10 Days Until Dream Wedding
Noneof you are professional actors or actresses.
Sienna hadn’t been able to get those stupid words out of her head ever since Bruce had spoken them during their first meeting. He seemed to know a lot about Sienna, which was normal since they'd done background checks on all of them. But if that were the case, he’d know that Siennawas, in fact, a professional actor—and how she hated the term actress.
Just because she’d only had a few roles didn’t make her any less legitimate. She’d spent a fortune when she first moved to New York on acting classes in the city. She’d practiced with the best vocal coaches, studied so many videos of the greats she often dreamed of their facial expressions, and went to every open call and casting audition in the tri-state area.
If that wasn’t professional, she didn't know what was.
Although, technically, Bruce was the professional here, even if his current stint making reality TV made Sienna want to gag. And his name did seem vaguely familiar, though she couldn’t quite place it. Too bad a production assistant had taken their phones at the door so they wouldn’t buzz accidentally during the all-important introduction scene, because Sienna wanted to look him up. She made a mental note to do it later. Who knew? Maybe she recognized the name because he’d been working on one of the hundreds of commercials she’d auditioned for.
Bruce’s words had echoed through her mind as the show’s host went over the basic concept of the show, and they echoed through her head now as the girls on the “bride’s team” waited in an empty room to conduct their initial video diaries.
The team consisted of Audrey, Harper, Sienna, and the maid-of-honor. Even though Reagan was the only non-relative in the small group, it didn't feel that way to Sienna. In fact, Reagan had been Audrey’s best friend for so long now, that it almost felt like she was the fourth sister they never had—even with her fiery red hair and tall frame.
Just as Sienna started to wonder if they were keeping them waiting just to see how long it would take for them to start complaining, Bruce walked in with a cameraman by his side. She straightened in her seat. This man was the producer, not some peon.
So why is he the one conducting the interviews?
Sienna pushed the sinking feeling of unease aside as she plastered on the brightest smile she could muster. When she turned to the other three girls, frustration bubbled up at their lack of enthusiasm. Audrey and Reagan both wore matching demure grins on their faces, while Harper was staring intently at the production crew in the corner and barely registered the room’s new additions.
Oh well, she thought to herself.I guess I’ll just have to be captivating enough for everyone.
Sienna shifted in her seat as Bruce sat down across from them and put the clipboard he was carrying in his lap. She mentally went over every part of her posture. Chin up, back straight, shoulders relaxed, legs crossed at the ankle, hands resting casually in her lap. She had practiced this pose in front of her mirror so many times, it felt almost natural to her now.
Not that it mattered how it felt. All Sienna cared about was how it made her look for the camera—the one being manned by a baby face who she could only hope knew how to capture her best angle. This was her chance to be seen, and she couldn’t afford to have anyone mess it up for her.
“Good afternoon, ladies,” Bruce said.
“Good afternoon,” Sienna said brightly.
Audrey just smiled in response, and Harper’s muffled “hi” came a half second too late.
Sienna bit the side of her tongue but kept her smile plastered on.
“From time to time, I like to sit down with the different contestants to see how everyone is feeling. They make great cut-away footage and voice-over clips, but please don’t feel anxious about it. I want this to be comfortable—easy—just like a conversation with an old friend.”
Sienna struggled to keep her smile natural while he said this. Bruce was not their friend; he was in the business of making good TV. But that didn’t mean this couldn’t be a mutually beneficial exchange.
“Let’s start with something easy, shall we?” Bruce paused and smiled. “What do you guys think about the property?”
Sienna’s shoulders relaxed a fraction of an inch. Thatwasan easy one.
“It’s beautiful,” Sienna answered enthusiastically, realizing too late that Bruce was looking at Audrey. Lackluster or not, this whole thing was about the bride-to-be.
Sienna felt a slight warmth to her cheeks as she turned to face her sister. The kind, but gently reproving look Audrey gave her only made it worse.
“My sister is right,” Audrey answered. “Itisbeautiful. The Emerald Inn will be the perfect place to marry Eli.”
“And speaking of Eli, why don’t you tell us a little about how the two of you met,” Bruce said.
Audrey started into the story that Sienna had heard a million times. She knew it by heart now.
It was love at first sight.
They’d met in college but not at some random party. On the very first day of classes, they’d both been in the registrar’s office, begging to switch out of an 8 a.m. math class. When they realized the hottie at the next counter would be in that class, they both decided to keep it. They’d been inseparable ever since.
While Audrey talked about how she and Eli had decided to pursue teaching degrees together, Sienna wondered what it would be like to know you wanted to spend the rest of your life with someone after meeting them only once.
