by Raven Snow
“Who would do this?” she cried, pushing her husband away when he tried to comfort her. “It’s ruined!”
Like clockwork, everyone turned to look at me, wondering if I was going to break down. I didn't really notice them or feel Wyatt's arms as they wrapped around me, my attention solely on the dress.
Nancy was right, I thought tiredly, it's ruined. What was worse, I didn't know how to feel about it. In a way, the dress was the symbol for the wedding. Even more so now that it, like everything else this week, had gone up in flames. Was the universe really so set against me?
I rubbed my face and winced, having hit a spot that was still red and irritated from my relaxing day at the spa. Now, I was going to have to walk down the aisle naked, covered in hives, and still smelling of cake.
It was about then that big, fat, traitorous tears started running down my face. I didn't make a sound, but everyone saw, Nancy crying harder when she realized I was upset.
"Oh, Harper, I'll fix it. We'll get you a dress; I promise." She hugged me, all full of motherly love, willing to do anything to make my wedding day special. I was her only daughter, after all.
The next thing I knew, I was bawling like I never had before, every hurt and stress from the past month coming out of my tear ducts. I slobbered all over Wyatt, sobbing and shaking and unable to get a hold on myself.
The guests that knew me went wide-eyed. Even Kosher looked a little uncomfortable. Before I could make more of a fool of myself, Wyatt was whisking me away, tucking me into the passenger seat and keeping me from prying eyes.
But I just kept on crying. I couldn't stop. It felt good to release that tension, but the longer I cried, the more I hurt. Before long I didn't know if I was crying over the wedding or the pain in my head and chest. The world felt like it was crumbling down around my ears, and I just wanted to go to sleep. God, if I could just get some sleep....
Wyatt murmured comforting nonsense to me from the seat next to me. As he drove, he wasn't speeding, but he definitely wasn't wasting any time getting us home.
I was grateful when we pulled up to the Victorian, and no one else was home yet. If I could help it, I didn't want any more people to see my sloppy, wet break down.
Wyatt tucked me in under the sheet, looking pale and a little afraid. I couldn't remember if he'd ever seen me cry—and I knew he'd never seen me cry like this.
"What can I do?" he said. "A new dress? Eloping in Vegas? Anything."
I drew in a shaky breath. "T-tea, please."
He ran off to get it like I'd lit a fire under his ass. While he was downstairs brewing, I heard a car pull up, and people started to pile into the house. They were loud at first, but then Wyatt said something, and the voices receded to a whisper.
I didn't hear footsteps on the stairs, but the door opened a few seconds after the voices died down. Thinking it was one of my brother-in-laws, I prepared to scream at the top of my lungs until they left with their tails between their legs. If I had to deal with Charles just then, I didn't know if I'd ever stop crying.
But it was Cooper, standing in the open doorway looking uncertain. The light from the hallway was bright, and I blinked against it.
"I'm sorry about your dress, Harper," he said in a small voice. "My dad'll get you a new one. Promise."
I had to hug him then, because he was too cute and too sweet to be allowed to go a second more without being hugged. He squeezed me back, and my tears dried up, leaving exhaustion behind.
Wyatt came back with the tea, taking in the mother-son scene with a smile. We all sat on the bed while I sipped at my tea, Wyatt stroking my hair, and Cooper chattering about his science project. When I was done with the tea and ready to sleep, Cooper crawled under the covers between us, falling instantly unconscious. I was right behind him.
Chapter Ten
I woke up to Vic waiting for me in the driveway, laying on the horn. Wyatt rolled over and went back to sleep, while I stumbled downstairs, trying not to break my neck. Interestingly enough, Tom was up. I looked at him wearily, and he held his hands up in truce.
Sticking out his hand, he said, “I just wanted to say congratulations, Harper. I think you and Wyatt will be very happy together.”
I shook his hand cautiously. “Thank you. We will be.”
But then, Vic shouted something unpleasant outside, and I had to leave. What a strange interaction.
The first thing Vic and I did in the morning–if that ungodly hour could be counted as morning—was run to the courthouse. While we'd filed for a marriage license before then, it took a little while to go through.
The town hall looked a bit like a shopping mall. When the old version had burned down, the people of Waresville decided to build something spacious, with multiple floors and lots of windows. The result was that when I walked past the DMV, I could see the face of every poor soul stuck in there, looking hopeless and drained.
A woman in a horrible pantsuit met Vic and I in an office by the judge’s chambers. She was sitting behind her plastic desk, stapling and filing to her heart's malcontent. When we walked in, a breath of color in the dank office, she glared at us.
"Office hours haven't started yet," she informed us. It was impressive how a woman could look down on someone when she was sitting. I, personally, wanted to give her a round of applause for the effort.
"The judge said he'd leave our marriage papers with you," I said.
She raised an eyebrow. "You two are together?"
Slapping my ass, Vic gave the lady a big grin and wrapped her spare arm around me. "Well, after all those years sneaking around behind my husband's back, we figured we might as well make it official."
Vic looked at me, expecting me to play my part. With a sigh, I said, "I'm a dirty home-wrecking mistress."
"Yes, but you're my dirty home-wrecking mistress."
The woman eventually handed over the documents, and after noting that the names on them were male and female, she glared at me. We walked past the depressing DMV and slid the papers into my glove department for safe keeping. I didn't even want to think about the look on Nancy's face if we lost our marriage license.
"Not too late," Vic said, squeezing into the driver's side. I was too jumpy and nervous to drive. "You and I could still run off and be lesbian lovers."
I got the documents back out just to wave them in her face. "Isn't this the exact definition of ‘too late’?"
"The Man can't stop true love, baby." She planted a sloppy kiss on my cheek.
Checking my phone with one hand and wiping off Vic's saliva with the other, I winced at the time. My wedding was speeding right at me, and nothing I did was going to slow it down. I felt very much like a deer on the highway, listening to the screeching brakes and being blinded by the headlights.
"Shouldn't we be heading to my hair appointment?" I asked as Vic missed our turn. "Or is this a kidnapping?"
"When I kidnap you, chica, you'll know it."
She wrenched the wheel to the side, sending me crashing against the passenger side door. Horns blared behind us, people flicking us off as Vic ran across three lanes. My eyes were bulging out of my head, and I wondered if this was the right moment to pray.
She turned onto a side street, slowing down some. "We've got a stop to make before the hair.”
Strangely enough, she took me to Keith Stellerman's house. While in the suburbs of Waresville, Stellerman had made millions in the stock market. He'd outfitted his home in the gaudiest stuff he could find. I likened it to an outhouse with a solid gold seat.
Vic dragged me out of the car when I crossed my arms, being difficult. I hated him on principle, and I didn't see why I had to punish myself now of all days. Wasn't this my wedding day and all that jazz?
Stellerman answered the door in a satin robe that barely covered the family jewels. His hair was prematurely white, and he had an artificial tan. He looked both of us up and down, paying special attention to Vic's boobs and my legs.
"My my," he said, leaning
against the door like the lecherous toad he was. "Two lovely women to do with whatever I please.”
Growling, I was just about to knee him where his robe barely covered when Vic smacked him upside the head. "We're not here for that, and you know it." She puffed out her chest. "Besides, I already have a man."
"I wouldn't call that a man," I said under my breath. I wasn't quiet enough though, because the next smack Vic doled out had my name on it. She hit like the heavy weight champion of the world, and I saw stars for a moment.
Grumbling, he shifted to the side to let us in, making it a tight fit, so I had to brush up against him. I took a deep breath to regain my calm, while he smiled at me.
Needless to say, he didn't act this way around Wyatt. If he had, my fiancé would have taken great pleasure in knocking his friend's teeth in. Despite my hatred of the lustful man, I never said anything to Wyatt about him beyond expressing general dislike. Stellerman might have been a crappy person, but even they could be good friends on occasion.
Just look at me.
Vic marched straight into Stellerman's bedroom, ignoring the many diseases that probably coated everything. I was not surprised when I looked in and was greeted by a hideous, big, red bed and a mirror on the ceiling. The whole room screamed sex cave, and I decided to wait in the hall.
"Don't trust yourself in my bedroom?" he asked. "Women have been known to lose their panties."
"Wyatt's going to get tired of you one day," I told him. "And then I'm going to take great pleasure in crushing your balls under my heel."
He grinned. "Hasn't happened in almost thirty years, love." Licking his lips, he said, "But that second part sounds promising."
Before I could say anything else, Vic emerged with an opened garment bag, and inside was the most beautiful dress I’d ever seen. Goosebumps erupted all over my skin from just looking at it.
The dress was floor length with a long scandalous slit going to almost crotch height. The dress extended up to the neck in a style that I knew would make my back and shoulders look amazing. With it, there was a pair of killer nude stilettos.
And best of all, it was the same color of green as my afro wig.
My eyes watered embarrassingly, and I glared at Stellerman to draw attention from it. “You did this for me?”
“Not for you.” He shuffled his feet, looking uncomfortable. “For some reason, Wyatt’s rather taken with you. He gets upset when you get upset.” Snorting, he continued. “He was practically beside himself after that little fiasco last night.”
“So I picked out the dress,” Vic said happily.
“And I had it flown in on the red-eye from Milan.” His lips twitched. “Feel free to repay me with sexual favors.”
Two minutes ago, that comment would have gotten him a black eye. Unfortunately, he’d reminded me of why I let the creep stick around. Because he was a creep with a heart of gold—at least where Wyatt was concerned.
“Thank you. For being so good to him,” I said, pressing a kiss to Stellerman’s cheek. Being who he was, he had to ruin it by pinching my ass.
But you can’t get mad at cats for eating mice. It’s in their nature. Plus, I was in a hurry. So, without any bodily harm to Stellerman, we wished him goodbye and made off with my new wedding dress.
“Too bad about your first dress,” Vic said. “But at least you got a better one out of the deal.”
“Yeah,” I said. “Too…bad.”
I’d been running around all morning trying to avoid thinking about it. Because the truth of it was, my wedding was still in danger. I had no idea which of the brothers was the troublemaker, and I didn’t know when they’d strike again.
Coming to a sudden decision to protect my wedding, I said, “Swing back by my house, Vic.”
She glanced at me in alarm. “We’ll be late for your hair and makeup appointment.”
I just stared at her for a while, and she shrugged. “Fine. But you get to be the one who tells Nancy why we weren’t there with bells on like I promised.”
“Fair.”
We rolled up to the Victorian, and I grabbed the iron fire poker from the trunk of my car. I knew I needed to confront the brothers before the ceremony. I just hoped I wasn’t too late.
Walking through the door, my heart began to race. The first person I saw was Liam, sitting at the kitchen table and innocently sipping his coffee. He smiled when he saw me standing there, only frowning when he realized I was supposed to be somewhere else.
He pushed his chair away from the table, spreading his arms wide. “Decide to ditch my brother and run away with me?”
He was cute and charming, but I couldn’t let that distract me. With a heart of ice, I jabbed him with the fire poker. Hard. On the forearm.
“Ouch!” He rubbed the spot. “Is that your way of saying you think I’m hot?”
I let out a breath, relieved beyond words. “It’s not you.”
“What’s not me?”
Not answering him, I headed towards the stairs. I was a woman on a mission, and nothing was going to stop me.
“Where are Charles and Tom?”
“Not here.”
Well, nothing was going to stop me but the cold hard truth. Sighing, I pinched my nose, feeling a headache coming on.
“They went to help put up decorations,” he said.
“Harper!” Vic was suddenly in the doorway, making both of us jump. “If we don’t leave now, we’ll miss your appointment, and our asses will be grass.”
I didn’t so much walk as I was carried to the car and shoved unceremoniously in by Vic. She gunned it, peeling out of the driveway and breaking the sound barrier all the way to the salon. I wondered what her boss would say if he could see her speedometer.
Nancy didn’t waste any time with scolding us when we pulled up, immediately getting me into a chair. The stylists surrounded me, and I felt a bit like the last leg of lamb at a cheetah’s gathering.
They started in on my makeup and hair at the same time, pulling on me and splashing stuff on my face. When I tried to talk to any of them, I was shut down, told to keep my face and head still.
At Nancy’s request, they got rid of the headband, giving me gold earrings instead. When I looked in the mirror, my reflection smiled back at me. I looked a little worried (and had cause to be), but I looked like me, at least.
Vic fetched my dress and shoes from the car, and the whole salon waited for me to go into the bathroom and try it on. It fit like a glove, and it felt so me and so comfortable that I thought I might cry.
Then, my eyes actually did water when I thought of Nancy seeing it. Resting my hands on the sink, I tried to settle my nervous stomach. What did I care what Nancy thought, anyway?
But I did care. Not only because she'd practically put on this whole wedding single-handedly, but she'd accepted me into her family with open arms, treated me like a daughter...more than my own mother ever had. The thought of disappointing her was like an icepick to the brain.
"Come out," Vic shouted from the other side. "Everyone wants to see."
I took a deep, settling breath and then opened the door. A bunch of beaming faces were waiting for me on the other side, and I had to fan my face to keep from crying and messing up my makeup. Nancy's was the brightest face among them, and she wasn't doing anything to stop her tears.
She dabbed her face with a tissue, and said, "That looks about right."
I hugged her, Vic, and my stylist team. I was feeling very generous, so everybody got a hug. Thinking hard, I couldn't remember the last time I'd been that affectionate with anyone, let alone strangers.
Checking her watch, Nancy gasped. "We better head out, dear, if you want anyone else to see that dress."
I was halfway out the door when my cellphone rang. It wasn’t a number I recognized, so I almost let it go to voice mail. The voice of a frantic woman greeted me on the other line, and it took me a full two minutes of her babbling to realize it was the woman in charge of the pet boarding place where we
left Biscuit.
God, I hoped my pet werewolf hadn’t turned into a naked, scruffy man in front of her. That kind of thing would be hard to explain—even with a generous tip.
“Slow down,” I ordered, and she took a deep breath, repeating the problem.
“Your dog…he’s missing,” she said, close to tears. “I went to check on him this morning, and he was gone from his private room. I looked everywhere but….”
The water works came, and it was clear I was going to get no more from her.
“We should start the town wide search immediately,” she blubbered.
“Woman, I’m getting married in a few minutes!”
“Not if you don’t hurry up,” Nancy said, pushing me into Vic’s passenger seat.
She was right, I thought reluctantly. Biscuit was on his own for the next few hours. A werewolf on the loose was the least of my troubles. In any case, Biscuit hardly ever ate people who didn’t deserve it.
Vic drove like a bat out of hell, but I was too elated to care. Bring it on changelings, creatures of the night, whatever. I could take anything the world had to throw at me just then. The thought was enough to make me throw my head back and laugh, just for the hell of it.
I was getting married.
My good times were cut short, though, when we pulled up to a smoking building. My entire wedding party was grouped around the burning church, some looking amazed and some tearful. I walked up to them with numb disbelief, watching as the flames went higher and higher, blackening everything in their path.
Oliver ran over to me as soon as he caught sight of my green dress. Looking dapper in his tux and cape combo, he was pale under the black material, his eyes wide and wild.
"Started burning when we were in the pews," he said. "Everyone got out okay."
"Tom and Charles?"
He shook his head apologetically. "I tried to keep track of them when we were inside, and they definitely got out. But I lost them in the shuffle after that."
Off to the side, Aunt Jean was wailing, snot dripped all over her dress. “The wedding’s ruined.”