“More like a million people.” Reagan shuddered. “And they’re all just waiting for you to do something embarrassing.”
“Girls,” her mother hissed from her spot behind them.
Why was she even here?
Bruce had made it clear that the parents of the bride and groom weren’t required to show up to any of the competitions. Eli’s parents had taken this to heart and were nowhere to be found in the large dining room. But of course, Sienna’s mother had to be seen, and she’d been sighing loudly ever since Sienna walked in. Not only that, Sienna could practically feel her mother’s eyes boring into the back of her skull every time she spoke.
She turned around and gave her a sickly-sweet smile. “Good morning, Mother.”
“They’re going to start any minute. You need to be paying attention.”
Sienna looked around the room. Everyone was talking—the bridesmaids, groomsmen, even the production crew. The only person not chatting it up with anyone else was their mother, who sat up straight with her hands folded demurely in her lap.
When she turned back around, Reagan’s face looked pale, and she was biting her nails.
Sienna gently pulled Reagan’s hand from her mouth before she chewed her fingers down to stubs. “Be on your best cotillion behavior,” Sienna said.
Reagan groaned. “I thought I was done with those days.”
Sienna shook her head.
When Audrey had brought home her new friend Reagan from college, twelve-year-old Sienna had been mesmerized by her beauty queen looks and super polite manners. Reagan had stepped into the gaping hole Milo had left in their family and filled it with sweet tea and the best stories about all the scandals from her all-girls boarding school.
In an effort to distract the unofficial fourth sister to the Hudson girls, Sienna asked Reagan to tell the story of when she and her roommate snuck over to the all-boys prep school. Sienna has heard it at least a hundred times, but it felt like being home, and made everyone temporarily forget all aboutWedding Games.
At least, until Jason Castle came into the room. “Good morning, wedding party,” he said with his patented bright smile on his face. “Is everyone ready for the first competition?”
Sienna sat up straight in her seat, ready to show Jason—and her mom—she was all business. She answered with a loud “yeah” but was the only one. She glanced around the room and realized that everyone was looking at her—Reagan and her sisters with patient smiles, and the groomsmen with amusement.
Well, all of the groomsmen except for Fox. The scowl affixed to his face felt as much a staple to Fox as the perma-smile was to Jason. And while she couldn’t be sure, Sienna swore he even rolled his eyes at her just before turning his head in the opposite direction.
Sienna took a deep breath, careful not to let the cameras see how his attitude affected her. While a little friendly competition might help her show off her acting skills, it wouldn’t do her any good to lose her cool just because the best man couldn’t play nice.
She smiled and turned back to where Jason was explaining the rules of the first competition. “You’ll spend your morning doing a scavenger hunt in downtown Wellspring,” he said. “Now, this gives a slight advantage to those who live here, but we’ve found ways to make it challenging and fun for everyone.”
Sienna frowned. As the team leader, she had hoped to excel at every challenge, but looking for things? She didn't know the area very well, not after being in New York for so long.
But Harper’s bakery was downtown.
Sienna looked up at her sister, expecting to share a conspiratorial glance, but Harper was staring out the window. She probably knew the area better than anyone else, if only she would get her head in the game.
“There are five items scattered around the shops and surrounding areas. The first team to find all five will get to choose the flowers for the entire ceremony, including the bride’s bouquet.”
Okay, Sienna thought. While the flowers weren’t the most important aspect of the wedding day—not like the food or the cake—they could make or break how Audrey looked in her wedding album.
She tried to imagine what the guys would choose if they won. She wouldn’t put it past Mr. McGrumperson to convince Eli to go with something utilitarian like plain, white carnations.
At least if the girls won, Sienna could ensure the flowers were bright and full of life. Just like Audrey and—usually—Harper.
And win was just what she planned to do with, or without, Harper’s help.
* * *
Five hoursinto the scavenger hunt, Fox had decided he’d had enough for one day. At least having the bridesmaids and the groomsmen running around downtown looking for different things meant the guys hadn’t seen the girls very much today. Which suited Fox just fine.
Unfortunately, it did mean the cameras had been there for every agonizing second of the day. They caught the moment Fox tripped over an upturned part of the sidewalk in his hurry to find the next item, and he was sure they zoomed in on his face when Sienna and her team found the handmade firefly lamp before the groomsmen.
And even though Eli had said he didn’t care about the flowers, and Fox had sworn to himself that he wouldn’t turn into a competitive jerk, the sight of Sienna and her triumphant smile at the small victory of beating the guys to the lamp, made him want to win the competition anyway.
