“I am so sorry,” I stared to cry, this time letting the tears safely flow down my face in the privacy of the bedroom. She didn’t deserve to be a part of this day. Today was about love, and that woman wasn’t capable of showing that type of emotion when it came to me. Giving her the satisfaction of watching me break down and cry, would only feel like an accomplishment for her. She didn’t come to pay her apologies, she came to try and ruin it all.
Wiping my eyes with my one free hand, I stood up from the floor and placed a soft kiss to my daughters head. Gently laying her in the middle of the bed, I walked over to the vanity and began to blot away the black mascara lines trailing down my cheeks. I might not be her version of the perfect daughter, or even what a strong southern women stood for, but to hell if I didn’t take a stand for the woman I had become over this last year. I might share my last name with that wretched bitch for the next hour or so, but I was about to be Molly Anne Patricia Chambers, and that wasn’t anything to cry about.
“Molly,” I heard Danielle’s voice waver on the other side of the door.
Tossing my tissue in the garbage, I exhaled a deep breath and forced a smile across my face. No matter how much that little altercation shook me, I refused to let anyone see how rattled I actually was. Keeping my head held high was exactly the outcome my mother wouldn’t have expected, and no matter how much lipstick I smeared across my lips, the crazy was always going to be seen.
Opening the door, I took in Danielle’s stressed face as she fidgeted outside the bedroom.
“I’m going to need a touch up, Sadie,” I called out while smoothing the wrinkles on my white button down shirt.
A look of relief washed over Danielle as she pursed her lips tightly together. “Tiny had her escorted out of the hotel, and I already let security know she wasn’t welcome at the venue.”
“Thanks, but I think she got the hint.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?” Danielle whispered softly.
“It wouldn’t be my wedding without something going absolutely, horribly, wrong.” Giving her a reassuring smile, I motioned that Rain was sleeping on the bed and walked back over to the chair for Sadie to touch me up.
“That was some crazy shit,” Sadie muttered as she started to pull out her supplies again.
“Eh, it could have been worse.” Shrugging my shoulders, I had always known that my mother was freaking crazy, but I might just have surpassed her in that department. Sure, I broke down on the inside, but I managed to get out what I wanted to say, and walked away with my head held high. I didn’t exactly do it with the polished elegance that she portrayed, but it took years to prefect that kind of crazy. I’m pleasantly surprised in my ability to hold on to my anger and emotions while standing in front of her; who knew, there might be a strong southern woman in me yet.
“Who needs a shot?” Danielle asked while bringing out a hidden bottle of booze that we somehow managed not to drink last night.
Everyone in the room laughed as she unscrewed the top off the bottle. Handing it over to Tara, she held the bottle out and snickered, “To getting married.”
Tossing the bottle back, we all cheered while passing it to Sadie.
“To amazing eyelash glue that holds on, even in a damn flood.”
“To magic little pills that make taking this shot a heck of a lot easier,” Megan laughed before putting the bottle to her lips.
“To crazy women trying to ruin this wedding. And I’m sorry, Molly, but it’s not just your mother.” Tiny shook his head then tipped the bottle back in the air. At least my mother wasn’t a groupie.
“To my best friend in the entire damn world. To looking fucking beautiful in her wedding dress, and for being a damn rock star even when everything goes down the shitter.” Danielle sent me a wink before downing more than a shot; I would have never made it through those last couple months without her.
Snatching the bottle out of her hand, I took a quick swig then wiped my mouth off with the back of my hand.
“Dang it, Molly. I’m going to have to redo your lips now,” Sadie said with a sigh.
Smiling, I quickly took another go at the bottle then handed it over to Tiny. “Let’s get married!”
Everyone in the room laughed as Megan’s grandmother shushed us from the door. “Don’t wake the baby,” she scolded.
Sending an amused look at the small group, I puckered my lips while Sadie made another pass over them with a bright red glossy shade. Blotting gently on a tissue, I stood up quickly, adjusted my veil and headed for the door.
“Uh……Molls?” I heard Danielle behind me.
“What?”
“Your dress?”
Glancing down at my white shirt and black shorts, I let out an amused snicker, before turning around. “Guess I kind of need that.”
Chapter 29
F*%k You Endless Love
“I can’t breathe,” I gasped.
Standing in front of the mirror was a perfectly polished version of my dysfunctional self. My hair was seamlessly straight, with a slight bend to the ends that skimmed my collar bone. The top half was smoothly pulled back, revealing the drunken purple escapades last night, and a slight bump adored the back of my head where the veil hooked effortlessly in to.
My normally pale white skin had a soft glow, that played nicely with the creamy color of the smooth dress that hung on every curve with such perfection you would have thought it had been created right on my body. Even the darker makeup that most people would shy away from on their wedding, gave off that stunning rocker chic look that tied the whole thing together. I was a full blown, completely stunning, heart stopping, bride.
“This was the one time not having any boobs came in handy. If your knockers where any bigger, going backless wouldn’t have been an option.” Danielle stood behind me in the mirror, admiring her creation.
Giving her a confused look, I tilted my head to look at her. “Didn’t you want me to get my boobs done?”
“Well, yeah. But fake knockers hold up better then real knockers. Big real boobs tend to sag.” Rolling her eyes at me, Danielle playfully smacked my ass and blew me an air kiss. “Now, let’s go get in that car and get you married off.”
“Has anyone spoken to Reid? Is he for sure coming?” I asked in a panic. The entire day was about us, and I hadn’t even thought about talking to the groom and seeing how he was doing. After all the bullshit with my mother, wouldn’t it be something if the man I planned on spending forever with decided he had better things to do other than marry me?
“I spoke with the guys earlier. They are already at the loft and I gave Brody your gift to give to Reid.” Megan swung a massive bag of extra supplies over her shoulder and reassured me with a genuine smile. Even with Danielle’s vision and planning, nothing would ever be followed through without Megan. If I had added another bridesmaid, she would have, without doubt, been stranding up there with me.
Nervously nodding, I adjusted the soft delicate diamond bracelet on my good arm, and took one last final look in the mirror. You’ve got this Molly Anne.
“Damn, we seriously look ridiculously hot.” Danielle laughed as her black shiny pumps clacked on the tile entry way. “Well, hurry the hell up. I plan on killing it walking down that aisle.” Throwing a fake kiss over her shoulder at Tiny, I started to wonder if there was something more going on there. I’ve been so consumed with Rain and making it through the wedding that picking up little details on my friend’s love life, was obviously not on my radar.
Wiggling my toes in my delicate lace flats, I grabbed the side of my dress to hike it up.
“Drop the dress, Molly. You’ll put a massive wrinkle in the fabric if you carry it like that,” Megan demanded.
Grabbing the hem of my train, she carefully gathered the fabric in the back, giving me enough space to comfortably walk to the elevator.
“Thank you,” I mouthed. My nerves were riding the edge of being insanely girly and crying over the littlest thing possible, or possibl
y losing my head over all this shit. I had already ruined my eye makeup once, and I was positive that Sadie would kill me if I did it again. “Do we have everything?”
Everyone did a quick glance at what they were carrying, and then scanned the room. Tiny had Rain’s car seat in the crook of his arm, and the diaper bag slung over his other shoulder. My glamour crew were pulling their rolling suitcases behind them, and Danielle was already out the door before the comment had been made.
“The ring?” Panic set in when I realized I had no clue where that small box had been placed. With everything going on, one would think such an important part of the ceremony wouldn’t be overlooked. But, then again, it was my wedding day.
“Danielle shoved it in her bra.” Megan gave me a look like carrying a ring between your tits was a totally normal thing.
“Okay then.” Shaking my head, I reached for the door handle and pushed my way out into the hallway. It was actually happening, I was really getting married.
***
As if the gods opened the heaven’s themselves and basically sent down a hand to smack me upside the head, I knew the moment Tiny cranked over the SUV and the damn Endless Love song was blaring on the radio, that the rest of the day was going down the shitter. The power came on in the vehicle, and the fucking radio obviously worked, but getting it to move was a completely different story.
It had taken three of us to get me into the SUV while in the dress. Everyone said to rent a car service, but with Rain I wanted to use our own vehicle. The base to her car seat was already installed, and we never removed it from the vehicle, giving me the peace of mind that she would be totally safe while traveling in the vehicle. As if the encounter with my mother this morning wasn’t enough, now I couldn’t get to the loft on time to even walk down the stupid aisle.
“Turn the fucking radio off!” I barked while fanning myself with my manicured hands. At least these stupid nails gave me a little more air flow, since I was starting to bake in the damn car.
“Don’t worry Molly, I’m sure the hotel has a car service we could commandeer,” Megan said quickly while skillfully climbing over the second row seating in her tight black dress. “Just give me a second.” Disappearing out the door, I bit my lip to help ease the panic that was slowly rising up my body.
“I need out.” Reaching for the door handle, I flung it open and rolled out of the car. It didn’t matter that my dress drug on the running boards as I slid out, or that I lost a shoe in the whole process, I couldn’t sit in that damn car any longer.
“Your dress,” Danielle shrieked from the front seat. It was only seconds till she had flown out of the car and rounded the back end, basically diving for the dress to pull it off the parking lot floor.
“Danielle, I really don’t care if the bottom gets dirty.”
“Well, the fuck I do. You still have an entrance to make, vows to say, pictures to be taken, and that stupid first dance to accomplish before you ruin this stunning number.” Danielle rolled her eyes at me, then carefully went to inspecting the bottom of the dress.
“We have a car,” Megan said cautiously. “But, it’s only one. Let’s get you and Danielle to the loft, then I’ll have Tiny install the car seat when it gets back and send my grandmother and Rain over. By then, the taxi that I called should be here, and it can take the rest of us.”
“This was insane,” I whined, dropping my head and staring at the black pavement on the ground.
“Yep, but this bitch was getting done. I had put way too much work into your wedding to have to have it ruined by a vehicle.”
Everything had been going so well for the last fifteen minutes, then that damn song had to come on the radio.
“I’ve called the wedding planner at the loft, and she is holding everything for fifteen minutes. Your flowers are already in the prep room, and everyone has been seated. When we get to the place, let me get out first, then I’ll come around and help you. No stopping for pictures, it’s a bolt and run kind of situation.” Danielle looked a little panicked as the driver navigated the streets of Seattle. “It’s going to be fine.”
Looking out the window, the sun was still shining and it seemed like a peaceful day here in the normally cloudy Seattle area. Sure, I felt like there was a couple thousand pound elephant sitting on my chest, and I might have possibly drug my dress in some grease back in the parking lot, but everything was still happening. Reid hadn’t called the whole thing off, standing up to my mother had basically given me a set of women balls, and I had the most amazing people around me trying to make this whole shindig go off without any more issues. I needed to just let it go and enjoy this once in a lifetime kind of thing. So, I would be a little late, it wasn’t like the guests were going anywhere. They were trapped in that massive rental space, decorated to the nines, and had enough booze to keep them entertained for the next couple days.
“Tell the caterers to pass out glasses of champagne,” I stated to Danielle, still blissfully gazing out the window.
“Okay,” she replied in hesitation before grabbing her phone from the clutch and placing the call.
Stressful situations were always better suited with booze. Technically, they might complicated things more than helping, but fuck it. We were minutes away from the wedding site, and probably only ten to fifteen before I had to walk down the aisle. Yes, there might just possibly be a drunken brawl erupting before I was able to say the whole ‘I do’ part, but, it would just give Reid and I an excuse to run off and hit up a drive thru chapel in Vegas. Either way, I would be getting married. Running away and not going through with everything was starting to appeal to more and more.
***
It was like a tornado took my body and whisked me away. The moment the car stopped on the side of the curb, Danielle bolted from the car, and my door was yanked open. Two large arms reached in and carefully pulled me out, then steadied on my feet.
“We need to move, Miss. McGlenister,” the man stated, basically lifting me off the ground as they tried to shield me from the paparazzi screaming on either side of the barriers.
“Don’t snag the dress!” I heard Danielle yell as I was hauled through the glass doors on the main lobby floor.
Setting me down, I looked up to see a few security officers from NP surrounding me, as Danielle did a once over on my appearance.
“Okay, good. You’re fine.” Letting out a relieved sigh, Danielle then rushed me into a waiting elevator. “Megan was able to secure two taxis, so the rest of the crew was on their way.”
“It’s fine.” I reassured Danielle, who looked like she was about to rip off her dress and run screaming down the hallway. I didn’t really have any back up if my maid of honor decided to bag the whole wedding and walk away from this crazy messed up day.
The doors opened and the blonde headed she devil of a wedding planner’s fake smile greeted us.
“I have both of your bouquets in the staging room, the guys are waiting behind the half wall, and the music is on cue. You ready?”
Smiling, I leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Danielle’s cheek, then grabbed her hand. “No time to run now.” Pulling her out of the elevator, we quietly snuck along the side of the wall to the small staging area that had been fitted with two heavy black doors.
“I’ll let sound know you need a few minutes to gather yourself,” the wedding planner said softly, while Danielle went about making sure nothing about the dress or my hair was out of place.
“No, we will be waiting for my daughter and friends to arrive. Will you please meet them at the elevator and show them to their seats when they get here?” Giving the woman a pointed look, she simple nodded her head and closed the door quietly.
“Why did you hire her?” I turned and whispered to Danielle.
“Because I can’t be everywhere at one.” Smoothing out the back of my thin lace veil, Danielle let out a soft sniffle before quickly stepping away and gently wiping her eyes.
“Don’t you dare start,” I threatened
, narrowing my heavily shaded eyes at her.
“I just really thought we would never get to this part, Molls. Like for reals, I thought Reid would fuck up, or you would bolt before we could get the cake flavor picked out.” Danielle grabbed the bouquet of black tulips out of the waiting case, and handed them over to me.
“Thanks for having faith in me,” I laughed nervously. If she could have been in my head right now, she might have had to walk me down the aisle herself.
“I love you, Molly.”
“I love you too, Danielle.” Giving her a smile, my nerves rattled on the inside, and I desperately wanted out of this situation. Everyone would be staring at me as I walked out there. My entire back was basically showing in the dress, I had a freaking plaster cast on my arm, and my purple hair clashed with the color scheme.
Like Jekyll and Hyde, my poor mind really needed to pick a side……….and quick.
Chapter 30
Getting drunk is the best part of a wedding
I heard the music coming through the heavy black painted doors, and everything in me had told myself to run. Get out of the dress, toss on my shoes, and climb out the damn window. Why in the world did I ever let it get to this point?
I wasn’t the type of girl that needed the fame and glamour, so why was I putting up this front that it was something I truly desired and needed? What I wanted was to marry Reid, alone, and not in some fancy converted loft overlooking the bay.
Standing behind those doors, waiting for the wedding planner from hell to open them and flood me with camera flashes, then shoving myself down the walkway to my future husband, all while trying not to face plant in front of everyone.
Invisible Crown Page 20
