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The rain still fell but not nearly as heavily as before. Still, any moisture could ruin hair and dresses.
“I’m carrying you,” Rafferty said. “And no arguing.”
“None here.” Annie grinned. “Although, isn’t it your brother I’m marrying?”
Rafferty ignored her, gathering her into his arms and racing into the restaurant. Seconds later, he did the same with Celeste.
Once we were all back in the kitchen, Rafferty instructed the ladies to go into the office. “Sammie and Elliot are here to help. As if we haven’t had enough problems, the photographer hasn’t shown. I’m going to kill him when he does.”
“I’m sure he’s on his way,” I said. Unless he’d gotten stuck in the mud? Maybe a flat tire?
“We’ll take care of the bride and maid of honor.” I patted Rafferty’s shoulder. “Try not to worry.”
“It’s too late for that,” Rafferty said.
We ushered the bride and her maid of honor into the office. Annie appeared calm, but Celeste’s hands shook. Everyone seemed nervous about the turn of events except for Annie and Atticus.
“Here, sit,” Sammie said, gesturing toward the two chairs. “Let me take a look at your makeup.”
They looked perfect to me, but Sammie dug into her toolbox for some powder. “We don’t want shine, and this weather’s not helping.”
Celeste sighed as she pulled out a compact to take a look at herself. Her bridesmaid dress was a light blue silk and hung just right on her slender, petite frame. Her shoulder-length jet-black hair had been curled into loose waves. They seemed to be holding up despite the damp air.
“How’s my hair?” Celeste asked, reading my mind.
“It’s good,” I said.
“I grew it out just for this wedding,” Celeste said. “That’s the kind of friend I am.”
“And you look gorgeous,” Annie said.
Before anyone could say anything further, Rafferty poked his head through the door. “You’re not going to believe this. The photographer canceled. Something about food poisoning.”
“No way,” I said. “We have to have a photographer.”
“Finley takes amazing photos,” Sammie said, looking up from powdering Annie’s nose.
“If you’d just had this in LA we would not be having these issues,” Celeste said.
“Do you think Finley’s capable of taking wedding photos?” Rafferty asked. “They have to be really good. This is a once-in-a-lifetime event.”
“I get my photos taken a lot,” Annie said. “It’s not that big a deal.”
“Not on your wedding day,” Celeste said.
“Exactly,” Rafferty said in a slightly injured tone, as if no one understood the severity of the problem other than himself and Celeste. “We can’t have an amateur taking pictures on Annie’s wedding day.”
“She might be the best we’ve got,” I said.
“This is ridiculous,” Celeste said to Annie. “If you would have listened to me, we would be enjoying a sunny day in Malibu with people who actually know how to throw a professional wedding.”
“You know I don’t care about any of that,” Annie said, sounding slightly irritated. “I wanted to be married in the place I think of as home. The day’s going perfectly so far. I don’t know why everyone’s freaking out.”
Celeste rolled her eyes. “Later, when there are no decent photos and you realize you got married inside a restaurant, you’re going to admit I was right.”
Sammie and I exchanged a worried glance before I left to find Finley. On the way, I noticed Annie’s father and stepmother had arrived, with her two gorgeous teenage sisters trailing behind.
I found her standing with Thad in the corner of the room, having what appeared to be a very intense conversation.
