He tried to ignore her as she loudly complained to her sisters about having to go to hair and makeup.
“I’ve been doing my makeup for as long as I can remember.” She huffed. “I know which products make my face look shiny and which ones match my skin tone, thank you very much.”
“You look fine, Sienna,” Audrey said in a hushed tone, but Sienna continued to complain.
“No, I look all washed out. I’m going to look like a vampire on screen.”
Her protests were met with laughter from her sisters. He had no clue why they allowed her to act this way when they were about to walk into something as major as planning Eli and Audrey’s wedding on television. What Fox did know was that he couldn’t stand it anymore.
He turned to tell Sienna to stop being so selfish, expecting to see the same girl who had bumped into him on her way to the bathroom, but when his eyes met hers, he was struck silent.
While she was technically the same girl from earlier—blonde hair, fair skin, bright eyes—the makeup artists had somehow transformed her appearance. Her blonde hair fell in gentle waves around her glowing face, her blue eyes somehow impossibly brighter than earlier. As much as he hadn’t wanted to admit it due to his irritation, she’d been stunning before; this was literally movie star beautiful.
Her gaze met his, and he swore a slight blush hit her cheeks, though it could have been another enhancement from whatever they’d put on her skin. Fox’s breath caught in his chest, and through muddled thoughts of how gorgeous she was, he managed to remind himself just who this girl was.
She was Sienna Hudson, sister of the bride-to-be.
By the end of their time here, she would be Fox’s best friend’s sister-in-law. She was completely off limits, and beyond that, she was everything he wanted to distance himself from. She was overly dramatic, only cared about herself, and the smile that touched her lips at his interested gaze was just a little too bright and wide to be real.
And yet, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. It was as if the longer he stood taking her in, the more impossible it became to stop looking at her.
“Is there a problem?” She had a hand on her hip, and her perfectly groomed eyebrows were high on her forehead.
Okay, not entirely impossible. Her rudeness was enough to pull him out of the embarrassing trance she’d put on him.
“Just amazed they managed to make you look like a human, not a plastic doll.”
Her eyes narrowed, and she opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a crewmember clearing her throat. Fox quickly glanced around the small crowd to see if anyone else had noticed their brief interaction but felt confident everyone was too caught up in the excitement to care.
“Okay, folks. Here’s how it’s going to work,” said a young woman with a long, dark ponytail and a badge that read “Jennifer: Production Assistant.” She waited until everyone was quiet before continuing. “We’re going to have everyone walk into the meeting room. Without giving too much away, I’ll just say this: If you’re a bridesmaid, you’re part of the bride's family. If you’re a groomsman, you’re considered part of the groom’s family. Do you understand?”
Fox nodded along with everyone else.
“Good.” The woman smiled. “The next thing is, try not to look directly at the cameras. As we proceed through the next ten days, you’ll get better at ignoring them, but we need to make sure we have enough footage of the first day. To help you, I’ll just tell you now that there is one in the very front of the room and two set on either side of the room. Got it?”
Another wave of nods from everyone.
“Good. Then, ready or not, let the games begin.”
At these words, some of the other production staff opened the double doors leading to the meeting room.
The first thing Fox noticed was the brightness of it all. There were lights and those weird umbrella things everywhere that made his eyes hurt. The second thing Fox noticed was the way they’d transformed the meeting room into what now looked like a church sanctuary. There were faux pews on either side, and a trail of flower petals strewn in the path leading to the front of the room where there was a camera pointed directly at them.
Fox tried to train his eyes anywhere but at it, but the more he focused on not looking, the harder it became. Every muscle in his body felt tense as he walked up to where the show’s host stood smiling brightly just in front of the camera.
“Welcome toWedding Games,” Jason Castle said as everyone slowly made their way to where he stood in a black tuxedo. “As is customary, we’ll have the bride on the left and the groom on the right.”
Everyone awkwardly found their places as their host continued. He droned on about love being the thing that holds us together and how when you find that special someone you want to make it last.
Just another flashy reminder of how fake this entire production was.
“We have five games, competitions if you will, that will each determine a different aspect of the wedding.” At this, Fox stood straighter. “The bridesmaids versus the groomsmen. Whoever wins each competition will get to pick the flowers, music, menu, bridesmaid dresses, and cake.”
Ah. And now the catch to the “dream wedding” was out in the open. Not knowing what the competitions were—or the options, for that matter—Fox was already imagining the Frankensteined wedding that would be waiting for his best friend when everything was said and done.
He looked around and wondered if anyone truly knew what they were getting themselves into. But if the excitement on everyone’s faces was any indication, he was the only one who had first-hand experience with how glamourous fame could appear, and just how horrible it could be behind the scenes.
Three
