Five thousand dollars for flowers that would die in less than a week.
Stephanie had wanted a big, Catholic Church wedding, but there hadn’t been enough time. So, an elaborate wedding for three hundred in one of the most exclusive mansions in Los Angeles would have to do. Nick had also put his foot down at her notion that inviting the media or any celebrity of any kind was a good idea. She was star struck, clearly, and had thrown a fit.
A big one.
Now he was glad he’d insisted on keeping the group to immediate family and friends. Nick’s crowd took up about twenty percent of the audience.
As he moved to the front of the altar with Greg right behind him, his hands shook. Nick’s mind was a wasteland of indecision. She’d lied? Now here he was on his (rushed) wedding day, waiting to get married to a woman who’d gotten him here by telling him she was pregnant. By lying about the worst possible thing a person could lie about.
Nick stopped and stood in his spot next to the pastor and looked out across the crowd. A bead of sweat formed on his forehead. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. He shouldn’t be up here like this, feeling like someone had just gutted him.
The bridal party music started playing, and Vivienne was the first to walk in. She was stiff and had the remnants of a grimace on her face that she was clearly trying to fight.
After all, it’s hard to snarl and smile at the same time. Nick almost laughed out loud. And then, something inside him snapped. The bridal music played and everyone stood up. Stephanie walked in in a cloud of white. Her blond hair was put up, with curls drifting down in soft waves. She held the arm of her father, who was beaming. His little girl was finally getting married, and to a Lavigne, no less. Stephanie looked stunning, flawless and perfect.
Except for one, small detail.
As she stepped closer to him, her smile never wavering, Nick knew exactly what he needed to do. Or in this case, not do.
When they reached Nick, her father stopped and kissed his daughter on the cheek. Then he gave her hand to Nick, who took it briefly and then let go. He felt a sudden wave of disgust flood his stomach. Something flickered in Nick’s eyes and Stephanie stepped back slightly. Weren’t they supposed to hold hands the entire time? Wasn’t that what they’d agreed on? Her head floated slightly from the champagne and now she couldn’t remember.
“Nick, what’s wrong?” she whispered.
“Let’s go somewhere where we can talk,” he said quietly back to her. The bridal music was starting to fade in the background.
Stephanie stood up straighter. “Talk? About what? Let’s talk after.”
The music had stopped, and a slight murmur of voices drifted up from the audience. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to do this here in front of your friends and family.”
Stephanie huffed and gave a nervous glance out to the crowd. At this point, everyone was wondering what was going on. “Not now, Nick!” her voice rose slightly and Vivienne leaned forward to try and hear what they were talking about.
She reached out for Nick’s hand again, but he was walking away from her and away from the canopy.
“Fine, have it your way,” she said, tossing the comment over his shoulder.
A vague sense of foreboding wafted towards her and she stiffened in her very expensive shoes.
Then Nick was standing in front of the crowd. He waved a hand at the musicians, signaling for the music to stop. It was time to end this, here and now.
“Hello, everyone. If I can have your attention just for a moment, please,” he began and then looked at his sister again. “I’m sorry to do it this way, but the bride has refused to do this in private. So before this goes any further, I need to announce that there’s been a change of plans, and there will not be a wedding today.”
A collective gasp moved through the audience.
He heard Stephanie hiccup and gasp. Something dropped to the ground. It was her flowers.
The ones Nick had paid for.
Fitting.
Then Nick turned to the bride, leveled a stare at her, and said, “I told you that I wanted to do this wedding at the house, but you insisted we have it here. So fine, we had it here, but I got lost. If we’d had this wedding at the house, I wouldn’t have gotten lost.”
Stephanie wasn’t sure what to say. “L-lost? I’m sorry, Nick, but we can still get married.”
“No, we can’t, Stephanie, because when I got lost, I ended up walking by the bridal room and heard you and your partner in crime over there,” he nodded towards Tracey, who looked slightly intoxicated. “You were talking about how you had fooled me, that there is no baby, and that you lied and got away with it. Poor clueless Nick. Just lie to him about a kid and get him to marry you. Did you really think it would work? I mean, at some point, even clueless me would have figured this out. Or did you not think that far ahead?” Nick’s eye caught Vivienne, who was a mix of pissed and elated.
He was pretty sure that given the chance, his sister might slug the bride.
“No, Nick, I didn’t mean. I mean, I am pregnant, really.”
Nick pinned her with an ice-cold stare. “Really? Then let’s go get a test right now and see. Are you up for that? We can share the test with all of your friends and family.” Nick motioned a hand to the audience, all of whom looked slightly horrified.
Stephanie started crying, “You wouldn’t have married me otherwise. You were so stuck on Kate, Kate, Kate, Kate, fucking Kate. I hate her.”
“You should hate her, Steph, because even on your very best day you aren’t worthy to stand in her shadow.”
“Fuck her!” Tracey yelled, throwing her flowers to the ground. She stomped her foot for effect.
Nick turned back to the audience. “So again, sorry to drag you all out here for nothing. There will not be a wedding today.”
Nick turned to his best man, “Greg, let’s go. I need a drink.”
Nick strode down the aisle in long, fast strides. Greg raced behind him. Vivienne walked past the bride, threw her bouquet in her face, yelled, “Bitch!” and stomped off behind her brother and his friend while the entire audience looked on and whispered.
At some point, the bride started crying.
. . . .
Nick was running to the parking lot to reach his Jeep. Greg raced to keep up with his friend.
“Nick, wait up. Where do you want to go?”
Nick shrugged off his jacket and tossed it in the back of his Jeep, and he reached for his tie and yanked it off.
“I don’t care, just not anywhere near here.”
“I want to go!” Vivienne was running towards them, holding up her long dress. She ran up to Nick and gave him a hug, wrapping herself around him tightly.
“Nick, I’m so sorry. Did you really overhear them?”
He nodded and hugged her back. “I did. You were right to not trust her. I should have listened.”
Vivienne got onto her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek. “I forgive you, Big Brother. Now, where are we going?”
“Greg is driving. I don’t care. I’m going to get drunk.”
Greg grabbed the keys from Nick and slid behind the driver’s seat. Vivienne hopped in back. Greg turned over the engine.
“Let’s go and celebrate your near death experience,” he smiled as he put the car into gear and sped off.
CHAPTER 120
Greg drove them to The Daily Pint, where he and Nick had spent some time in Greg’s pre-marriage days.
The bar was dark and full of people, even on a Friday afternoon. Conversations floated around them, glasses clinking, laughter. It was a perfect place to blow off some steam from Nick’s non-wedding.
Vivienne was in the bathroom changing. She said she really didn’t feel like celebrating in her bridesmaid’s dress, which she knew her brother would appreciate.
When she returned to the table dressed in a simple t-shirt and jeans, a round of drinks had already arrived. Greg ordered Nick a shot of whiskey, neat. It wasn’t Nick’s
drink of choice, but his friend insisted would help take the edge off the day.
“Vivienne, you’re just in time for a toast,” Greg smiled. “To disaster narrowly averted!” he said.
Nick picked up his whiskey and threw back a big gulp of it.
“You were right,” he said, enjoying the feel of it as it slid down his throat. “Whiskey is a good choice.”
Then Nick shook his head. “How the hell did I manage this?”
Greg put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “You were trying to do the right thing. There’s no shame in that.”
“That’s right,” Vivienne chimed in, “and I’m proud of you. I wish I had slugged her, though.”
Nick laughed and took his sister’s hand. “I love you, Viv.”
She bent and kissed his hand, “You should, because I’m going to make sure you wind up with the perfect woman.”
Nick took another drink, emptying his glass. Greg motioned to the server for another round.
“No,” Nick shook his head, “no more women.”
He paused for a moment. His mind drifted back to Mexico and waking up next to Kate, then leaving without saying goodbye.
In the year since they’d broken up, he’d been almost unbearably lonely.
“You’ll take a break then you’ll get back on the horse.”
The server returned. Nick took another big gulp. He wasn’t a drinker, per se, and he could feel the whiskey loosen his tongue.
“No, I’m done. Mexico was the last straw.”
Both Greg and Vivienne turned to Nick and said, “What happened in Mexico?”
CHAPTER 121
It was out of his mouth before he realized it. Mexico. Damn it, he wasn’t going to talk about it.
“Nothing,” he insisted, “nothing happened.”
Vivienne’s eyes narrowed, “Something did happen. Tell us. We’re your family.”
Nick took another drink and then grabbed his water. The whiskey was working too fast. He kept seeing Kate, smiling, finding her in that bar with her brooms.
He smiled at the memory.
Kate.
Damn it. He felt like he’d swallowed an ice cube. It slid down his throat and into his heart.
Vivienne and Greg were waiting for the story. What the hell? It didn’t matter now, anyway. Kate was in New York, going on with her life, no doubt probably back with Mac.
“I saw Kate in Mexico,” he started and then the whole thing just came out, from finding Kate to dancing with her under the stars.
Wise men say, “Only fools rush in.”
“Y-you slept with her?”
Nick nodded.
“Crap, no wonder.” Vivienne blinked.
“No wonder what?” Nick’s words slurred slightly.
Vivienne took a sip of her wine, remembering how Kate had reacted when she’d told her Nick was getting married: She’d looked as if someone had cut her open.
“I, I told Kate, I mean, I had to tell her why I was coming out here.”
Nick stiffened, “It’s none of her business.” But it clearly was.
“She looked devastated,” Vivienne said, in almost a whisper. Vivienne could see now why her brother loved her so much. Love, present tense—which it clearly still was.
“Nick,” Greg said carefully, “you should call her. I mean, give yourself some time, of course, but then call her and see what’s there.”
Nick sat up straight. He just wanted to have a drink and forget the humiliation of the day. He certainly did not want to discuss Kate.
“It’s done. It’s just done. I’m not going down that road anymore, and as for you, Missy,” he pinned his sister with a stare, “I do not want her to know this wedding never happened. Am I clear?”
Vivienne nodded, not altogether certain that was the best idea.
CHAPTER 122
“I need a date for Vivienne’s book launch party,” Kate said as her friend sipped her tea. They were at their favorite tea house, and the tiny shop buzzed with activity.
Grace smiled and looked up, “Shouldn’t be that hard, I mean, there are a million men in this city.”
“It should be someone who is a cross between Hugh Jackman and George Clooney.”
“Hmmm, that makes it tougher, but I’ll see what I can do. The party is tomorrow, right? Nothing like giving yourself enough time to scare up a date.”
Kate shrugged, “Nick will be there with his pregnant wife, no doubt. Newly married and freshly off of their honeymoon, where they had endless sex or whatever.” It had been almost two weeks since the wedding, but the thought of Nick married still hit her like a tanker.
“So the reason you want a date, the Hugh/George guy, is so that you don’t have to face Nick alone.”
Kate nodded and reached for her cup. “I don’t want to look pathetic. I mean, he’s moved on. Mac’s moved on. Everyone’s got a life but me.”
“You need to start dating again. It’s time.”
Kate shook her head. “No, not time. I still feel like my chest is an open wound.”
“I’m not saying get married, just date. Meet people for coffee or something. Just get out there. The longer you wait, the harder it will be. Just stay away from anyone in the publishing industry.” Grace cocked and eyebrow and grinned.
“Right, that didn’t go so well. Also, every stupid step I make winds up online or in the paper. So I’ll look elsewhere, and I promise I will. I just need to get through Vivienne’s book launch.”
“I’m looking forward to meeting her,” Grace smiled, taking a hint to change the subject. Her friend was nowhere near ready, but now that Nick was off the market, she needed to keep pushing her to move on.
“She’s great. You will love her.” Kate’s words trailed off. “I wish I had met her under different circumstances.”
Grace licked her lips; she could see the pain cross Kate’s face. She reached out a hand to touch hers. “I know. But this will get better, I promise.”
“I read in a book once that nothing misleads you like the truth, and I never really understood it until now.”
Grace furrowed her brow. “What do you mean?”
“The truth is out there and we ignore it, hide from it, run from it, but it’s always there, just waiting for us to wake up and pay attention. It follows you through life like a shadow. The funny thing is that it takes more energy to hide from it than it does just to face it. And most of us never face it in time. But once you finally wake up and face it, it’s hard to go back to sleep and pretend it doesn’t exist.”
CHAPTER 123
Vivienne’s book launch party was something Kate decided to do to bring together media, book buyers, bloggers, and industry people to introduce them to their new major debut author. The buzz around Vivienne’s book had been almost deafening. Some even compared the writing to Allan Lavigne’s, which made Kate smile. She knew Vivienne’s uncle would be so proud if he could see her.
The event was being held at a venue in the Meatpacking District. It had a large loft-type space with an upstairs perfectly suited for Vivienne’s signing—because Kate wanted her to sign books—and a downstairs for mingling and networking. Kate had ordered a couple of food stations and tray-passed hors d’oeuvres, and of course an open bar. The publishing crowd liked to drink, probably largely due to the fact that publishing was a bit of a train wreck right now. Drinking often helped ease the pain of uncertainty that seemed to plague everyone.
Kate knew all too well why and how publishing had gotten into the state it had, which is why she ran her house differently. As it turned out, it was working. Fewer books, more attention paid to the author and the title itself. She recalled her days at Morris & Dean when she was often juggling seventy-five books in a season. There was no way that any book could get even five good minutes of a publicist’s attention with that kind of volume. It was funny how Morris & Dean seemed like an eternity ago and yet it was only two years. Things were so simple then, but it didn’t seem that way.
K
ate walked through the space that would soon be filled with the hum of voices and the excitement of a new book release. Her phone buzzed, as it had been doing all day. It was a message from Lulu, who was still at the office.
A scout from LivePlanet is coming.
Kate’s heart jumped. That was Ben Affleck’s production company that had optioned Allan Lavigne’s book After the Fall, which had gone on to be an Oscar-winning movie. She’d sent them the advanced book copy on a whim and without telling Vivienne in case they rejected it. But now they were showing more interest. Still, Kate decided not to tell Vivienne until something more concrete came through. Just about every author she ever spoke with wanted her book turned into a movie, or even better, her life story turned into a movie. But book to movie was much harder than most realized. Many books were considered, but few actually made it onto the big screen.
The event staff buzzed around, setting up tables. Kate decided to head upstairs and make sure the signing table was set up. Kate had ordered one table just for the books and one table for Vivienne. She’d have Lulu manage the signing while she managed the media.
“Kate!” A woman in a dark pantsuit and short, cropped hair waved to her from downstairs. It was Alice, the gal who managed the space.
“Alice, hi. Everything looks great!” Kate smiled. Indeed, it did.
“The books are here. I just wanted you to know. I’m going to have someone bring them up right now.”
“Great, thanks. Folks should start arriving in thirty minutes, so we’re almost set.”
And indeed they were, except for Kate’s date, which, on such short notice, was unrealistic anyway. Besides, she had a party to focus on. She was sure she wouldn’t have time to even think about Nick and his happy, happy wife and their unborn child. Pause for laughter.
Who was she kidding?
“Thought I’d get here early,” Grace smiled. “You ready for this?” Grace looked impossibly pretty in a red silk blouse and tan skirt.
Climax: The Publicist, Book Three Page 41