I haven’t had a proper night’s sleep in almost three days because I’ve been busy with maid of honor duties. My eyes are already closing when I hear one of my sisters say that I’m going to miss the beautiful scenery.
I wakeup with the slam of a car door and open my eyes to see the charming Inn we’re parked in front of. It looks like an elaborate gingerbread house and immediately makes me thinkof a Christmas horror movie and this is Santa’s village for the damned. I suddenly fear that if I go in, I’m not coming back out.
“Are you coming, sleepyhead?” Sadie asks, turning back to look at me.
I nod, covering my mouth to hide a yawn. We get out of the car and leave the luggage for later. Sienna is already walking ahead, climbing the porch steps. Sadie and I stand by the car, looking up at the massive mansion in front of us.
There’s a huge Christmas tree on the porch and so many Christmas lights that even if they turn off the interior lights, the whole place will still be bright.
“This is like a Christmas horror movie,” Sadie says, hooking her arm through mine.
“I thought the same thing!”
We shiver as we walk towards the porch. With the sun going down, it’s somehow gotten colder. Sienna enters the Inn before us. A wooden plaque is hanging on the inside of the door with the Inn’s name on it: The Honeysuckle.
Mom and Dad are in the lobby, talking to the old woman behind the counter. Mom is animatedly telling her all about Sienna’s wedding. She looks up excitedly when the three of us walk in.
“There they are!”
Rushing over, Mom envelopes the three of us into a hug, as if she hasn’t seen us in months rather than the couple of hours to took to get here. To be fair, we were all in a rush to get out of the airport and my parents have been in Calgary for over a week. This the first time we’re having a proper conversation today. She squeezes us until we’re breathless and crying for mercy. Dad is standing right behind her, waiting his turn.
I squeeze out of Mom’s arms and give him a quick side hug. He and I are the same, we keep our emotions inside andour physical touch limited; we don’t like people in our personal space.
“How was the flight?” Dad asks, his blue eyes crinkling at the corners as he pulls Mom away from my sisters.
“It was fine,” I say. “Sadie got into a fight with another passenger.”
My baby sister turns at the sound of her name, hazel eyes narrowed. Sienna and Sadie both got Mom’s hazel eyes, and I got Dad’s baby blues. There’s a running joke in my family that with my eyes and lavender hair, I look like a witch.
“That man was rude! I apologized for bumping into him and he glared at him. What kind of person doesn’t accept an apology?”
“A rude one,” Mom agrees.
I’m not saying the man wasn’t rude. I just wouldn’t have picked a fight with him, which is a lot coming from me because apparently I fight with people for no good reason.
“Did you get the chance to talk to Luke?” Mom asks.
Sadie and I automatically make kissing noises because we wouldn’t be good sisters if we didn’t tease Sienna. Our older sister blushes, but the glow on her is undeniable. She’s so happy it’s bursting out of her like sunshine. I want to wrap her up and protect her.
“Girls, be nice to your sister,” Mom chides, though there’s no anger behind her words.
“I did talk to Luke. He’ll be here next week in time for the wedding festivities to begin,” Sienna says.
The benefit of us working for ourselves means we were able to come here two weeks in advance of the wedding, and Sienna and Luke will still have two weeks for their honeymoon.
Sienna works as a freelance graphic designer, Sadie is finishing her marketing degree while helping Mom and Dad at the family chocolate shop, and I’m a voice actor. Except theacting I do is for audio erotica and romance novels. I still haven’t figured out how to tell people that part when they ask if they’ve heard me in anything. They hear voice acting and think animated movies.
Mom claps once. “Okay, let’s get settled. Daddy and I found a nice restaurant for dinner. Why don’t you girls freshen up and change and we’ll meet back here in an hour?”
“Oh, can we go see Cedar Creek Ranch?” Sadie asks, eyes bright.
“I think that’s a great idea,” Mom says. “We can see the wedding venue.”
“At this hour, they will probably be closed for an event,” the old lady behind the counter adds. Her name tag reads Marion. She must be about my grandmother’s age.
“Okay, that answers that question,” Sienna says. “We have an appointment to go there tomorrow, anyway.”
“It’s much better in the light,” Marion agrees.
