You Say It First--A Small-Town Wedding Romance

by Susan Mallery

  His mouth turned up. “I put a bandage on the cut.”

  “When was the last time you had a tetanus shot?”

  “A couple of years ago.”

  She put her hands on her hips. “For real?”

  “Yes, I swear.” He drew her close and kissed her. “But it’s nice that you worry about me.”

  “Someone has to,” she grumbled. “You were really having fun while setting fire to yourself.”

  “We all find our thrill in different ways. You’re one of my favorite ways.”

  He always said the nicest things, she thought happily, enjoying the way his mouth teased hers.

  He drew back just a little. “So how’s your day going? Didn’t you have an appointment with a potential client?”

  “I did. Taylor and Jake. They want an under-the-sea wedding.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “She dresses like a mermaid and he’s a pirate.”

  “I’m the guy here, so maybe I’m missing the point, but if pirates go under the sea, aren’t they dead?”

  “You’re reading too much into it. Don’t look for the logic—just go with it.”

  “Okay. I will. What did you talk about?”

  Pallas showed him her notes and the things they’d come up with while brainstorming. “I want to use the sheers to create the illusion of water moving.”

  “You have to use pearls,” he said, taking the pad from her and flipping to a clean page. He pulled a pencil out of his shirt pocket and drew what looked like a tall glass.

  “There have to be some kind of plastic pearls that would float,” he said, sketching several floating ovals. “We could weight them with something small. Or maybe layers of clear lacquer so they float at different levels. Then you put a votive at the top.” He finished the drawing.

  “I love it,” she breathed. “They would be easy to put together and inexpensive. Plus we could use the tall holders for other weddings.”

  “You could. The food will be fun. How about a battered rowboat to hold sodas and water?”

  “Perfect. And little sand dollar cookies. I have a custom cookie designer I can call. Now that you’re on a roll, I have a problem for you to solve. What do we do about decorating the chairs?”

  He flipped to another page and drew one of the chairs they used for weddings. After thinking for a minute, he began to fill in the back with rippling strips.

  “Fabric,” he told her. “Connected to some kind of band or backing. You cut it out like ruffles and edge it. Pale blue, aqua, creamy white.”

  She nodded, liking what he was doing. “Those would have to be custom. Unless Taylor knows someone who can edge all the fabric and then sew them together. We also thought about using a message in a bottle for place settings. I wonder if there’s a way to make that work for the guest book.”

  He pulled her close. “It’s not Nova and Joel’s wedding, but it will still be fun,” he told her.

  “I know. That’s what I keep thinking. Have you heard from her?”

  “No.”

  “No one has. I hope Tim hasn’t died. Not that I want him suffering. It’s just hard.”

  He kissed her again. “You have a very big heart.”

  “How could you know them and not care?”

  “Some people wouldn’t.”

  “Then they don’t have hearts at all.”

  * * *

  PALLAS SPENT THE rest of the day working on her bid for Taylor. The more she played with different ideas, the more those ideas blossomed. While the basic wedding menu was fine, she found she really enjoyed the creative challenges.

  “You’re looking happy about something.”

  Pallas glanced up to find Libby standing in the doorway to her office. She quickly saved her computer file, then stood. “Mom, did I know you were going to stop by?”

  “You did not.”

  Libby glanced around the office, then sighed, as if disappointed, yet again. She took the seat across from Pallas’s. “I stopped by to ask what on earth you’re doing.”

  Pallas was pretty sure Libby wasn’t talking about the under-the-sea wedding. “You mean in my life?”

  “No. With this business. How much longer are you going to pretend that it’s right for you? That you can make it a success? You’re dabbling, which is incredibly disappointing for all of us. I’d hoped you would come to your senses on your own, but it has become apparent that isn’t going to happen.”

  Pallas honestly didn’t know what to say—which turned out to be less of an issue when her mother just kept talking.

  “It’s a nightmare,” Libby continued. “Every time I turn around, it’s worse. You are just like your grandfather.”

  “Grandpa Frank?”

  Her mother pressed her lips together. “Who else would I mean? Bad enough that you’re destroying your future, but you’re taking the family’s reputation down with you. Have you considered that?”

  “Mom, I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “You were supposed to be working at the bank,” Libby said, her tone sharp. “That was your dream. Not this wedding nonsense. I have no idea what you’re thinking, but you’re wrong. About all of it. You worked so hard for your degree. I was so sure you’d learned your lesson. Yet here you are, throwing everything away, and for what?”

  There were so many statements, so many accusations, Pallas didn’t know where to begin. She went from shocked to angry to sad in the space of a few seconds. As her mother went on and on, Pallas realized no matter what she did, she always disappointed Libby. Nothing was ever right or good enough or positive.

  Nearly ten years before, Libby and her sister Margaret had decided to go on a cruise together—something they’d never done. Pallas had been happy for her mother and had spent a not-inconsiderable amount on a perfume set. Something special for her mom to take on the trip. Something to say, “Hey, Mom, I love you. Have a great time.”

  Libby had stared at the box before shaking her head. “Why did you buy this? I could have gotten it for half the price at the duty-free shop.”

  At the time Pallas had been hurt. Now she knew she had to accept the bitter truth. She and Libby would never be close. They would never just hang out and talk. While on the surface it seemed that if she just took the job at the bank, everything would be fine, she knew that wasn’t true. One way or the other, she would screw up and Libby would once again be disappointed.

  “You’re not listening to me,” her mother complained. “That is so like you.”

  “A constant disappointment?” Pallas asked, then didn’t bother waiting for an answer. “You know what, Mom? I get it. I know exactly how it feels to be disappointed by someone again and again.”

  “I doubt that.”

  “You’re wrong. I know it because that’s how I feel about you.”

  Pallas had no idea where the words had come from, but the second she uttered them, she knew she was telling the truth. A truth that she’d been afraid to even think for far too long.

  “Don’t you—” her mother started.

  Pallas ignored her and kept talking. “I’ve worked so hard to make you happy. To make you proud of me. I’ve kept banging my head against the wall and nothing ever changes. I’m sure you’re going to say it’s all my fault and maybe it is, but you know what? I’m tired of trying. I’ve always felt less than everyone else in your eyes. I don’t know why it has to be like this but that’s the way it is.”

  “I... You...” Libby sucked in air. “You can’t speak to me like that.”

  “I’m not being disrespectful—I’m telling you how I feel. And I feel bad. All the time. You’re not like this with Cade. I don’t know if it’s a girl thing or what. He never did what you wanted and you adore him. So what is it? Why can’
t I make you happy? Or maybe that’s not the question. Maybe I should ask, why don’t you care about what makes me happy?”

  Pallas’s chest was tight. She didn’t know if she was going to cry or scream or pass out, but she kept going. She’d started this and she was going to see it through.

  “Working here makes me happy. Owning Weddings in a Box is an amazing blessing and I’m grateful every day that Gerald cared enough about me to leave me this business. Yes, it’s hard work and yes, I might fail, but so what? I’m going to do my best every single day, and I’m going to keep trying to make it a success. If that means you’re not proud of me, then that’s your problem, not mine. You’ve punished me before, Mom. I survived that and I’ll get over this.”

  Pallas stood and grabbed her purse. “You’re wrong to put conditions on your love. You’ve done it my whole life and you’ve always been wrong. Families should love each other, no matter what. Sometimes I don’t like you very much, but I’ll always love you.”

  With that, she started for the door. She’d finally stood up to her mother. It had taken twenty-eight years, but she’d done it. Now she had to make her way to her car and get somewhere safe before she started shaking too much to drive. And then she was going to have wine because it had to be five o’clock somewhere.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  NICK HESITATED AT the entrance of the bank. While he understood the theory of separating business from his personal life, he was still pretty pissed at Libby Saunders for always coming down on her daughter.

  The previous night, over a bottle of wine, Pallas had told him about her latest confrontation with her mother. While he had been impressed by Pallas’s strength and courage, he wanted to confront Libby and ask her what the hell she was thinking. Pallas was a wonderful woman, a great person and any parent would be proud to have her as a daughter. Any parent except for Libby. He had no idea what had happened in the other woman’s past to make her this way, nor did he care. He only knew that Libby hurt someone he cared about and that pissed him off.

  The fact that she was a woman pushing sixty meant he couldn’t do anything about it. Nothing physical, anyway. But he could be mad and possibly move his bank account somewhere else.

  The latter thought nearly brought him out of his mood. Sure, because that would show her.

  He walked inside and crossed to a teller window where he made his deposit. The young man’s professional demeanor only flickered a little when he saw the amount of the check. It had been a good month, Nick thought humorously. His art was selling all over the world. Atsuko had a knack for putting the right piece in the right gallery—a talent that was making him a very rich man.

  He took his receipt and headed for the door. Before he got there, he heard rapid high heels on the marble floor. The hairs on the back of his neck rose, so he turned and saw Libby approaching.

  She wore a dark suit and pearls. Her eyes snapped with what even he could see was annoyance. He came to a stop, ready for whatever she had to say. A verbal confrontation would be just fine with him.

  “If you would follow me,” she said, without bothering with a greeting.

  He didn’t even hesitate, instead following her through to what he guessed were the executive offices. She went into one and faced him.

  “This is all your fault,” she said as he stopped in front of her. “Every bit of it.”

  “I have no idea what ‘it’ is,” he told her.

  “Pallas, that ridiculous business of hers. Everything was on track before you got here. Everything was going the way it should have.”

  “Oh, I don’t know. I’d say the problem started when you punished Pallas for what happened in college,” he said easily. “If you hadn’t been such a hard-ass, she wouldn’t have had to move home and take a job with Gerald to support herself. She would have been safely in college, earning her finance degree before coming to work here, with you.”

  Libby’s mouth dropped open. “How dare you!”

  “Tell the truth? I know hearing it can be hard. So while I’m on a roll, let me just ask this. Why do you have to ride her so hard? You’re always demanding the impossible, then shutting her out. What’s up with that? Where’s the win? Are you going to mean her into doing what you want? You’re only pushing her away.”

  “You have no right to talk to me this way.”

  “At the risk of sounding like a five-year-old, you started it.”

  Drew joined them. He glanced at Libby.

  “You do realize everyone working back here can hear you,” he said quietly. “Perhaps you’d like to take this to the privacy of your home instead of this bank.”

  Libby flushed. “I do not want to take it anywhere. I want this man to leave.”

  “This man is a customer. Libby, you need to calm down. I’ll take care of Nick. If you’ll excuse us?”

  Libby glared at them both. Nick was intrigued by the dynamics of the complicated relationship. While Drew was Libby’s nephew, he was also some high-up guy at the bank. Pallas had called him the heir apparent. Did that mean he was Libby’s boss? Or that he would be one day?

  He didn’t get an answer from her. Instead Libby held open the door and when they left, she closed it behind them. Drew led him down the hall.

  “Let me buy you a cup of coffee.”

  “Sure.”

  They went into a large, glassed-in office with a big executive desk and a couple of leather sofas in the corner. Drew opened a cabinet that held a Keurig coffee brewer and held out a tray of pods.

  “What are you in the mood for?”

  Nick picked dark roast. Drew dropped it into the machine, put a mug on the tray and pushed a button.

  “I assume you take it black,” Drew said as he handed him the full mug.

  “Sure.”

  Drew made a cup for himself, then sat on the second sofa. “This is where I apologize for my aunt. I have no idea what got into her.”

  “Really? I would think it’s pretty obvious to anyone who knows her and understands the dynamics between her and her daughter.”

  “You have a point.” Drew studied him. “Anything you want to tell me?”

  “You called this meeting.” Nick had no idea what the other man wanted, but he could be patient and wait.

  “You’ve been seeing a lot of Pallas.”

  So they were going there. Good. He wanted someone to have her back. “I have been.”

  Drew waited.

  Nick figured that as family Drew was entitled to win this round, so he said, “She’s great. I like her a lot. And I’m leaving in a few months for Dubai. I’ll be there two years.” At least that was the plan, he thought. Assuming he wanted to take the commission. Which he did. Why wouldn’t he?

  “She knows?”

  “Yes. I’ve been up-front about it. I don’t want to hurt her.”

  “Sometimes we do it without wanting to.”

  “Agreed.”

  “Libby’s not easy,” Drew said. “I don’t know what her deal is, but it’s pretty firmly focused on Pallas. I guess it’s a mother-daughter thing. Regardless, Pallas has people who care about her.”

  Nick wasn’t sure if he was being warned away or offered comforting information. He decided it didn’t matter. “I’m glad she doesn’t have to go it alone.”

  “Me, too.”

  Nick waited a second, then figured there wasn’t going to be anything else. “Thanks for the coffee,” he said as he put the mug on the table next to him and rose.

  “Anytime.”

  Drew walked him out. Nick half expected another confrontation with Libby, but he didn’t see her again.

  Families, he thought as he headed back to the studio. They were complicated. In Fool’s Gold he’d known the rules, but here, with Pallas’s family, not so much. And then there was Pa
llas. He wasn’t sure what to do about her. Dubai had always been the plan. Now, as he faced the fact that he would have to decide sooner rather than later, he was willing to admit that he would miss her. Miss them.

  For a moment he allowed himself to speculate on what would happen if he didn’t take the commission. Or if he asked her to come with him. Not that he could do either. Passion consumed. Even if it didn’t, she had a life here. A business. But he enjoyed their time together and he didn’t want it to end. A realization that rattled him more than he would have liked.

  Neither of his brothers were at the studio when he got there. He walked over to the metal sculpture. He and Mathias had gotten to the point where there was shape, but nothing to be proud of. They were amateurs, dabbling. He thought about carving something but that didn’t appeal. Restless, he prowled the huge room before stopping in front of a big storage closet. Inside was Nova’s dress, which Violet had returned. All the buttons were in place—sewn by hand. He’d figured out what to do but hadn’t started it yet. While Nova had given him the go-ahead, he’d waited until he felt the time was right.

  Now he pulled the dress out of the closet and set the hanger on a hook on the wall. He studied the swirls of the lace, the way the pattern repeated in very subtle ways and the sparkle of light on the buttons. He crossed to his desk and pulled out the folder with the final design. Then he collected paints and a brush.

  Before he made the first stroke of purple paint on the expensive dress, he thought briefly of Violet and how she would be screaming. Different from Pallas who would be all in. Still smiling, he began to paint.

  * * *

  “I DON’T HATE her exactly,” Pallas said, passing a cookie to Silver.

  “You should. If she were my mother, I’d hate her plenty. I can hate her for you, if you’d like.”

  Pallas smiled. “You’re always a good friend to me.”

  “I know. Practically a saint. I should have a statue in the town square.”

  “We don’t have a town square.”

  “Then we should get one and put up a plaque.”

  They were finishing up lunch. Silver had come by with leftovers from a shower she’d worked at the night before. The mini sandwiches and salads had been delicious, as were the cookies. They sat in the shade of a big tree in the courtyard of Weddings in a Box, enjoying the quiet before the wedding madness began in a few hours. While Pallas hadn’t meant to say anything about what had happened with her mom, she’d found herself telling Silver everything.