Story of Love (Josh & Riley's Wedding Novella): Love in Bloom: The Bradens

by Melissa Foster

  Riley figured she must be really on edge, because all she could hear was one smacking noise after another. “I didn’t pine.”

  Her mother’s brows lifted over amused eyes.

  Riley sighed. “Whatever. Maybe there was a little pining going on, but I don’t think it was that obvious.”

  Savannah giggled.

  “Was it that obvious?” Lacy stuffed her brownie into her mouth, making her cheeks puffy.

  “You look like a chipmunk hoarding nuts,” Max pointed out.

  “I bet Dane has big nuts,” Brianna said with a laugh, then smacked her hand over her mouth like she couldn’t believe she’d said that.

  “Bree! My mother is in the room!” Riley reminded her.

  “Sorry,” Bree mumbled from behind her hand, but there was no hiding the laughter coming from her and from Max.

  “Oh, honey,” her mother said, picking up a crumb from the now empty brownie box and licking it off her fingers. “I like nuts just as much as any other woman does.”

  Riley felt her cheeks burn. “Mom. That is not something I need to know about you.”

  “Thinking about my parents doing dirty stuff isn’t a great visual,” Jade said, and quickly added, “Not that you aren’t hot, Mrs. B. It’s just—”

  “Trust me.” Her mother took a gulp of her wine. “When you get to be my age, it’s not about how hard the body is. It’s about if the body has the ability to get hard.”

  “Mom!” Mortified, Riley took her mother’s wineglass and set it on the counter. “I think you’ve had enough. Your eyes are glassy. How much have you had to drink?”

  Her mother grabbed the glass and waved Riley off. “Since when did you become so prudish, Riley Roo? It’s your pre-wedding night. Live a little.”

  “Ohmygod.” Riley rolled her eyes.

  “Riley’s not a prude, Mrs. B,” Max said. “She’s as naughty as the rest of them.”

  “Including you,” Brianna said around a mouthful of chips.

  Riley ran her eyes around the table and realized they were all eating chips. Over the fondant. “Oh my God. No, no, no. Please don’t get crumbs in the fondant.” She walked around the table gently moving each of them back a few steps. “I’m having visions of salty, chip-tasting fondant on my wedding cake. What is up with you guys? It’s like you haven’t eaten in a month. Why don’t you bring out the leftovers from dinner while you’re at it?”

  Savannah’s eyes widened. “Great idea!” She and Lacy headed for the refrigerator. “Did you know there are haunted rooms here?”

  “No way.” Lacy carried a plate of chicken to the counter, and Riley’s mother began cutting it up.

  “Way,” Savannah said. She set a bowl of potato salad beside the chicken. “Charlotte told me that the suite we’re staying in is one of them.”

  “We totally have to exorcise them,” Lacy said. “I can do that. I read about it.”

  “I’m reading this book about auras,” Max said as she handed forks to each of the girls. “Kaylie Crew lent it to me, and I swear, Mrs. B, yours is violet, which fits you perfectly because you’re very wise.” Max had met Treat at her boss Chaz’s wedding. Kaylie was Chaz’s wife.

  Her mom laughed. “I don’t think I’m very wise.”

  “Yes, you are, Mom. You’re reading about auras, Max?” Riley asked. “That doesn’t seem like your thing.” While the girls gobbled down food like there was no tomorrow, Riley began applying the fondant.

  Max spread her hands out in front of her as if she were presenting something and said, “I’m expanding my horizons.”

  “What’s my aura?” Lacy patted her wild blond curls and wiggled her shoulders. “Blue? Because I love blue. Or maybe red. That means passionate, doesn’t it? That’s me.” She giggled and popped a piece of chicken into her mouth. “I’m all about passion.”

  “Orange,” Max said, waving her hands like she was mimicking washing windows. “Big and orange.”

  “I need air.” Savannah grabbed Brianna’s hand. “Walk with me.”

  Brianna grabbed a handful of chips as Savannah dragged her out the door.

  “Be careful!” Riley called after them.

  “I am not orange. I look awful in orange.” Lacy paced. “Your aura detector is broken.”

  “Nope. Orange,” Max said.

  “Like Cheetos?” Jade asked. “Lacy, Cheetos are to die for. Maybe that’s not so bad.”

  “We have to fix it!” Lacy nodded, her eyes wide and glassy. “Fix my aura, please. And why is it big? Is big good or bad?”

  “Orange won’t do,” Riley’s mother said. “Big is okay…I think.”

  “Fix me, please!” Lacy grabbed Max’s hand. “You have to fix it. I can’t be orange. Dane hates orange.”

  As if they were speaking in some strange tongue Riley didn’t understand, the rest of them—including her mother—hurried toward the stairs with promises of new auras. And with the bowl of chips. Leaving Riley to wonder why the hell everyone had lost their minds. That must have been some potent wine they were drinking. Longing for a sip of the nectar, she glanced at her mother’s glass, and her hand drifted to her belly.

  It’s worth giving up a few things for you, little one.

  Remembering how quickly fondant set, she picked up her pace, applying it on top of the jam as the girls disappeared up the stairs. Riley was thankful for a little quiet so she could concentrate on making each layer perfect. She smoothed and edged and rubbed out air bubbles, then carefully stacked the layers and smoothed each one again. Once that was done, she began applying the decorative pearls around the base of the bottom two layers. She worked tirelessly, meticulously pressing each pearl into the fondant, creating waves of the tiny white and silver beads. Finally, she spelled out “R & J” on opposite sides of the second layer. When that was done, she let out a long breath, feeling as though she’d just run a marathon. How could concentrating be so exhausting?

  Stepping back from the table, she admired her work. The layers weren’t entirely even, and there was a tiny pinch in the fondant that she didn’t want to wrestle with for fear of the cake toppling over. Even still, her gift to Josh was done, and it looked pretty damn good. All that was left was placing the small red, pink, and white rose bouquet she’d had Jade bring with her on the top of the cake, and a few sweetheart roses on the layers to really bring it to life.

  In the quiet of the kitchen, with the cool mountain air streaming in through the open door, she washed her hands and caught a peek of the canopied altar Josh and the others had built. It was exactly as they’d pictured it, equally elegant and casual, and bold without being overbearing. She loved knowing it was built at the hands of Josh’s family.

  Built with love. Just like the cake.

  Returning her attention to the cake, she splayed her hand over her belly, thinking about how much their lives were about to change. When the inevitable what ifs came, she refused to give them any credence. This was a sight she would remember forever, and she wasn’t going to allow anything to ruin it.

  Wanting to capture the moment, she reached into her pocket for her phone to take pictures of the cake and the canopy and saw that she’d missed two calls and several text messages from Elisabeth. She’d silenced her phone when Finn had fallen asleep in Lacy’s arms after dinner, and she must have forgotten to turn it back on.

  She quickly scrolled through the text bubbles.

  Don’t eat the brownies! I accidentally gave you the medicinal brownies I made for Mrs. Phillips!

  Are you there? Answer your phone!

  They’re marijuana brownies!

  Holy. Shit.

  Riley didn’t bother reading the rest of the messages. Her eyes snapped to the empty brownie box. No wonder they were eating everything in sight. They were all high. They had the munchies! Her mind darted in a hundred directions at once, and she realized Savannah and Brianna hadn’t come back inside. Her heart raced as she ran outside and scanned the grounds. It was too dark to see very far. She hurri
ed down the steps and called out in a hushed whisper so as not to wake anyone up.

  “Bree? Savannah?” She hurried across the backyard, racing the full length of the massive resort, scanning the property and calling for them. “Savannah? Bree?”

  Panic swelled in her chest with every passing second. She caught sight of movement by the lake and sprinted toward it. “Savannah? Bree?”

  Hope neighed, and Riley followed the noise. The chestnut horse came into view at the water’s edge. Her big head bobbed up and down toward the water. Riley squinted into the darkness as she ran, praying they hadn’t drowned.

  “Savannah? Brianna?” she shouted, not caring who she woke up.

  Silence.

  “Savannah! Brianna!”

  Giggles came from somewhere ahead of her in the darkness, and the water rippled against the shore. Relieved, and slightly pissed over their silence, she tried her hardest to find a modicum of control, but her voice burst from her lungs.

  “Goddamn it! Where are you?”

  She stepped forward, nearly tripping on a pile of clothes. Splashing sounded somewhere in front of her. Putting two and two together, she didn’t know whether to laugh or strangle them.

  “Get out of there. You shouldn’t be skinny-dipping!”

  “Come in, Ri!” Savannah yelled. “Nothing feels as good as this.”

  “Except sex!” Brianna yelled. Their laughter filled the air.

  Riley grabbed their clothes, realizing how out of character everything Brianna had said tonight had been, and…Holy hell. Mom!

  “You guys, get out here now. You’re totally stoned! The brownies had pot in them!” She had to find her mother. Hopefully she and the others were sleeping it off somewhere.

  More giggling ensued.

  “This isn’t funny. You shouldn’t be swimming when you’re high. Get out of there!” Her every nerve was on fire, and she was holding on to her last shred of control. When they laughed again, she nearly blew her top. “I’ll come in there and drag you out before I let you drown the night before my wedding!”

  More giggling, splashing, and then their smiling faces appeared in a streak of moonlight.

  “Fine,” Brianna grumbled. She and Savannah strode out of the water naked, oblivious to the chilly night air. “What were you yelling about the brownies?”

  “Did you find more? I want more brownies,” Savannah said with a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

  “No more brownies.” She shoved their clothes into their hands. “We have to find the others. There was pot in the brownies, and you guys are completely stoned.”

  “Pfft.” Savannah strutted ahead of her, buck-naked, clutching her clothes to her chest. “We are not.”

  “Nope,” Brianna agreed. She stumbled and grabbed Riley’s shirt, pulling them both down to the ground. Brianna rolled in the grass, laughing hysterically, while Riley pushed to her feet with a protective hand over her belly, glad she’d landed on her butt.

  Savannah stared absently up at the moon. She lifted her hand and began opening and closing her fingers. “I can’t grab it.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me? This is my pre-wedding night? Babysitting two stoned women?”

  Brianna stopped laughing, then started again, still lying on the ground. Her hands and legs were stretched out as far as they could go. “Vannah! Come here!”

  Savannah turned, and Riley grabbed her arm. “Oh, no, you don’t. No more stargazing for you two.” She reached down and pulled Brianna up by her arm. “We have to go find the others. And get you towels, clothes, and beds.”

  “I’m not tired,” Brianna complained. “I’m hungry.”

  Several long, frustrating minutes later Riley finally managed to get them to comply, and they headed up to the kitchen. “Stand on the deck and I’ll be right back with towels.”

  She ran upstairs and grabbed two towels, then ran back downstairs and gave them to the girls. “I have to find—”

  Thump. Thump. Thump.

  She lifted her eyes toward the noise coming from upstairs, wondering what the hell that was. “Dry off and go upstairs to our suite, okay? I have to check on that noise.”

  Hurrying upstairs, Riley followed the sounds. She had no idea how the men and children could sleep through the banging. Following the sounds down the wide hallway to the suite where they were staying, she pushed the heavy double doors open and nearly lost her lunch. Her mother stood by an enormous hole in the wall, holding a lamp like a baseball bat. The lampshade and lightbulb lay forgotten a few feet away. Max swung a shoe at the broken drywall, chipping off another piece. And Lacy, whose face was smeared with something that looked like lipstick, was…chanting.

  Holy mother of all things crazy, what the flip was going on now?

  Her mother swung the lamp.

  “Stop!” Riley commanded, and three sets of eyes turned to her. She grabbed the lamp from her mother’s hands. “Stop. Don’t move. Don’t swing, hit, or chant.” She took the shoe from Max’s hands, which were covered in red, like Lacy’s face. “Why would you do this?”

  Max wiped her face, smearing red across her nose and cheeks. “We’re excavating the ghosts.”

  Lacy nodded, wide-eyed.

  “Exorcising, sweetie,” her mother said, stumbling backward.

  “Oh God. This is Charlotte’s house.” She felt sick to her stomach. “You’ve put a hole in her house.”

  Her mother stumbled to the bed and flopped down. “We did her a favor. Freeing the ghosts.”

  Lacy grabbed Riley’s arm. “We had to do it, or who knows what the ghosts would do. They could have been evil, or like…like…that movie The Entity. Yeah. They could have been like that.” She looked around the room with a serious expression. “Where’s Savannah? I have to tell her it’s safe now.” She headed for the door, and Riley grabbed her.

  “Oh no, you don’t. You need to go into the bathroom and wash off whatever that is on your face.”

  Lacy palmed her face and shook her head, smearing the red onto her neck. “I’m not taking off my aura! Max worked hard to fix me, and Dane will love my red aura. It’s passionate!”

  Max ran to her side. “You’re right, you’re not. No, Riley. She needs to be red.”

  “Passionate,” her mother said from where she was now lying on the bed on her back, her legs hanging halfway off the edge.

  How the hell did she get from her moment of glory downstairs to this? She was being punked. Or in a nightmare. She pinched herself, and it hurt like hell. Nope. Not a nightmare.

  “Jaaaack.” Savannah’s voice filtered up the hall.

  “Shit. Stay here,” Riley commanded, and ran out of the suite, only to find Savannah disappearing, naked, into Riley’s parents’ bedroom.

  Thump, thump sounded behind her.

  Riley stopped cold in the hallway, midway between the bedroom where her father was about to be woken up by a naked woman and the suite where the wall was being demolished. In the space of a few panicked seconds, she figured her father waking up to a naked woman in his bed was worse than the wall getting even more damaged. She ran toward her parents’ bedroom, tossing up another prayer that the kids wouldn’t wake up, and flew into the room. Good fucking Lord, her night had just gone from bizarre to outrageous. Savannah was fast asleep beside her father, her long arm draped across his chest, and somehow, by the grace of God and all things magical, her father was still sleeping.

  She peeled Savannah off of her father as quietly and carefully as she could, while cringing with each thump coming from down the hall.

  “Jack,” Savannah complained.

  “Shh, honey, that’s not Jack,” she whispered. And I don’t think Jack would appreciate this one bit. She grabbed a throw blanket from a chair and draped it around Savannah. Once outside her father’s room, she closed the door and breathed a little easier, although the thunderous noises coming from down the hall ratcheted up her panic. She draped one arm around Savannah’s waist and the other beneath her arm and guided her towar
d the suite.

  “Jack,” Savannah said again.

  “I’ll get Jack.” Once inside the suite, she closed the doors and set Savannah on the edge of the bed. “Stay,” she commanded, and turned to her mother, who was standing with her knees slightly bent, lamp in hands, choked up like a pro ball player. Max and Lacy were gone, but Riley heard voices coming from the bathroom.

  “Mom! Stop!” Riley yelled.

  Her mother stopped midswing and lowered the lamp, her eyes suddenly filling with recognition. “Riley Roo. Do you think the vortex is big enough now?” She dropped the lamp and set her hands on her hips, eyeing the hole in the wall with pride. Wiping her brow, she let out a loud sigh. “Perfect. Now those spirits can fly free.”

  Resigning herself to a night of crazy, Riley nodded in agreement. “Yup. You sure did a good job. Now, let’s just lie down, okay, Mom? I have to find Max and Lacy.” She guided her mother back to the bed, where she flopped down on her back beside Savannah. The two of them gazed up at the ceiling. Short burst of giggles escaped their lips. She draped a blanket over Savannah’s naked body and hoped she and her mom would fall asleep.

  Savannah’s hand snuck out from beneath the cover, and she grabbed Riley’s mother’s hand. “Do you think she’s here? Looking down on us? If she’s here, I don’t want her to go out the vortex.”

  Riley’s throat swelled. A strange feeling came over her, realizing for maybe the first time ever the connection between her mother and Savannah’s mother. She knew her. She wasn’t her best friend, like Jade’s mother had been, but she knew her. The realization that her mother knew the woman Josh and his siblings never had a chance to brought tears to her eyes and made her want to share her mother with them more than she already had. It also made her appreciate the time she had with her mother even more. She had the strange and sudden urge to tell her about the baby, and she realized she wanted the pieces of her mother Josh and Savannah could never have with their own. That brought a wave of guilt so strong she reached for the dresser to stabilize herself.

  “Did you hear that?” Lacy’s voice trailed out of the bathroom, dragging Riley from her thoughts, right back into crazyland.