Ghosted: Wicked Wedding Planners Series

by Alyssa Parsons

  I had secretly hoped that when we did eventually cross paths again, I would be looking fabulous. I would be all cool and sophisticated and Caspar would do a double-take at how stunning I was. I am allowed to dream, aren’t I?

  I had imagined various scenarios where he would immediately apologize for all his bad behaviour and beg to get me back. Of course, I wouldn’t let him off so easily. I would make him work to earn my love and trust again. But we would inevitably end up together and in love for ever. But that’s what fantasies are right? Just make believe.

  Through further snooping on the internet I have found out that Alice works as an administrator at some local logistics company. As I look through her pictures again, I am still surprised as she is not the type of girl I thought Caspar would go for.

  I didn’t want to sound conceited as I really don’t think I am anything special. But I am better looking than her. I am also pretty successful and own my own business. How did she manage to get Caspar? I really didn’t think she was the type of girl he went for. I mean he is a total gym buff and exercise freak and she is not in shape or fit at all.

  I know I am being a bit harsh. She has had a child and has probably been really busy looking after her daughter. She wouldn’t have the time to pursue a high-flying career or hit the gym. But from what I remember Shana telling me, Alice came from quite a well-off family so I don’t think money has ever been an issue for her.

  Interestingly, there doesn’t seem to be any photos of Alice and Caspar together. So maybe they aren’t together anymore. Wishful thinking on my part, no doubt.

  Leanna texts to tell me she is coming over. She doesn’t feel I should be on my own right now.

  ‘Are you alright?’ Leanna hugs me as she sweeps in to my hallway. She has her hair pulled into a high bun and she is wearing her big sunglasses. Her hair is an amazing bluish-black shade. Did I mention, Leanna tends to change her hair colour quite frequently?

  ‘Just in shock really,’ I show her the pictures I had found on my little snoop fest.

  ‘Wow, he really is a scum bag,’ Leanna says as she scrolls through Alice’s Facebook profile. ‘He was seeing the two of you at the same time.’

  ‘What I don’t understand is why would his mother have encouraged our relationship if he was with Alice?’ I still couldn’t get my head around this.

  ‘I don’t think she could have known, I mean no one can really be that twisted,’ Leanna replies as she continues to look over Alice’s Facebook page.

  ‘That’s what I think but Caspar is really close to his family and he had a long-term relationship with Alice – not just some random fling. Surely they would have known’.

  ‘She really isn’t that attractive,’ Leanna leans in closer to my laptop to get a better look at Alice’s pic.

  ‘Do you think?’ I am happy to see she thinks the same as me. ‘I didn’t want to get big-headed but I do think I am prettier than her.’

  ‘You definitely are, no contest,’ Leanna confirms what I thought.

  ‘All these years, I thought Alice must have been something really special for Caspar to have been in this long-term relationship with her.’

  ‘She’s either got a great personality or she’s good in bed,’ Leanna quips sarcastically.

  ‘Yeah, but I have to say it does make me feel good to know she is not drop dead gorgeous,’ I say feeling a bit smug.

  ‘It shows he can’t really commit.’

  ‘He is a player obviously,’ I add.

  ‘Alice couldn’t have been his one true love though could she?’ Leanna observes. ‘He was chasing you while he was with her.’

  ‘True, I never looked at it like that.’

  ‘They couldn’t have been serious if his Mum was trying to get you two together,’ Leanna makes a good point.

  Her words make me feel better but at the end of the day, he had still cheated on both Alice and I, all those years ago. A little while later, Leanna leaves as she has a client to see. I mull over what I have found out.

  Oh God, I almost forgot that I am due to meet him shortly. I don’t think I can go through with it. I mean what is the point now that I have worked out what happened. I don’t think I could face the humiliation of having to sit there while he tells me all about him and Alice. Perfect Alice, the woman he could never seem to leave.

  Now I know what he meant when he said a family situation had come up. Yeah, his family…. his daughter. He has a daughter. Bloody hell, I never saw this coming. All this time, I thought that he had disappeared because I wasn’t good enough or pretty enough to be with him. My head is all over the place. I feel sick to my stomach.

  I never really had Caspar’s heart, not even over those few months when I was his girlfriend. I had always held onto that. That special time after he had returned home from Australia and had asked me out. I thought I had meant something to him. Maybe his heart had always truly belonged to Alice. Maybe they were back together now.

  That’s why he came back to Roseford… to be with his family. Roseford is a small place and Caspar obviously realised that we were likely to run into each other. He is keen for us to meet so he can smooth things out between us so there is no animosity.

  I really can’t stomach his right now. Caspar’s determination to meet me so he can explain things isn’t for my benefit.

  Screw closure!

  I just got all the closure I can handle and news flash it has not helped me move on. I feel worse and I need to cut him out of my life. I am starting that process now.

  I look at my watch. It’s almost 1:00pm. I am meant to be meeting him at 2pm. I’m not going and I’m not going to let him know either. For once, I’m not going to care about his feelings. I’m fed up of always doing the decent thing and thinking of others. I need to do some ghosting of my own.

  I make myself a snack, a banana and almond butter smoothie blended with vanilla yogurt. Then it’s back to bed with Netflix to lose myself in my favourite boxset. I switch off my phone and spend the next few hours escaping reality.

  I do wonder how long Caspar waited around for me at the coffee shop. I am a bit scared to switch on my phone as I don’t feel like facing any messages he may have sent. Part of me feels a bit bad for what I have done. I’m not a naturally mean or spiteful person. I don’t like playing games or standing people up. It’s just not me. But I just can’t keep getting treated like this by Caspar. It’s not healthy and I need to protect my sanity.

  It’s now the evening so I decide to have a bath. I use this gorgeous citrus and black pepper bath oil and read the new book from one of my favourite authors. There is nothing better than a bath and a good book. With a herbal tea, of course.

  Eventually I turn on my phone so that I can set my alarm for tomorrow morning. I immediately hear the notifications coming through on my phone. I’ve got a missed call and a text message from Caspar. Thank goodness, he didn’t leave a voicemail. I open his text.

  Sammi,

  I’m here.

  It was 2pm we were

  meant to meet?

  Hope you are ok? Cx

  He called about 15 minutes after that.

  Auntie Jo has also text to ask how things went with Caspar. I send her a brief text telling her we didn’t meet today after all. I can’t be bothered to get into it with her so I keep the text light and breezy so that she doesn’t suspect anything is off.

  Leanna has sent me a couple funny memes and some cute cat videos to cheer me up. She knows I would have wanted my space for the rest of the day so I really appreciate it that she hasn’t tried calling or texting me. I’m so lucky to have such a great best friend.

  I’ve decided to block Caspar’s number from my phone as I don’t want to deal with any more messages from him. I will change gyms soon too as I can’t always depend on Gemma giving me the heads up with the text alerts. It didn’t even work the last time.

  Leanna is going to start working at a new gym soon. It’s not open yet but it won’t be long before it does. It
’s a bit further away and bit less convenient but at least I can train in peace. Unfortunately Caspar knows where I work but I can’t imagine him becoming some kind of stalker so I am not too worried about him showing up there.

  Yes its time now…..I need to take back control of my life.

  Chapter 14

  I t’s Monday morning again. Amelie has asked me to meet her at Petals and Gem, a bridal shop to have a look at the wedding dress she has picked. I am not due there until 11:00am which gives me a bit of time to call in at the office first. Nic is already out looking at venues with a new couple for the morning. The phone is ringing off the hook so Jodie was too busy to chat.

  I spend an hour replying to emails and making a few phone calls before heading out to my car. Jodie is still busy on the phone as I leave so I give her a wave goodbye.

  Petals and Gems is a very elegant bridal boutique that specialises in high quality wedding dresses. It has Amelie written all over it. Much to my disappointment, I see that Linda has accompanied Amelie. I plaster a fake cheery smile on my face before entering the shop.

  ‘Amelie, Linda. Hi, how are you both?’ I put on the charm as I greet them.

  ‘Hi Sammie,’ Amelie gives me a warm smile. ‘Thanks so much for coming today. I really wanted you to see the dress and get your opinion.’

  ‘Of course, I can’t wait to see it.’

  I barely get a hello off of Linda. Nothing changes.

  Amelie goes off to the changing rooms with the assistant. It’s going to be an awkward few minutes sitting here with Linda. Linda is looking especially glum today. We sit there in silence for a couple of minutes. I am trying to come up with some sort of small talk but I can think of nothing to say. Thank goodness, Linda’s mobile rings and she steps out to take the call.

  Amelie comes out looking radiant and beautiful in her dress. The dress looks very similar to Kate Middleton’s dress – exactly the style she was looking for. Amelie is beaming and I can tell she is in love with this dress. This is exactly how every bride should look and feel in their dress.

  The door opens and Linda returns from her phone call.

  ‘She looks beautiful Linda, doesn’t she?’ I try to get Linda onside.

  ‘Yes of course she does,’ Linda’s responds tersely. ‘Amelie would look beautiful in a bin liner but that’s not the point. We are here to make sure that the dress is of good enough quality.’

  Trust Linda to ruin such a lovely moment. Linda walks around Amelie, examining the dress at all angles.

  ‘Of course, we still have a few alterations to make before the dress is ready,’ the bridal assistant tells Linda.

  ‘Yes I am well aware of that dear but I still need to check the material,’ Linda continues her examination of the dress.

  I am surprised she hasn’t brought a magnifying glass with her. She is now crouching down to look at the hem of the dress. I look at the sales assistant and semi roll my eyes. She smiles back.

  ‘Right what’s this?’ Linda suddenly stands up and points down at Amelie’s dress.

  ‘What is it Mrs Stevenson?’ the assistant stops smiling and walks over to the dress so she can have a look.

  ‘There, look,’ says Linda still pointing down at the hem.

  ‘I’m afraid I don’t understand what you mean Mrs Stevenson,’ the assistant tells Linda politely.

  ‘Mum what have you seen?’ Amelie is trying to twist her head back so she can look at the back of the dress.

  ‘There’s a mark here,’ Linda sounds almost hysterical.

  I lean in a bit to see what the mark looks like.

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t see a mark,’ says the assistant.

  ‘Are you blind?’ Linda is becoming quite rude. ‘Look down here.’ She continues pointing to an area at the back of the dress near the hem.

  ‘I can’t see anything either,’ I say as I squint harder at the area Linda is showing us.

  ‘There is a mark on my daughter’s wedding dress and this needs to be fixed now,’ Linda’s voice is becoming raised.

  I don’t know if Linda has gone a bit doolally as there is no visible stain on the dress. I look at the assistant who shrugs at me in confusion.

  ‘Don’t worry Linda,’ I adopt a reassuring tone to my voice. ‘I know a fantastic person who cleans wedding dresses. She has a steamer and specialises in treating delicate fabrics. We can bring the dress over to her and get this sorted.’

  ‘I’m not paying for it,’ Linda turns to the assistant. ‘This dress has been under your care and it is now marked. I expect the owner to pay for this.’

  The assistant goes over to speak to the owner. I am so embarrassed at Linda’s behaviour and I can tell from Amelie’s expression that she is mortified too. The owner comes over and asks to see the mark. She is also not able to see this invisible stain that Linda insists is on the dress.

  The owner asks Amelie to go back into the changing room to take the dress off so we can all look at the hem more closely. Linda huffs and follows Amelie to the cubicle. The owner and I look at each other in disbelief.

  ‘Did you see anything on the dress?’ the owner whispers to me.

  ‘No, I can’t see a thing,’ I whisper back.’ I don’t have a clue what she is on about.’

  Amelie returns with Linda and the assistant who is carrying the wedding dress.

  The owner looks at Amelie. ‘Right, if your mother can show us where the mark is on the dress, then we can get your thoughts on the matter and we will go from there.’

  The dress is spread out onto a table and the owner even brings out a high beam torch to look at the dress more thoroughly. Linda shows Amelie the spot where she thinks the stain is but I can see that Amelie is also not able to see anything.

  This is one of the strangest situations I have encountered as a wedding planner and I don’t quite know how to handle it. I mean how do you demand that the shop owner must pay to clean a dress that has no stain? Linda has just gone Momzilla on us.

  ‘Do you not see the blue mark here, Amelie?’ Linda is talking to Amelie as if she is a 5 year old child.

  ‘Ummm I don’t really see where you mean,’ Amelie answers her mother carefully.

  ‘I really don’t know how none of you can see this stain. What a thing! Imagine having your daughter walking down the aisle on her wedding day in a grubby dress. It’s unheard of.’

  I need to do something as we are getting nowhere. Both the owner and assistant are speechless. I know I can’t accuse Linda seeing things or lying about the stain…. even though I’d really love to do that.

  ‘Don’t worry Linda, I will take the dress over to Debbie, our wedding dressmaker. Like I said before, she specialises in this type of thing. She will clean and steam the dress for Amelie. There is no mark she can’t remove and the dress will look amazing on the day.’

  ‘Hmmm,’ Linda sniffs but I can see that I have managed to appease her for now. I say goodbye to Amelie and they leave the shop. Once they are gone, I go over to speak to the owner.

  ‘I do apologise for her behaviour,’ I feel like I need to explain how volatile Linda can be.

  ‘I honestly do not know what she was seeing. There was nothing on that dress.’

  ‘I know, it’s all very bizarre. She is one prickly character but I am used to handling her.’

  ‘I can’t justify paying for that dress to be cleaned when it has no stain,’ the owner looks worried.

  ‘Don’t worry, I’m sure I can sort something out.’

  As I drive back to the office, I can feel one of my tension headaches building up. I am not surprised after spending time with Linda. That woman needs to come with a health warning. Jodie is still on the phone when I get back but she hands me a bunch of phone messages.

  I go through to the staff room and put the kettle on. I need to unwind for a few minutes. I start scanning through the messages. Honey has a new décor idea she would like to discuss. The manager of one of the venues I have booked for a client wants me to call him
back.

  ‘Hey hun,’ Nic walks into the kitchen with a Tupperware box and some strange looking brownish-green liquid in a bottle.

  ‘Hi, you won’t believe the latest with Pushy Mother,’ I start telling her.

  ‘Pushy Mother?’ Nic asks.

  ‘Oh sorry. It’s my nickname for Linda.’

  Nic laughs. ‘Go on make my day, what has she done now?’

  ‘I don’t even know what happened. It is so weird,’ I tell Nic about Linda’s antics at the bridal shop.

  ‘And no one else could see this stain?’

  ‘No, not even Amelie, I don’t even know if she has actually gone a bit batty or if she is just a nasty control freak who just likes to make everyone’s life a total hell.’

  ‘Who knows, but the sooner this wedding is over the better for you.’

  ‘Tell me about it, anyway enough about me, how are things on your end?’ I switch the topic of conversation.

  ‘All good really. I haven’t got any nutty clients or evil mother of the brides to deal with,’ Nic laughs. ‘Oh, the social media campaigns have been working super well.’

  ‘I know, the phone has been ringing off the hook,’ I look at my stack of phone messages. ‘Poor Jodie, I don’t think she has had a minute to catch her breath today.’

  I look through my messages and freeze. Caspar has rung up and he wants me to call him back.

  ‘You ok?’ I look up to see Nic staring at me.

  ‘Ummm yeah fine,’ I don’t want to get into it with Nic right now. ‘I’ve just got so much to do today. I better start cracking on.’

  ‘Sure but let’s catch up this week. Why don’t you come over one night this week and I’ll cook,’ Nic offers.

  ‘Sounds perfect.’

  I am back in my office, sitting and staring at the message. I was hoping that Caspar would get the hint and leave me alone after I didn’t show up yesterday or respond to any of his messages. I am a bit surprised he called me at work. I won’t be calling him back. Hopefully he will get the hint eventually.