Masters for Hire

by Ginger Voight

  “You’ve mentioned it a couple of times, yeah,” I said with a grin. “But she’s dead serious. If we don’t go to her, she’ll drag the party to us.”

  He sighed. “If we must, we must.” He kissed me again. “But for the record, I’d much rather be here with you.” The look in his eyes warmed me down to my toes. I had waited my whole life for someone to look at me like that, and here he was… doing it and doing it well. God, it was so much better than anything I ever dreamed.

  “Me, too,” I admitted softly before another kiss, which quickly caught fire. Our need for each other was insatiable.

  “What you do to me, woman,” he growled against my lips. “Now please. A little decorum. You are a lady, after all.”

  With an impish grin I reached down and honked his semi-hard erection, complete with sound effects.

  I laughed and he chased me into the bathroom to shower and change.

  We met the group downstairs just a little before one in the afternoon. Mattie wanted to try the renowned buffet, designed to resemble an outdoor café in quaint French village under a fake blue sky. It offered cuisine from the different French provinces, which allowed me to show my expertise in such things as Devlin and I made our selections. Finally we joined our party in one of the cottage rooms. Mattie was on her feet the minute we approached.

  “So this is the infamous Devlin,” she said as she greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. “Nice to meet you. I’m Matilda, but everyone calls me Mattie.”

  “Nice to meet you, Mattie,” he said, and we both sat.

  “So what happened yesterday, man?” Gus asked as he sipped his glass of wine.

  “Professional crisis,” Devlin shrugged. “Everything is handled now,” he added, before stealing a glance at me.

  “So what do you do?” Mattie asked.

  He answered without missing a beat. “Image consultant, working mostly with brand development. Long story short: I help revamp my clients, building their confidence and thereby building their platforms so they can do what they most want to do.”

  As I considered his answer, I realized it wasn’t really a lie.

  “Certainly worked with this one,” Lucy said, gesturing towards me. “You should have seen her a week ago. She was a complete mess.”

  I glared at her, albeit playfully. “Thanks.”

  Lucy held out a hand. “Gimme your phone.”

  “No.”

  “Gimme, gimme, gimme!”

  I sighed and relented, because that was what one did with Lucy. She cycled through my photos to the one of me in the sequined Cougar pantsuit I had purchased from the benefit. “CC before,” Lucy said as she showed the photo to Mattie. Then she gestured to me. “CC after.”

  “You did all that in a week?” Mattie asked, and Devlin nodded with a slight smirk. “Maybe you could loan him to me for an hour or two,” she said to me. “If I show up to the big wedding in L.A. looking like some beatnik from Austin, I think Sylvia might have a stroke.”

  We all laughed, but the thought of Devlin “working his magic” on Mattie instantly made my fingers curl into possessive claws, ready to fight for my man. That’s what he was now, no matter how we got there.

  “I don’t even have a dress for this wedding yet,” she mentioned.

  “That’s no problem,” Lucy dismissed with a shrug. “Devlin’s sister, Darcy, is a designer. She’s the one who made the perfect dress for CC.” Again she retrieved my phone to show her the photo.

  “God, that’s gorgeous,” she breathed. “If that’s the style you want to go with, I am completely on board.”

  The thought of standing next to the more statuesque and traditionally lovely Mattie wearing the same dress dimmed a little of my excitement to wear it. I knew I’d suffer from the comparison, especially when photos were all that was left to remind us all of Lucy’s and Gus’s special day.

  “You should wear a suit,” Gus announced. “Since you’re the best man.”

  She stuck her tongue out at her brother. “Keep teasing me about it and I will do that very thing, butthead.”

  Devlin’s eyes glittered as he surveyed the beautiful brunette. “I’m sure Darcy could come up with something,” he assured with a confident smile.

  “On such short notice?” Mattie asked.

  He shrugged. “She has closets full of clothes she’s made in the past for a variety of reasons. And she’s a wiz putting something together on the fly. What size do you wear?”

  “Four on a good day,” she answered. “Six the other five days of the month.”

  He laughed at her joke, but I could only smile–and barely that. Whether or not Devlin was making the comparisons in his head, I certainly was. And for the first time in my life, I felt lesser than because of it.

  Devlin merely pulled out his phone to text his sister. “Let me give her a heads up, and then she can see what she has available. Maybe we can stop over there tonight after all the festivities.”

  “It won’t be too late?” Mattie asked and he shook his head.

  “The woman never sleeps. Excuse me,” he said as he stepped away from the table to make the call.

  “Nothing like saving things till the last minute,” Mattie remarked with self-effacing good humor. “I thought I’d have to scour the town all day tomorrow to find something that would do in a pinch, likely fashioning a last-minute ball gown out of trash bags, paper clips and rubber bands.”

  Lucy laughed. “Don’t worry. Devlin is a man of many talents. I’m sure he’ll figure something out.”

  I continued to pick at my crepes, my appetite obliterated. My mood further took a nosedive when Devlin returned to the table and announced, “She’s got some ideas but she won’t be able to get to anything till tomorrow. Is that too late?”

  Lucy pursed her lips as she calculated. “How early tomorrow? The wedding is at six.”

  “She says any time after eleven.”

  “Ceece and I booked a full day at the spa tomorrow, so I guess if you can be back by no later than four, it should be plenty of time to pick an outfit and get it fitted.”

  Devlin appraised Mattie thoughtfully. “I can’t see that being a problem. Your size and height are pretty common. It shouldn’t take a whole lot of alterations.”

  The delicious food turned to ash in my mouth. I thought this conversation couldn’t get any worse until Mattie innocently spouted off, “Then it’s a date!” She turned to me with a happy grin. “If you don’t mind me borrowing your boyfriend, that is.”

  I didn’t look at Devlin. I couldn’t. “You’re in good hands,” was all I could say.

  Mattie turned to Devlin. “If you can make me look like a superstar like CC, then you may even get a tip.”

  Devlin took my hand in his. “There’s nobody like my Coralie,” he promised. He was likely throwing down an airbag to soften the blow for my plummeting self-esteem, but it was hollow comfort by this point.

  By allowing myself to stupidly fall in love with this man, I’d given myself everything to lose… including myself.

  #FML #KMN

  After lunch, we stayed close to the hotel so we could start our rehearsals right on time. So we all decided to shop the promenade for last minute items to prepare for the wedding. I strolled into the jewelry store, because only something sparkly could help restore my mood. Devlin cradled me close as we looked through the dazzling selection of rings, necklaces and bracelets. We passed the peridot section, and I made a face.

  “What’s with the face?” he asked with a chuckle.

  I scrunched up my nose. “Peridot is my birthstone,” I informed. “And I hate it. It’s ugly. Neon puke green, like alien vomit.”

  He laughed out loud before he asked the salesman to see the selection. He selected the ring with the diamond band and a five carat oval peridot circled with a band of black diamonds, and framed with matching white diamonds from the band. It sparkled in every direction, casting rainbows everywhere. “Let me see your hand,” he said.

 
“Devlin,” I started to decline, so he grabbed my hand anyway.

  “The peridot is believed to be a magical stone, one that guards from negative thoughts and emotions. Simply put, it brings happiness, balance and good fortune to the wearer.” His eyes locked with mine as he slowly slid the ring on the ring finger of my left hand, which nearly made me dissolve right into the floor. “It even keeps nightmares at bay while making all your happy dreams come true.”

  I regarded him skeptically. “How do you know all this?”

  He studied the ring on my hand, brushing a gentle thumb across it. “My mother’s birthday is August 23.”

  “Oh,” I said softly as I looked down at the ring, which suddenly sparkled with new light.

  “She always wanted a peridot engagement ring, but there was never enough money for things like that. And both of her husbands were total losers who wouldn’t think to get her one anyway,” he added bitterly. “Every bride deserves an engagement ring, one as special and unique as she is.”

  “No diamonds for you, then?”

  His eyes met mine with a look so fierce that for a second, I couldn’t breathe. “Diamonds are common. I don’t do common.”

  “Oh,” I said again, this time even fainter than before. Was that his way of telling me he wasn’t interested in the beautiful, vivacious Mattie? He peeled the ring from my finger, which suddenly felt naked without it. I almost stopped him from handing it back to the salesman, but I had to remind myself that no matter the feelings we shared, neither of us could promise much more than a stolen week here and there. We weren’t ready for rings yet, and likely never would be.

  It’s really fucking complicated to fall in love with one’s own gigolo, I reckoned.

  I settled for a diamond and sapphire necklace and earring set, to match the navy dress, but I couldn’t help but stare at the peridot with new longing when we left the shop. I knew forevermore that the peridot would be linked to that moment Devlin Masters slid a ring onto my finger, as if he had any right at all to do so.

  It truly was a magical stone if it could make that elusive dream come true.

  God, where were these thoughts coming from?! Whenever I thought about marriage in the past, it felt like something I had to do, to make Father happy, or to satisfy some laundry list of life’s goals expected of me from polite society. Now marriage felt like a delicious slice of decadent cheesecake on someone else’s plate.

  I shrugged it off as we moseyed to the next store. This was just the byproduct of thinking about nothing but weddings and cakes and dresses and flowers for the past week solid. No matter how enlightened both Lucy and I wanted to believe that we were, there was something magical and romantic about the whole damned process, ingrained in our collective psyche from the first time we turned that first pillowcase into a veil, or created grand weddings for our dolls. Lucy and I had orchestrated some humdingers back in our day that would have put any royal wedding to shame.

  But it was all pretend, just like my perfect romance with the enticing man at my side. I’d feel better once we returned to the real world.

  Of course, in the real world, Devlin wouldn’t be strolling beside me, holding my hand as we window-shopped, stealing kisses whenever he dared, showing the whole world I belonged to him.

  I was clearly damned either way.

  I decided not to dwell on it and simply live in the moment. For one week at least, I’d get things the way I wanted them. And that had to be enough.

  We arrived at the chapel by 3:45 that afternoon. It was still sparsely decorated, since Lucy was one of a dozen brides who would be marrying in that very chapel over the next couple of days. The chapel served as a similar backdrop, but Deidre made each wedding as unique to the bride as they wanted, depending on the colors and flowers they chose.

  We wouldn’t see the finished product until Lucy walked down the aisle the next evening, which lent a little bit to the excitement.

  Since there were only five of us, there was no reason to sit. Instead Mattie walked Gus down the aisle, then Devlin walked me down the aisle, and finally Lucy entered the room, all eyes towards her as she made her way to the altar where we all waited, to stand around her and Gus as they exchanged their handwritten vows.

  Since they weren’t reading those until the actual wedding day, our rehearsal was over and done within about a half-hour. A limo took us to a restaurant in the tallest observation tower in the city, to overlook the lights of Vegas while Lucy and Gus ate their last supper before wedding bliss.

  After the champagne was poured, I tapped my glass, cleared my throat and stood to address my very best friend in the whole world. “I have been blessed to call Lucy Lyon my best friend since we were five years old. We met in kindergarten, when we were placed at the same table together, to draw a picture of our home life as sort of a ‘get-to-know-you’ exercise for the first day of school. The other kids raided the crayon box, which only had about six basic colors to start off with. By the time the box passed around to me, there were only halves of two crayons left, orange and brown. Lucy spotted my conundrum at once, and quickly scooted close so we could share the blue and red crayons she had been the first to grab. Ever since then, she’s added nothing but color and sparkle to my drab little world. She’s always been unafraid to grab life by the balls, and from elementary school to college and beyond, she’s helped me do the same. Basically there’s no Ceece without Luce, and there’s nowhere I’d rather be than right here as she joins her life with her truest love, Gus Dunleavy. I think knew he was ‘the one’ way before Lucy,” I added with a grin, which made everyone laugh. “He is the yin to her yang, a perfect balance in every way. I love you both, and I’m so thrilled to see where your new adventures take you. Thanks for allowing me to be a passenger on your crazy, wonderful ride. To Lucy and Gus,” I toasted and we all drank.

  Lucy sprang from her seat to throw her arms around my neck for an impassioned bear hug. “I love you, girl,” she said as she held me tight.

  “I have something for you,” I said as we finally pulled apart. I pulled a long gift-wrapped jewelry box from my purse and handed it to her.

  “I thought I told you no gifts,” she said with a mock scowl. “We’re going to get plenty of those at the next wedding.”

  “True,” I said. “But the Lucy Lyon I know and love can never pass up a present. If Lucy Dunleavy doesn’t want it…,” I said as I tried to take it back.

  She snatched it from my hands. “Lucy Dunleavy can just learn to deal with it,” she said before she tore open the wrapping paper. She gasped when she saw the diamond and sapphire bracelet inside. It had all the colors of her wedding, including the silver metal holding it all together.

  “I figured it’d take care of something new and something blue.”

  Lucy threw her arms back around my neck. “I love it. Thank you so much.”

  Mattie picked up her glass and stood to her feet. “Since we’re doing the whole present thing and what not, I just want to say that I know Gus better than anyone on the planet. We were our first roommates, “womb” mates, if you will, and so I can tell you all from experience that living with him was the best thing I’ve ever done… for Lucy,” she added with a wink. “Thanks to me hogging all of the hyper molecules and the flighty DNA, Gus learned how to be a kind, patient and laid-back guy well primed for marriage. So you’re welcome,” she said to Lucy.

  We all laughed and Lucy said, “Thank you!”

  “The Lyons are so much more exciting than the boring, ol’ conservative Dunleavys, so I’m not really sure what you’re getting out of the deal aside from a guy who can hold your purse when you shop or your hair when you puke, but I wish you all the best, with many, many years of happiness. Welcome to the family, sis!” Mattie toasted. She reached for her purse and pulled out an envelope, which she passed to her brother and his bride-to-be. “I know you said no presents, but since you’re obviously lacking for something old and borrowed, I think I have something that might do double duty. I rece
ntly tried this well-known experiment that completely changed my life and I couldn’t think of any way better for you to start your lives together.”

  Lucy opened the envelope and withdrew the contents. “Thirty-six questions to make you fall in love?” she asked.

  “I know it sounds crazy, but hear me out. I took a course on intimacy a few months back, and we talked about this study conducted in the late nineties, where total strangers ask and answer thirty-six questions of intense self-disclosure, which are supposed to lead to feelings of love and intimacy. Of course I thought it was completely whackadoodle, so I had no problems being paired with a total stranger just to see what happened. And while we didn’t fall in love, the exercise itself made me feel closer to that person, in a way that liberated me in all my interactions with others. You’re just more open, which is where intimacy and love truly start anyway. Since you both are already in love, I thought maybe this experiment would help deepen your bond even more, and I can think of nothing better to offer on your wedding day.”

  Both Gus and Lucy stood to hug Mattie, thanking her for her unusual gift.

  Finally Lucy stood to toast all of us. “Ten days ago, I was a basket case. I felt like I was on a runaway train careening off of the rails, ready to drop me off the nearest cliff. Fortunately fate stepped in, and his name happened to be Devlin Masters.” She raised her glass to him and I couldn’t help but smile with pride and wonder that he belonged to me. “Thanks to your suggestion, I have the wedding I want, with the people I want, and it is so much better than I could have ever dreamed. We wouldn’t be here without you,” she said as she toasted him. “So thank you. For everything,” she added.

  He raised his glass to her as well. “I am the one who should thank you,” he said. “I never thought a week could change my life, but that’s just what it did,” he added as he stole a glance at me. “Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your world. I wouldn’t be anywhere else.”

  There were tears in my eyes when he leaned over to kiss me softly.

  The party soon started afterwards. I had to talk Mattie, Lucy and Devlin down from trying the rollercoasters at the top of the observation tower. I may have been risking a lot this week, but I wasn’t ready to dangle more than a thousand feet from a certain and painful death plunging to the concrete below. They pouted but didn’t persist, especially since Gus agreed with me that he didn’t care to risk death before his wedding day. Instead we hopped into the limo that drove us straight to an adult club with both male and female strippers to entertain us. This was our bachelor/bachelorette celebration, and the girls got way more into it than the boys, who knew better than to enjoy themselves too much. Gus practically grimaced all the way through his lap dance, until, of course, an inebriated Lucy took the dancer’s place. Since we had a private room and bottles of champagne, she harbored no inhibitions, especially when her male stripper indulged a much more erotic performance.