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“When you see him, tell him I miss him.”
“Absolutely. Now, go.” She shooed me away, and I followed Mom back to where everyone else was already dressed and perfectly made-up.
Pausing at the entrance to the room, I saw Grier and Love Bug were in their sparkly gray dresses, and I crouched down to greet them. “Hello, little flower girls.”
“Daddy said we were going to look like stars,” Love Bug informed me. “Are stars pretty?”
“They light up the entire sky,” I assured her. “Just like you and Grier will light up the room when you walk down the aisle for me a little later.”
“Do you think Banks will say I’m pretty?”
“Of course he will,” Trinity said as she placed Avalyn down beside the other two. “You know what, why don’t I take you to see your daddy, and we can show him and Banks how pretty you are.”
“I wanna come too!” Grier announced.
“Okay. Girls, hold hands with Avalyn. We’ll go together.”
As they left the room, I straightened to find Violet watching them go with an amused tilt to her lips. “The only thing she talked about all week was seeing Banks. And then last night, she couldn’t sleep because she was too excited to see him. Luca is torn between wanting to make her happy…and contemplating murdering the poor boy.”
“Now he knows what your dad went through for all those years,” Harper said as she walked in, helping my mom carry the huge garment bag that held my dress. “All I’m going to say about this subject is, whatever Luca has to go through with Love Bug and whoever she falls in love with when it comes time, he deserves one hundred percent.”
“Piper, get your ass over here,” Shaw instructed. “It’s going to take time to get your hair right for the veil, and then we have to keep it perfect while getting you into that gigantic dress. I bet it weighs more than you do.”
“It’s close,” Mom said with a laugh as she and Harper hung it up.
Shaw was right when she said it would take a while to do my hair. I was going with the full, heavy curls look. They had to sit just right to pull off the effect of the custom-made veil I’d had created. It was sheer, with tiny diamonds sewn into constellations that would shimmer while we spoke our vows.
Once my makeup was finished, it was time to step into my dress. Mom hadn’t been kidding when she said it would take forever to get it buttoned. There were so many buttons that Mom, Aunt Emmie, and Cannon’s mom had to take turns when their hands got tired. But as soon as the last one was in place, I turned to face them, and the entire room fell quiet.
“Holy shit,” Mia and Shaw whispered in unison.
“That dress…” Violet eyed it with a glitter in her eyes. “Where did you find it?”
“I had it custom-made,” I told her as I stroked my hands down the fitted bodice that flared into layer upon layer of tulle that had more diamond constellations throughout.
“Can you get me the information for the designer?” she asked, nibbling on her bottom lip thoughtfully.
“You want a dress like this?” Harper asked curiously.
“Maybe,” her daughter said, still assessing my wedding gown contemplatively.
“In that color?” Layla asked, speaking up for the first time since they had taken my dress from the garment bag.
“Not that color, but I know I don’t want another white wedding dress.”
Layla laughed. “Of course it will be in white. When you marry Luca, like you were always supposed to, you’ll be in a traditional gown. As my son deserves.”
The tension that filled the room made me uncomfortable—not for myself, but for Violet. We all looked at Luca’s mom with narrowed eyes. “She’ll wear whatever fucking dress she wants,” Harper said between gritted teeth. “It’s her dress. You don’t have any say in it.”
“We’ll see,” Layla said with a shrug.
“The fuck we will,” Harper seethed, but Dallas grabbed her around the waist and turned her to look at me once again.
“This isn’t the time,” her best friend hissed.
Harper inhaled deeply and slowly released it. Forcing a smile to her face, she reached for my hand. “You look beautiful. My godson is a lucky man.”
Dallas let go of her and stepped forward to cup my face in her hands. “It goes without saying that I am thrilled to be gaining you as a daughter today, Piper. Welcome to our family, honey. Axton and I wish you nothing but happiness with our son.”
