AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Dante’s speech stops me in my tracks. I don’t think I’ve given him his due. For years now, I’ve hated him because everyone likes him so much. I thought because I didn’t like him, he was probably kissing everyone else’s ass to make them like him. I never considered that everyone liked him because he’s a stand-up guy.
“Let’s find out who this Jackson guy is,” I decide, determination morphing my expression.
He lowers his arms, but the look on his face never changes—sincerity mixed with genuine concern. “If that’s what you want, Nic.”
I nod my head slowly, feeling the itchy feeling in my chest begin to fade. “Reid, you said?”
“Jackson Reid,” Dante confirms. “You want to start making phone calls?”
Chapter 44
Christine
3 Weeks Ago • January 20th
“When we were kids dreaming of our future weddings, I never anticipated security guards standing watch,” Kaye grumbles, casting an anxious glance at the two men in black stationed at the entrance of the bridal shop. “And I definitely didn’t imagine the bride looking like she went three rounds with Mike Tyson.”
I’m healing rather quickly, except for the ribs. Every time I laugh too hard, a searing pain radiates through my entire body. It’s a truly unique experience, and I hope I never have to experience it again.
“Bonus. Every shade of white seems to go with faded bruises,” I observe with a lopsided smile. “Just look how well the soft purples and yellows go with this cream dress.”
Kaye does not look impressed. Her eyes travel the length of my body with a sour expression on her features. “You know, when I suggested a few weeks ago that you should tell your uncle you didn’t want an arranged marriage, I didn’t mean you should have chosen to marry Nic instead.”
“Pretty judgmental considering you’re wearing yourstepbrother’sengagement ring around your neck, and you’re pregnant with his child.” I retort, glancing at her belly. Lately, she’s been putting on more weight. Perhaps not to the untrained eye, but I’ve known her since kindergarten, and I can tell that she’s pregnant. Anyone else would just assume she’s put on the freshman fifteen.
Kaye sweeps her hand across her stomach with a small smile playing on her lips. “Okay, yeah, fair enough. But I love Xave.”
“You’vegrownto love Xave,” I correct her. “A few months ago, you would have run him over with your car if given the chance.”
“And wouldn’t you have done the same to Niccolo?” she challenges.
Yes. No. Maybe so. “I wouldn’t have run him over,” I decide with a frown. “I might have hit him with the car door, but I wouldn’t have run him over.”
Kaye doesn’t respond. Instead, she dismisses the dress I have on with a wave, changing the subject. “You’ve never been a mermaid-style kind of girl. Try another one.”
With only three weeks remaining until the wedding, I have to pick a dress today. Niccolo said that he would make sure any alterations were completed in time, but I have to make a choice if I want someone to start working on it.
“Sorry, I’m late!” Sienna rushes through the front door. “Those guys outside had my name down asSierra, and I swear to God they ran a full background check instead of just poking their head inside and asking if I belonged here.” She drops her bag down on a chair and sizes me up. “Cute dress.”
“No. Terrible dress,” Kaye glares. “If she has to hightail it out of the church because she realizes that marrying her stepfather is a mistake, she needs less restrictive material around her knees.”
Sienna waves off Kaye’s concern with a dismissive hand gesture. “All we need in the event of a runaway bride is a waiting car. If we scoop her up and toss her in the backseat, she doesn’t have to run anywhere.”
The two of them eagerly chat about the best way to whisk me away from the mistake they think I’m making while I reenter the dressing room to try on another gown.
My best friend reminds Sienna that if we run from this wedding, we’ll be on the run for the rest of our lives. “So we’ll probably have to pack a bag or two in advance. You know, Xavier is going to be upset if I go on the lamb with you, but I think if we make him the getaway driver, he’ll get over it.”
Xavier and I have a begrudging relationship with one another built solely on our mutual love and respect for Kaye. I’m sure he’d love to be the getaway driver at my wedding because he’d see it as another way to curry favor with the mother of his child.
“You think we’llallhave to disappear?” Sienna asks, her voice tinged with a frown. “Because we have mid-terms two weeks after the wedding. If we aren’t going to be here, I’m not going to study.”
I poke my head out from behind the curtain concealing the dressing room. “I’m not running away from my wedding. I love Niccolo.”
“Pretty sure the first time we talked about him, you said he had a stupid, ugly face,” Sienna recalls.
I let the curtain fall shut, glaring at the wall instead of Sienna. “I’ve changed my mind. People are allowed to change their minds.”
In a stage whisper, Kaye adds, “Kind of like how I changed my mind about Xavier when we fell in love, except she’s marrying Nic for safety.”
