it was him.

She reached the end of the aisle, took her place, then turned and watched her mother come into view. Everyone stood.

Maggie looked beautiful and so happy. She walked more quickly than she had at rehearsal, as if she couldn’t wait to get to her man. Neil rushed to greet her halfway, and they kissed. Everyone laughed. Holding hands, they walked back to Quinn together.

He looked at them and shook his head. “I’ve already lost control.”

There was more laughter.

Courtney wanted to join in, but she was terrified she was going to cry. Her eyes burned and her throat got tight. The truth crashed in on her. She loved Quinn, just like her mother had said. She loved him and she was scared and she’d run from him. Because she was an idiot. He was amazing. Seriously fantastic. What had she been thinking?

Okay, she hadn’t been thinking. She’d been scared. Which made sense. Under the circumstances anyone would be scared. But jeez, what had she done?

She told herself she would have a meltdown later. Right now she had to get through the ceremony and the reception. Then she would figure out what to do. There had to be a way back.

Quinn held a bible in his hands, but he didn’t open it. He also didn’t have any notes. He simply started speaking.

“Welcome to this happy event,” he began. “As many of you know, there’s more to marriage than a ceremony. There is giving your best while accepting your partner as who he or she is. There’s respect and empowerment. There’s knowing that you are each your own person, but are also so much more when you’re together. Love and commitment mean opening yourself to each other. Sharing your hopes and dreams but also your fears and the dark places inside. Love means accepting each other, acknowledging there will be both good times and bad times, but believing both are better when you’re together.”

Courtney felt her heart breaking. To think he’d offered all that to her and she’d run! How could she have been so wrong? So afraid?

“I’ve seen Maggie and Neil together,” he continued. “I know they were lucky to find each other. More than that, they were brave. Willing to risk the unknown, to make the attempt to reach out, to find their way to their well-deserved happy ending. This is just the beginning. From this moment they will step out into the most wonderful, blessed journey. We can all relax in the knowledge that they are ready.”

Courtney felt the tears spill from her eyes. She knew that everyone would think she was crying because her mother was getting married, and she was. But she was also crying for what she’d lost. She had no one to blame but herself. She probably would have gotten through it all if Quinn hadn’t, at that exact second, looked at her.

“I’m sorry,” she said before she could stop herself. Worse, she took a step toward him. Then she remembered where she was and what was happening.

Her mother turned to her. There was an expression of such love, such kindness and support, that Courtney nearly started sobbing.

“It’s all right, darling. Go ahead. Say what you have to say.”

“It’s your wedding.”

“I have the rest of my life to be married to Neil. You’re my daughter and I love you. Go on, Courtney.”

As if she knew, Courtney thought. Of course she did. Maybe everyone did but her.

“I’m sorry,” she said again, returning her attention to Quinn. “I was afraid. Because love hurts, right? Except I’ve loved my family my whole life and that was fine. And it’s not like there have been a lot of guys I loved. There weren’t any. I don’t know why. Was it me or them? I guess it doesn’t matter. But then I met you and you weren’t like anyone else. Being with you was fun and easy and safe and wonderful. I didn’t know what I was feeling because I never thought it could be love. Then you said you loved me and I was so afraid.”