by M. D. Melai
Violet and her cousins talked the most. She was trying to play catch-up with everything going on with her family back home, and her cousins had plenty of stories to tell, most of them were focused around her mother. Violet didn’t find this surprising since her mother was the most flamboyant out of all of her relatives.
When our nails were done, we let the nail technicians clean up as we headed into the kitchen for dinner. Elle and I didn’t really have much planned as a meal—most of it was Violet’s favorite junk food.
Elle and I headed to get messy twister set up as soon as we were done eating. It was the only game we had chosen, since it would be the best. We had decided to lay down a clear tarp underneath the twister mat in case there was any splatter. We each grabbed two containers of paint and set out the mat. Elle poured out the green and red, while I did the yellow and blue. I made sure the paint was washable and easy to get off our nails. The last thing we needed was to mess up our nicely manicured hands and feet.
The girls were all chatting at the breakfast nook, stuffing their faces when we went to go get them. The chatter became quieter when Elle cleared her throat.
“Okay,” I said, trying to grab their attention. “You ladies ready to get messy?”
***
“So, what do you have planned next?” Violet asked after we were all covered in paint and the time was approaching midnight.
“Well, we have two options—stay in, watch movies, and eat more junk food, or we can go and check out what the guys are up to. Emilio did say we were all more than welcome to join them if we wanted,” Elle replied.
“I vote boys!” Alex, another one of Violet’s cousins, said as she tried her best to wipe off some of the paint.
“What about cleaning up?” Violet responded.
“Way ahead of you,” I said as I ushered them to the front door. There was a car that was parked right out front. I had rented it just in case we decide we wanted to venture out at some point during the evening.
“Whose car is this?” Violet asked.
“I rented it,” I responded. Before Violet could retort, I answered her question. “The inside is completely covered with plastic covers. So, if you still want to go, then we can.”
There was no response from any one, other than them all making their way toward the car, so I ran back inside to get the keys. We were on our way to the club in a matter of seconds.
When we arrived at the club, we made our way around to the back. I had never witnessed a bachelor party before, so I had no idea what I would be walking in to.
As I punched in the code to the door and opened it, I could hear the chatter of voices over the sound of music playing.
As we all stepped in, I could see that the others had the same thought as me. I was expecting some crazy evening, but that was not what we saw.
Where the dance floor normally was, they had a poker table, craps table, roulette table, and a blackjack table all set up. The bar was open, and I could see a few men getting drinks, but mostly, everyone was at a table.
“Ah, come on!” Dante said, slamming his cards down. “You guys are robbing me tonight! And it’s my night!” he said, moving his chair backwards and getting up.
It was that moment he spotted us.
“What the hell happened to all of you?” Dante laughed, as he headed straight to Violet.
“We were playing a game,” Violet said matter of fact. “And you can’t knock it until you try it, because it was awesome!”
“Well, I’m happy you made it!” he said, wrapping his arms around her. “I need someone to come and rescue me from these assholes.”
Violet just laughed. “I’m not here to rescue, but I will mingle.”
“Fine,” he responded. “Come on, I want you to meet everyone.”
As Dante and Violet walked away, all the others girls followed except me. I already knew all of his friends, and I was only here to see two of them.
Lucas and Emilio were both there, sitting at the blackjack table with Lorenzo and Paolo. This night had gone from exciting to nerve-racking. I hadn’t been in the same room with both of them since we were in Toronto. I didn’t know how to handle this situation.
Both of the men that I loved were sitting right next to each other, and at the moment, they were laughing and joking with one another. I knew they hadn’t spotted me yet.
I also knew that they were both getting impatient as they awaited my decision on which one I’d chose. It was so hard to choose, though—two different men, circumstances, and life directions.
My heart had two strings that each reached out to both of theirs—two separate bonds.
But which string would I cut?
I turned around and headed back out the door before either of them had a chance to notice me. There was no way I could face both of them right now. This situation was not one I was willing to walk into voluntarily.
I found a storage room in the back of the club. It consisted mostly of boxes that held liquor and beer. As I maneuvered through the room to the back, I heard footsteps in the hallway.
Please don’t let it be Lucas or Emilio.
I turned in anticipation, and before I could hold my breath, Lorenzo came through the door and made his way to me. He was the last person that I had expected to follow me.
“I saw you head back out the door,” he said as he stood in front of me. “Lucas and Emilio saw it too, but I held them off,” he slightly laughed, knowing I wouldn’t find it as amusing.
“Thanks,” I half laughed, before turning serious. “I just can’t be around them when they’re together yet,” I said as I leaned against a wall and slid down it. Lorenzo followed.
“I get that. You’re still torn,” he observed.
“Unfortunately,” I laughed.
“Yeah,” he responded.
We were quiet for a moment before he spoke up again.
“Hey, I’ve been meaning to ask you about what you and Nikolas talked about the last time you were here. It looked intense.”
I still hadn’t told a single soul what Nikolas requested—not even Violet. At the time, Nikolas had brought up that his father wanted to see me, and I immediately dismissed it. But later on, I decided that wasn’t what I wanted—I wanted to meet him.
“Viktor Heinrich wants to meet with me,” I said with a shrug.
“What!” Lorenzo exclaimed.
“Don’t you dare say a word to Emilio or anyone else for that matter!” I hissed back at him.
“But I have to. He said if we found out any information pertaining to you and the Heinrichs, then we had to tell him.”
“He can’t know about this—no one can.”
“Why?” Lorenzo responded.
“Because, I have decided to meet with Heinrich, and I need your help in doing so.”
“Oh no! I can’t help you. Emilio will have my head!” Lorenzo said shaking his head.
“Listen, I’m going to do this with or without you,” I said, falsifying my actual plan. “Neither Emilio, Lucas, nor my family can know about this. You and Paolo are the only ones that I have left. If you won’t help me, then I’m going on my own.”
“This is absolute madness, Lily.”
“I know. But how do you think Emilio will feel if something happens to me and he finds out that you knew the entire time and didn’t help me?”
“Seriously, Lil, blackmail?” he responded.
“It’s my last attack since you didn’t take any of my other bait,” I replied.
Lorenzo suddenly became quiet, and I knew that he was seriously considering it. I saw his eyebrows scrunch and his lips twist to the side as he thought about the pros and cons of the situation. While I wasn’t thrilled about blackmailing him, I really didn’t have anything else to throw his way. The only thing that I could do now was to hope and pray that he would help me, and that I had done enough to talk him into this.
“I’d be risking a lot if I do this.”
“Please Lorenzo, you’re my only hope,” I pleaded.
He continuously shook his head as he really thought about what he was doing. I felt that I was losing this battle with him. And if he didn’t help me out, then who would? I honestly didn’t want to go at it alone, but I would—if I had to.
“Damn you,” he said as he exhaled and turned to face me. “Fine, I’ll help you. But only because I know how stubborn you are and that you actually would do this whether I helped you out or not. You’re lucky I care so much about you, because if anything happens to you Emilio is seriously going to have my head on a platter. And for the record, I think this is a bad idea.”
“Really? You’ll help!” I exclaimed, ignoring the end of his statement.
“Yes,” he responded as unenthused as anyone could. “So what’s the plan?”
“I’ll let you know when I figure it out,” I said as I smiled.
Whiteness took over his face as he started to shake his head again.
“What have I gotten myself into?” he said as the muscles in his neck tensed.
Chapter 10
The sound of my alarm woke me up. Last night had been a long night, and we didn’t get to bed until much later than we should have.
I turned the alarm off and stretched my arms and legs out, before turning and sitting on the edge of my bed.
Today was going to be an epic day, because today my best friend was becoming my sister-in-law. I smiled at the thought as I stood up and headed for my door.
Violet was still sound asleep as I passed by Dante’s room on my way down the stairs. Her mother and father had been staying in her room the last couple of days. Although after today, it wouldn’t be her room anymore.
Violet’s mother, and the smell of fresh made coffee, greeted me when I walked into the kitchen. Her parents were the only ones staying with us—the rest of her family, and some of our old friends, were at a hotel. Dante and Emilio ended up staying the night at my mother’s house. They were instructed not to come to the house until precisely four p.m. today—to insure Dante wouldn’t see Violet before it was time.
Even though the wedding wasn’t until this evening, we still had a lot to do. Kay and her vendors would be here in less than two hours to start setting everything up outside. Then, later on, the DJ, caterers, and the florist could start their setup. Today, for us, would be all about tending to last minute details, having lunch with the ladies, and trying to relax before the ceremony.
Violet joined me and her mom downstairs a few minutes after I arrived. She looked stressed and exhausted. She had pillow lines all over her face, her hair was tangled, and she looked like she had seen better days.
“Rough night?” I half laughed. “You’re not having second thoughts, are you?”
“What? No way! I’m ready for this day,” she said perking up, but then added solemnly. “Just nervous, you know? We don’t always have the best luck when we have guests and parties.”
Immediate understanding ran through my mind. I had thought about that a lot throughout this entire process. I had constantly annoyed Emilio about security over the last couple of weeks. He had assured, and reassured, me multiple times that everything was going to be fine.
“Today is going to be magical,” I said, confidently grabbing ahold of her hand and squeezing it. “We’re not going to worry about anything but having an amazing, romantic, and perfect day.”
And I knew it was going to be—I could feel it.
***
The morning flew by quickly. The house was in order, and the guys had moved everything we needed them to last night.
All the girls were going to lunch, and Lorenzo and Paolo were told to arrive at the house by eleven to make sure Kay and her team could get onto the property and start setting up.
At lunch, my mother, the matriarch of our family, stood up and gave her speech, all the girls laughed and some even shed a tear. She told Violet how much our family loved and adored her, and that we couldn’t wait for her to officially join our family. Really, she had been a part of the family since we were five. But now that it was becoming permanent, she felt more like ours.
When we arrived home after lunch the entire backyard was complete organized chaos. I had thought the engagement party was bad, but today Kay was definitely proving me wrong.
The scene that was unfolding in front of my eyes was definitely the epiphany of it now. Kay, the wedding coordinator, was literally standing on a ladder with a bull horn up to her mouth, giving out orders to everyone.
“No, no, no!” she shouted at one point. For only being five foot even, she was very intimidating.
The backyard was looking more amazing with each new thing that was being added. In the middle of the backyard there was, what I could only describe as, a skeleton of a tent set up—there were poles on the outside and the top, but no cover. The black and white dance floor had already been brought in and assembled in the middle of the tent. The round tables were already in place with the chairs surrounding them. The most amazing thing to me, though, was watching the workers put the lights up. The poles from the tent were holding the lights. They were being streamed from one end to the next, and every so often, a chandelier was placed. Right now, it looked like a crazy mess, but I couldn’t wait to see it all lit up tonight under the stars.
The florist, caterers, and DJ would all be arriving while we were getting dressed, so we wouldn’t be able to see the final product until we headed out the back door and towards the back of the property where the actual wedding ceremony was going to take place.
After checking out the front part of the backyard, we made our way past the chaos to the end of the property. At the back there was a big oak tree that Violet decided would be the backdrop for the ceremony. The chairs were lined up three deep in half circles on each side of the white aisle runner. Violet and I both thought this would give everyone the best view. The tree was very colorful with coral, white, yellow, and light turquoise decorative hanging lanterns. Violet was overjoyed with the way it had turned out. And I had to admit, even I was surprised.
By the time Violet and I had made it back to the house, there was a significant change. The porch had been transformed once again. But this time it held the gift table, sign-in book, and a kids table that held special treats for our younger guests to keep them busy. It was a must have for my family especially.
By three-thirty, Violet, our mothers, and I retreated up to my room. Chelsea, who had done my transformation when I was on house arrest, and her friend Anna arrived moments later to start our hair and makeup for the wedding.
Violet had done really well today—no panic attacks. I could tell she was getting nervous, but the hint of excitement never left her eyes.
Chelsea, Anna, and all of us girls had just finished going over what we thought we wanted to do, when Dante’s voice rang out throughout the house.
“Violet! I can’t wait to marry you today!”
Violet’s eyes lit up before she jumped up and ran to the door and opened it slightly. “I can’t wait either! See you soon!” she shouted back to him.
Dante’s and Emilio’s laughs sounded a little too close for comfort, so she shut the door quickly. Her whole demeanor changed after that moment. She knew exactly what she needed the moment she heard his voice—confirmation.
Chelsea and Anna worked feverishly on us—one did our makeup, while the other worked on our hair. Chelsea started on Violet’s hair first, so her makeup would be done last. She settled on a low sideways bun, whereas my mother and I went for down and loose curls. Violet’s mom was the easiest of all since her hair was short and styled in a pixie cut. All of our makeup was natural and elegant.
At four-thirty, a team of four photographers arrived. They were going to have their work cut out for them today.
At five o’clock, my mother and Sarah were getting into their dresses. Our mothers had beautiful light turquoise dresses. We had them tailored made for them—the same color, just different cuts and styles. My mother preferred long dresses, whereas Sarah lo
ved the short and sassy.
Imagine that.
My dress was beautiful. It was a long, coral dress with a lace neckline and open back. I accessorized with light turquoise pumps, my locket, and earrings.
“Oh, Liliana,” my mother and Sarah both said together when I walked out of the bathroom.
“You look beautiful,” Violet finished.
“Thank you.” I blushed at her compliment. “But not as beautiful as you’re about to look. Let’s get you dressed!”
It didn’t take us long to get Violet zipped up in her dress. She was always a beautiful woman, but this evening, she looked breathtaking in her laced trumpet style dress. Dante was in for a treat this evening. I couldn’t wait to see his face when he saw her.
It was five-thirty when our mothers left to go check on the Dante, Emilio, and Violet’s dad. They wanted to make sure they were presentable before they headed down the aisle—although I knew they all would look very dashing in their suits. Dante didn’t want to wear a tux and neither did Emilio or Frank, Violet’s dad, so we compromised with them. All three of them would be wearing gray suits, gray vests, with white shirts. Dante would be sporting a light turquoise tie and handkerchief, whereas Emilio, the best man, and Frank would have coral.
“You ready?” I asked Violet as soon as our mothers had left the room and it was just the two of us.
“I’ve never been more ready in my life,” she said as she smiled at me in the mirror.
I didn’t know what it was about that moment, but for the first time in our entire friendship, I was jealous of Violet. It was her wedding day and, for a millisecond, I wished that it was me getting married. I didn’t know why, though. I wasn’t even in a relationship.
What I did have, though, were two men who loved me unconditionally, kept me on my toes, and made me wonder what would happen next in our journey together, depending on who I would choose.
“Earth to Lily?” Violet said, poking me on the shoulder.
“Huh? Yes?” I said as her face came back into focus.
“Everything okay?” she asked concerned.
“Can I ask you a question?” I asked.
