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Chapter 25
Jenna
The first dance is over, and the guests are on the dancefloor. The lights have been turned down low, and it’s intimate and fun. I stand to the side, trying to catch my breath, trying not to spontaneously combust.
I’m furious with Brett for not being open with Noah. For not being open with me. I don’t know what to think about what’s going on right now. He knew Noah was coming all this time, but he never said anything. And he didn’t tell Noah about me, either. Why the hell would he do that?
And what he said about what he feels for me, or doesn’t…
I press my fingers against my temple. I can’t think about any of this right now. I should be here for Stacey, to celebrate her big day. That’s all that should matter right now. I try to focus on the dancing couple. They look so happy. And I’m so damn jealous. Why the hell can’t I have my big break? I keep telling myself that my happy ending will come, but right now, it looks like every ending I have is just a big screwed-up mess.
I’m going to be alone forever.
Laura comes to me, a broad smile pasted on her face for the sake of the cameras that are watching her every move, but the smile doesn’t reach her eyes.
“What was that?” she asks.
“What?”
“Don’t act like you have no idea how much drama surrounds you tonight. The paps are all over it. Do you have any idea what it might mean?”
She’s still talking with that smile on her face. For all the paparazzi know, we’re having a wonderful conversation about how right the union is and how happy they will be together.
I try to plaster a smile on my face for the same reason, but I fail. I can’t look happy and unaffected when my head is spinning and I feel like I’m going to throw up.
Laura glances over her shoulder at the cameras that keep flashing and shakes her head. “I’m not going to make another scene they can throw on the front page of whatever tabloid is out there. I’ll talk to you in private. Come with me.”
She grabs me and drags me to the restrooms. Once we’re safely in the ladies’ room where the paparazzi aren’t allowed, she unleashes her anger on me. Her photo-ready face is gone and an expression of anger replaces it. Her eyes spew fire, and when she speaks, her words are sharp.
“I trusted you to keep this thing in check! You know how important this event is. Not just for Marc and Stacey, but for our respective families and for your own publicity. I can’t believe you let something like this happen. What were you thinking? Everything was going too well, with nothing going wrong the past two weeks aside from a few press issues I could bribe away. But this…no one’s going to accept money to make this go away. This wedding was deemed the wedding of the century!”
“I’m sorry, Laura,” I start when I can finally get a word in edgewise, but the door opens and Stacey comes in. Her cheeks are flushed from dancing, but there’s concern in her eyes.
“What’s going on?” she asks.
“Didn’t you see that?” Laura asks her daughter. “Do you have any idea what’s going to be in the headlines tomorrow? I expected Jenna to keep control of the situation but—”
Stacey sighs. “I saw there was something, but I don’t think it’s such a big deal, mom.”
“Not a big deal?” Laura cries out. “Everything that happens here is a big deal. We can’t afford—”
“It’s okay, Mom,” Stacey says, and I’m impressed at how calm she is handling her mother when she’s been frazzled and flustered all week. “I’ve got this. I’ll talk to Jenna and we’ll figure it out. Don’t worry. You should go back out there. They’ll be wondering where you are.”
Laura looks like she wants to argue, but Stacey is right and Laura can’t fight the idea of her own image and how she’s being portrayed to the world. After one more icy glare in my direction, she leaves in a huff, and when she’s gone, Stacey turns to me.
“That was impressive,” I say. “I haven’t seen you handle her like this since we arrived.”
Stacey grins at me. “There’s less pressure on me now. We’re married, and nothing can go wrong anymore. I don’t care as much about our image as my mom does. So, there was an argument. Who cares? My mom is more worried about her socialite friends, I think. And I don’t really care about them.”
She looks relieved. She looks confident. She’s a glowing bride. I’m glad that she found it in herself to relax, to stand up against her mother, and make this glorious day her own.
“What happened out there?” Stacey asks.
I sag against the basins and shake my head. “Brett lied to me.”
“About what?”
“About Noah coming. He knew all this time.”
