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She doesn’t answer.
“Are you sure you want to give up your career for him? To be a doctor’s wife instead of a doctor who could save lives and change the world?”
“Not everyone can be like you, Mason.”
“But everyone deserves a chance to try,” I tell her. “Or to see how far they can go.”
She shakes her head. “I’m not giving up my career for Bill. I’m giving it up for me. I want something else. I want a husband. I want a family.”
“You can have both, you know.”
“No, I can’t. I know that. You can’t convince me otherwise.”
I don’t try. Who knows? She may be right. Look at me. I have a company but no family.
“So you really want this?” I ask her.
“Yes,” she answers firmly this time.
For a moment, I stay silent as I look into my sister’s eyes, searching them. I can still see doubts, fears. I guess that’s normal, though. If Giselle says she wants to get married then I’ll believe her. It’s what she should do.
I nod. “Okay.”
She lets out a breath. “You know what I don’t want, though?”
“What?”
“To have my mother wear a hideous gown to my wedding,” she says. “I mean, have you seen what she’s going to wear?”
“No.”
But I can guess it won’t look much better than what she was wearing earlier.
“Will you talk to her, please?” Giselle gets off the stool and hugs my arm. “Please?”
I give her a puzzled look. “Why me? It’s your wedding.”
“Exactly. It’s my wedding. I picked my wedding gown so she said she has to pick hers.”
I shrug. “Sounds fair to me.”
“Fair? That thing she plans on wearing is an insult to everyone who likes to wear clothes.”
That bad, huh?
“Please.” She hugs my arm tighter. “Just talk to her. Tell her to pick something else. Maybe say you’ll pay for her gown or say that some famous designer offered to lend her one of his creations.”
I touch my chin. “I did pay for her gown, I think. And yours.”
“So you deserve to have a say.”
I look at her. “You know Mom never listens to me. Why don’t you ask Leander?”
“Do you see him around?” Giselle sighs. “He’s in Brazil and he’s not going to be here until the day before the wedding.”
“I see.”
“So you have to tell Mom. Just tell her it’s hideous.”
“And what? Make her hate me now that she’s starting to like me?”
Giselle lets out a longer sigh. “Fine. I’ll try to talk to her some more.”
I pat her shoulder. “Good luck.”
“But I want you to do something else for me,” she adds.
“What?”
“I want you to take Bill and his brother to Happy Hermits tonight.”
The bar? “You mean that place is still around?”
She nods. “It’s not just around. It’s thriving.”
I guess the people in this town can’t live without booze.
“So you want me to drive them there or what?” I ask.
“Drive them there. Drink with them. Pay for their drinks. Give everyone in the bar a free round or two so they can drink with you.”
My eyebrows crease. “And why would I do that?”
“Because you can afford it,” Giselle answers. “And because it’s got to be a party for Bill. His stag party.”
“Don’t the groom’s friends usually handle the stag party?”
“Well, he’s your sister’s husband-to-be so he’s your friend now,” Giselle tells me. “And everyone else can be his friends, too.”
I frown. “He doesn’t have any friends, does he?”
“He’s a cardiologist, Mason. He’s busy.”
Well, I can’t exactly say I have friends, either. Yup. Busy, successful men don’t have time to make friends.
“Please?” my sister begs again. “Bill said he doesn’t need a stag party or want one, but I really think it would be nice if he had at least a semblance of one. I had my shower. He deserves a send-off party, too.”
I sigh. “Fine.”
If I’m here in town, I might as well throw a stupid stag party. Besides, I think I need a drink.
Giselle’s face lights up and she gives me another hug. “Thank you.”
I pat her back in response.
She steps back. “Oh, by the way, Aster is going to be one of my bridesmaids.”
Aster. Did Giselle really have to bring her up?
“Really?”
“I bet she’ll look lovely,” Giselle says.
I’m not even going to think about her in a dress.
“Do you think you can dance with her once at my wedding? I don’t think she has a boyfriend, and she seemed a little lonely the last time I spoke to her, so…”
“I don’t dance,” I tell her.
And I’m walking out of this conversation.
“Where are you going?” Giselle asks me.
“To get ready for the party.”
“Oh, one more thing.” She stands in front of me. “I know it’s a stag party, but no strippers, okay? No dancers. No women.”
And no thoughts of Aster. Sounds good to me.
“Think you can manage that?”
I nod. “Of course. I’m going to make sure there’s enough strong liquor flowing at Happy Hermits that for one night, Bill and his new friends will forget women even exist.”
