Then You Happened

by Sandi Lynn

  “Do you want to move back with me?” I asked nervously.

  “Of course I do. I love you, Sierra.”

  “I love you too. Why don’t we go give your mom a drink and talk to her?”

  “We can try.”

  We walked hand in hand up to the house and something was going on in the living room. There was a lot of discussion going on.

  “What’s going on in here?” Cameron asked.

  “It looks like we need to postpone the wedding,” Jaden said as he held his crying, I assumed because I’d never met her, fiancée.

  “Why?”

  “The hall where the reception was booked burnt down this afternoon. Magnolia called all over town and there’s nothing available for months,” Luanne spoke.

  Magnolia? Was that her real name?

  “I can’t wait months. I’ll look like an ole beached whale if we wait and I don’t want to look like a whale,” she cried hysterically.

  Jaden tried to comfort her, but the more he did, the worse she cried.

  “I have an idea,” I spoke up.

  Magnolia looked up at me. “And who are you?” she asked.

  “I’m the person who’s going to make sure you have a fabulous wedding.”

  “Sierra, what are you talking about?” Cameron asked with a panicked tone.

  “Long story short, I rented Cameron and me a mansion for the next few days and the back yard is huge. It even has a pavilion. It would be the perfect spot for a wedding reception, especially being right on the lake.”

  “It’s too late to plan all that. The hall was taking care of everything,” Magnolia cried again.

  I walked over to her and grabbed her hand. “Magnolia, darling. It’s never too late to plan a spectacular event. Leave everything to me.”

  “Sierra, I don’t think—” Cameron started to speak.

  “Then don’t, darling. Do you trust me?” I asked seriously as I looked into his eyes.

  “Yes, I do.”

  “Then leave it at that. Now, if you’ll excuse us, Cam and I are going to go back to our rental house. I have some phone calls to make.”

  “Thank you so much. I don’t know how to ever repay you,” Magnolia said.

  “The only payment I’ll accept is that you two love each other for the rest of your lives. Come on, Cameron,” I said as I grabbed his hand and pulled him along.

  We climbed into the Escalade and I pulled out my phone. “Hurry and get me to where I’ll have a good signal.”

  “Do you know what you’re doing?” he asked.

  “Do you know who you’re dating?” I replied.

  Once we pulled out of the driveway and were halfway down the road, I got two bars on my phone. I dialed Kirsty.

  “Hey, girl! James and I were just talking about you.”

  “I need you to listen to me very carefully. I’m going to do a three-way call with Sasha, so hold on.”

  I dialed Sasha.

  “Hey, boss lady,” she answered.

  “Hi, Sasha, I have Kirsty on with us. I need your full attention. I need your help pulling off a wedding reception for this Saturday.”

  “OH MY GOD! You and Cameron are getting married!” Kirsty squealed.

  “No. It’s not for me. It’s for Cam’s brother and fiancée. Their hall burnt down today along with all their plans, so I’m stepping in.”

  “Oh,” they both said.

  “I need you both here. Bring James and Rosa too.”

  “What?” Kirsty asked.

  “You heard me. So get on the next flight out here and don’t forget to arrange for a car service to pick you up from the airport. I’ll text you the address to the rental house Cameron and I are staying at. It has six bedrooms, so you’ll stay with us.”

  “Fine. We’ll be there tomorrow.”

  “Thank you. I love you both. I’ll see you soon.”

  I hung up and Cameron took hold of my hand. “There goes the house to ourselves so we better fuck like rabbits tonight.” He smiled.

  “We’ll start as soon as we get back. Now, I have another call to make.”

  I pulled up Paul’s number and hit call.

  “Is that you, Sierra?”

  “Hello, Paul. I need a favor.”

  “Anything for you, darling.”

  “Can you ship some wedding dresses to North Carolina, like overnight tonight, and also throw in some cocktail dresses for me?”

  “Of course. What’s going on?”

  “Cameron’s brother is getting married and there’s a problem, so I’m helping out.”

  “Of course. That’s very sweet of you, Sierra. Text me the shipping address and I’ll go pull some now. What size is the bride?”

  “She’s about five feet five inches and I would say she’s about a size 6.”

  “Perfect.”

  “Oh, Paul? It’s an outdoor reception. Keep that in mind.”

  “Will do, doll. Toodles.”

  I took in a deep breath as we pulled in the driveway. “A couple more calls, and then I’m all yours.” I smiled.

  “You better mean that.”

  “Promise on my Prada.”

  I pulled up my contacts one more time and dialed Paula St. Hue. Her company supplied the tents, tables, linens, and chairs for events. They were a huge client of Adams Advertising and she owed me a favor.

  “Paula, it’s Sierra. How are you?”

  “I’m good, Sierra. How are you doing?”

  “Great. I need a favor. Correct me if I’m wrong, but don’t you have a huge warehouse in Knoxville?”

  “Why, yes, we do. It’s our second largest.”

  “Perfect. I need about eighteen tables, 150 chairs, and two large white tents. It’s for a wedding over in Robbinsville, NC. I’ll text you the address. If you can have them here by Friday, I’ll be a happy woman.”

  “Consider it done. I’ll call the warehouse now.”

  “Thank you, Paula. I appreciate it.”

  Chapter 39

  Cameron

  As promised, Sierra turned off her phone and devoted all her attention to me and the pool table.

  “Come with me, babe,” I said with bated breath as I thrust in and out of her from behind while she was bent over the pool table.

  Her moans were unbearable and made me come faster than I had wanted. “Oh fuck,” I moaned as I pushed deep inside her.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Never better.” She turned her head and smiled. “I have a little felt burn on my arms, but other than that, I’m great.”

  I pulled out of her and turned her around. I took each arm and softly kissed where she was sore. “Better?” I asked.

  “Much better.”

  We grabbed our clothes and went upstairs. “We better decide now which bedroom we’re taking, since everyone is coming tomorrow. Oh, and why would you have Paul send wedding dresses? Magnolia has a dress.”

  She crinkled up her nose. “Yeah. Somehow, I think it might not be her dream dress. Don’t worry; once she sees these dresses, she’ll ditch the other.”

  I placed my hands on her hips and kissed the tip of her nose. “Have I told you lately how much I love you?”

  “No. You haven’t. So I think you better.” She smiled.

  “Do you swear on your Prada that I haven’t?”

  “Mr. Cole, how dare you bring my Prada into this.”

  “I love you, babe, and I can’t thank you enough for what you’re doing for Jaden and Magnolia.”

  “I love you too. By the way, Magnolia? Really?”

  “It’s her mom’s favorite flower in the whole world. Wait until you meet her sister, Dallas.”

  “Let me guess. It’s her mom’s favorite city in the whole world.”

  “You’re so smart.” I smiled.

  She grabbed a pillow and we had our first pillow fight around the room, which landed us on the bed for another round of sex.

  ****

  Sierra

  “Time to get up, s
leepy head. We have lots of wedding stuff to do today,” I said as I planted little kisses across Cameron’s chest.

  “We? How did I get roped into this?”

  “The gang will be here soon and you can keep James entertained.”

  He opened one eye and looked at me. “I can take him fishing. We can go fishing and there won’t be any whining or complaining.”

  “Yes, the two of you can form a little bromance, but you better remember who swam in a dirty lake for you.”

  “You’re never going to give up on that, are you?”

  “NEVER!” I smiled.

  After we finally climbed out of bed and got dressed, my phone rang.

  “Hey, Kirsty. What? You’re breaking up. I can’t hear you. Where are you?”

  “Judging by that conversation, I’d say they’re almost here.” Cameron laughed.

  I opened the front door and, sure enough, a black sedan pulled up. Kirsty flung open the door, got out, and ran to me.

  “Look at you two. I’m so happy for you,” she said as she hugged me and then turned to Cameron.

  After I hugged James and Sasha, Rosa walked up and Cameron took her bags.

  “Rosa, thank you for coming.” I smiled.

  “Look. Look at this house. Are you expecting me to clean this house? This house is huge.”

  “Yeah, Sierra. How the hell did you get a house this big out here?” Kirsty asked.

  “It’s a long story.”

  “No, it’s not.” Cameron smiled as he pulled out his phone and I heard myself scream. “This is what led us here.”

  Apparently, he recorded me screaming and jumping up and down on the bed after the mouse incident. Everyone busted into laughter.

  “You’re all fired. Each and every one of you.”

  “I don’t work for you.” Cameron smiled.

  “I’m breaking up with you,” I said as I nodded my head.

  “The hell you are.” Cameron threw me over his shoulder and slapped my ass as he carried me into the house.

  He was in his glory because he got to take James fishing while the girls and I planned the wedding. I had Cam get Magnolia’s number and I called her and asked her to come over. She said she would and that her mother, Peggy, and Luanne would be coming too. We almost had everything arranged, right down to the caterers, when the doorbell rang. Magnolia had arrived, as well as the boxes from Neiman’s.

  “Oh my God, look at this house,” Magnolia said.

  “I guess the smaller things just aren’t her style,” Luanne said.

  What crawled up her ass? How dare she make a comment like that.

  After I introduced my friends to them, Rosa walked in the room with a tray of lemonade.

  “This is my housekeeper, Rosa.”

  “Of course she would bring her housekeeper,” Luanne said to Peggy.

  “Rosa, could you get me a glass of water please?” I asked with a smile.

  ****

  We spent the rest of the afternoon going over the plans for the wedding. Magnolia cried when I showed her the wedding gowns and veils that Paul sent. She found her perfect style and perfect fit. She looked beautiful in it and Jaden was in for a treat. Comment after comment was made by Luanne and she would barely look at me the whole afternoon. When Cameron and James walked through the door, she asked Cameron if she could speak to him in private. I was positive it was about me and there was only one way to find out. I snuck up the stairs and listened.

  “This is way over the top, Cameron. Who does she think she is coming here and doing something like this? Our family isn’t into this fancy stuff. We could have had a nice reception at our house. But no, she had to turn your brother’s wedding into a production.”

  “Mom. Sierra’s only trying to help and this is the way she knows how. I think she’s doing an excellent job.”

  “Of course you do because you’re blinded by her. I don’t think she’s right for you, Cameron.”

  “Stop right there. I love Sierra. Where did all this come from? You sure as hell loved her when you thought she was a lesbian and worked at Starbucks.”

  “Because I thought she was a simple girl.”

  “She’s the same girl she was not too long ago. I’m really ashamed of you, Mom.”

  “I’m sorry, Cameron, but that’s how I feel. I will never welcome her into our family.”

  Whoa. Hearing his mom say that about me really hurt deep down. I couldn’t listen anymore, so I went downstairs and poured another glass of tequila. A few moments later, Cameron and the spawn of Satan II – Delia was spawn of Satan I – came down, and I said goodbye to Magnolia and Peggy. I became quiet and took my glass outside on the patio. Kirsty joined me and we both sat and watched the calmness of the lake.

  “I like the ocean better,” Kirsty said.

  “Me too.”

  My phone beeped and alerted me that I had a voicemail. I punched in my pin and put it on speaker as Kirsty and I listened to Aruelia speak.

  “Sierra, it’s Aruelia. After careful consideration, I’ve decided to hire your firm to represent my dance company. I feel that we’d make a great team. I know you’re out of town and I hope things are good for you. Call me when you get back and we can discuss the specifics.”

  “Holy shit! You landed the account!” Kirsty screamed.

  I smiled. It wasn’t my happy smile and it wasn’t my fake smile. It was an in-between smile that said I was thrilled, but I had another issue to deal with first.

  “What’s going on out here?” Cameron smiled as he strolled out on the patio.

  “Your girlfriend just landed one of the biggest accounts. We have to celebrate. What do you guys do here for fun?” Kirsty asked.

  “That’s great, Sierra. I’m so proud of you. What made her change her mind?”

  “Probably the fact that Sierra sort of told her off.”

  Cameron sat down on the edge of the chair and placed his hand on my leg. “What’s wrong? You should be jumping up and down right now.”

  “Nothing’s wrong, and I am very happy. I just have a lot on my mind right now with the wedding.”

  “Let’s forget about the wedding for tonight and go hit the bar. We have some celebrating to do.” He smiled.

  “Sounds good.” I smiled back. I had a date with tequila.

  ****

  “A round of shots for everyone! Woo hoo!” I yelled.

  We’d been at the bar for about an hour and I already had my fair share of liquid courage. The guys played pool. Sasha was admiring a country boy from across the bar, and Kirsty was talking to the DJ. Suddenly, the song “Turn Down for What” started playing. Kirsty ran over to me and grabbed my hand.

  “Let’s show them how we do it L.A.” She smiled as she dragged me and Sasha to the dance floor.

  The entire bar stopped and all eyes were on the three of us as we moved our bodies to the music. Here we were, three girls from Los Angeles in this small country town, getting down to a song that I’m sure was never played in this bar. My friend, Tequila, had settled inside me and I let go, dancing and grinding up against Kirsty without a care in the world. Cameron and James were standing to the side with wide grins spread across their faces. The three of us definitely showed this town how we partied. After the song wrapped, “All About That Bass” began to play. I climbed on top of the bar and starting moving my hips back and forth. Kirsty and Sasha joined me and the three of us started laughing as we stared out into the bar and stared at the faces of the patrons. The men were howling and, before we knew it, a couple more girls got on top of the bar and joined us. The song ended and Cameron grabbed my waist and took me down.

  “You sure know how to liven up a bar.” He smiled as he kissed me.

  “Someone had to,” I slurred.

  We walked through the door of the house or, should I say, I stumbled through the door and almost fell on my ass. I would have gone down if Cameron didn’t have a tight grip on me. As he picked me up and carried me up the stairs, I yelled and waved t
o Kirsty, James, and Sasha.

  “Shh. Rosa’s sleeping,” Cameron said.

  “Your mom hates me,” I slurred as he sat me down on the bed and I fell back.

  “No, she doesn’t. Why would you say that?”

  “Oh fuck.” I bolted from the bed and into the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet.

  Cameron walked in and, like the gentleman he was, held my hair back while my friend, Tequila, decided to leave my body.

  “I heard everything she said about me,” I replied with my head down in the toilet.

  “She doesn’t hate you, Sierra. She just doesn’t like the fact that I’m moving to L.A. permanently.”

  “No. She thinks I’m high maintenance,” I squeezed in before I vomited again.

  “You are high maintenance and I love you. That’s all that matters, babe. She just doesn’t understand. Do you think Delia’s going to be happy when she finds out I’m a builder and not some corporate suit with money?”

  “Screw Delia.”

  “Exactly, and screw Luanne. She’s my mom and I love her, but she’s not telling me who I can and can’t love. Now, are you finished?”

  “Yeah,” I said as I took the towel from his hand.

  He helped me up and lifted my shirt over my head.

  “Fuck me.” I smiled as the room spun.

  “Are you going to throw up on me if I do?”

  “I shouldn’t, but you never know. Are you willing to take the chance?”

  “I’m willing to take any chances with you, babe.” He smiled as his lips brushed against mine.

  Chapter 40

  Cameron

  I went downstairs and poured a cup of coffee for Sierra. The aroma of pancakes filled the kitchen as Rosa stood by the stove, flipping them.

  “Breakfast is almost ready,” she said.

  “Rosa, you’re not here to cook us meals. You need to go sit down and let me wait on you.”

  “You’re very sweet, Builder Boy, but I like to cook food. Besides, you have Miss Hangover-pants upstairs to deal with.”

  “True. Let me take this up to her and I’ll be back down for those delicious-smelling pancakes.”

  I went back upstairs and set the cup on the nightstand. “Wake up, babe. The trucks will be here soon with the tents and stuff.”