Forever Together (Forever Love #2)

by Jade Whitfield

  I throw my shoulders back and stand up straight, nodding to myself.

  "That’s it Cindy. Time to toughen up." I may have lost my mind. Probably have judging by what I’m about to do. Oh hell, I’ll just blame the temporary insanity again. I'll say it made a quick comeback.

  Tapping the letters on the onscreen keyboard on my phone, I give Brady the answer that I hope he wants, agreeing to a date. At least I think it was a date he was asking for. He said he was picking me up to take me out. That’s a date, right?

  Knocking on the door causes me to jump a little, my heart almost beating out of my chest from the shock.

  "BOO TWO! YOU IN THERE BOO TWO?" Trina. Of course.

  "Uh, coming!" I call out, flipping the tap on and quickly running my hands underneath.

  I take one last look in the mirror before exiting the Preston’s downstairs bathroom, almost bumping into Trina.

  "I was beginning to think you got lost in there. You got that text and then ran off so quick. Everything ok?"

  "I’m good." I plaster a smile across my face, not quite sure if it’s fake or not. "Looks like I've got a date tonight." If it is a date. I keep that to myself though. No need to announce that I’m such an idiot that I don’t know what is and what isn’t a date.

  "Ooooh Brady and Cindy sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G, first comes love then comes marriage then comes-"

  "Actually, Trina." Liv interrupts, popping up from nowhere and grabbing an arm from each of us. "I think it’s Brady and Cindy sitting in a truck, getting down and ready to fu-"

  "Ok, ok." I hold my one free hand up. "Either way, I get the message."

  "She's got a date." Trina wiggles her eyebrows.

  "Really? That's great. Hey, you think you can sneak us out when you go. If I have to hear any more about that damn wedding I’m gonna pop myself in the fucking head."

  "Er... boo. You do realize it’s your wedding?" Trina points out, a smile tugging at her berry red lips.

  "You wouldn’t fucking think so. I’m seriously just wondering whether to hop on a plane and do this shit in Vegas. Uh huh, at least then I won’t have to spend the next few weeks listening to dribble about cake samples and table settings. I swear she’s just getting fucking worse. The nearer the wedding gets the more fucking crazy she becomes."

  "Aww she’s just excited." I say in an attempt to calm Liv down. Her fists are clenching and unclenching and I have a feeling Mrs. Preston may be attending this wedding with finger marks round her neck.

  "Don’t tell me you haven’t thought of it too." She points at me. "She’s had you running round the place like a headless chicken the last few days all because you’re too nice to say no."

  That is true. I can’t count how many phone calls I've had to make just to check everything’s on schedule. The caterer threatened to stick a ladel up my ass yesterday if I didn’t stop calling. Of course Mrs. Preston blames it on him being French. Apparently they’re just passionate about their work. I blame it on him for being an asshole.

  "Anyway, never mind your wedding disaster, you ready for round two with Brady?" Trina winks.

  "No, I’m pretty sure round two was in the truck as well." I smack my hand over my mouth as theirs drop open.

  "Bitch has been holding out on us boo."

  "Uh uh uh." Liv shakes her head. "We want details."

  "Girls there you are!" Mrs. Preston breezes into the room before I can be thoroughly interrogated.

  "How did she find us?" Trina mumbles from the side of her mouth.

  I shrug my shoulders, staring at the item in Mrs. Preston’s hands with horror. If it wasn’t a sign of impending doom that instead of looking immaculate with not a hair out of place, she has her brown shoulder length locks thrown up in a knot, the folder, bursting with files and magazine cuttings would do it.

  Out of the corner of my eye I notice Trina throw an accusatory glare at Liv who looks as if she’s about to throw up.

  "I found the wedding planner." Mrs. Preston squeals, bouncing on her feet. "I have no idea how it ended up on the top shelf of the linen closet. I must have put it down without thinking when putting the laundry away."

  The way Liv’s shoulders sag, I have a feeling it wasn’t so much a misplacement as a kidnapping. A kidnapping that went horribly wrong because it definitely didn’t succeed.

  I may have nightmares about that folder for years to come. The white plastic is as frightening as a loaded gun held by Chucky. It contains lists and lists of things to do, errands to run and a tight schedule that according to Noah’s Mom, needs to be followed down to slightest detail.

  "Yay. Now we can follow your timeline." Liv says with a straight face.

  "Well sweetie, we have the final dress fitting this week and the final tasting for the catering. Oh Cindy dear, did you call them yesterday like I asked?"

  "Yes, Mrs. Preston. They said, um..." They said they’d stick a ladel in an exit only zone if I didn’t stop calling. "They said that everything’s coming along great."

  "Oh wonderful. We also have the bachelorette party, the decorators and also the cars to finalize."

  "I thought that you just pay a bunch of people and they turn up and do shit on the day." Liv groans.

  "Honey, have you ever watched one of those shows on the tv about weddings from hell? Well, how do you think they happened? They paid a bunch of people to turn up and do stuff on the day and instead of a tight ship that sailed smoothly, they were probably all in a tizzle. Next thing you know, there’s a wedding cake in a pile on the floor, a dress with a rip in it and the maid of honor is sleeping with the groom."

  What the hell? I bite the inside of my cheek when Liv looks towards Trina, her actual maid of honor. I have a feeling Mrs. Preston’s been watching too much Lifetime.

  "Well, not that that wedding doesn’t sound amazing... for me anyway." Trina smirks. "I think this wedding’s gonna be perfect and even if it isn’t, the bachelorette party will more than make up for it."

  Oh dear God, no!

  "I can’t wait for it. It’s been years since I went to one. It’s gonna be a real girl’s night." Mrs. Preston says and my stomach plummets. It’s official. I’m the one that’s gonna be attending the wedding with fingermarks around my neck.

  Liv looks to Trina who simply shrugs and then to me. I’m pretty sure trying to slink out of the back door is giving me away.

  "Yeah, that sounds amazing." Liv says with a straight flat voice, her eyes not leaving me for a second. "Excuse me, I just need to have a few words with Cindy." Oh hell no.

  "Oh, is that the time, I've got a date to prepare for so I better be off. We'll have to talk another time, Liv."

  "Oh no you don’t." Liv grasps me by the elbow and pulls me in the opposite direction to the exit.

  I was so close to getting out of here unharmed. Looks like I gotta face retribution for my big mouth. I’m pulled along, my cherry red heels clicking on the hardwood floors. Doesn’t Liv know that it’s not possible to be dragged in heels? At this rate I’m gonna end up on my ass and then she'll have a bridesmaid with not only finger marks round her neck, but a bruised ass as well. I’m spun around so instead of being dragged along, I’m now standing in front of my very pissed off friend.

  "What did you do?" She asks, her perfectly shaped eyebrows almost at her hairline.

  "Um, well." I try and think of a valid excuse to get me out of this. I could always go with that temporary insanity excuse.

  "Cindy." She drags my name out.

  "It wasn’t my fault technically." I start, biting my lip and fidgeting with my hands. "She asked about the bachelorette party and looked so sad that she wouldn’t be coming. "

  "Oh Jesus."

  "You don’t understand what it was like. She started reminiscing about when she was younger and how she hadn’t been to one in so long and then she started sighing, like a lot. I don’t know what happened but she looked so happy when I asked her." I take a deep breath, steeling myself for the next part. A part that mo
st definitely is going to get me throttled. "And then it kinda turned into a snowball and before I knew it, my Mom was coming and Trina’s Mom and maybe even Brady’s Mom-"

  "Wait, so not just Pam’s coming? Oh fuck, it’s gonna be like open day at the old folk’s home."

  "It won’t be that bad. They'll probably go home at like ten to sleep." Cause that’s what forty year olds do right?

  "Like I said before, you are way too nice." She says with a heavy sigh.

  "So you’re not mad?" I ask, my spirits lifted.

  "Oh, I’m spitting but there’s not much we can do about it now. Of c C ourse I’m gonna make sure your Mom's drinks are topped up the whole night. Yeah I’m gonna make sure she really lets her hair down."

  "Oh God no, she'll start doing the cha cha slide." I'll never live it down. I'll never be able to step foot out in public again.

  "Ah the cha cha slide, maybe this won’t be so bad after all then. Revenge Cindy." Liv casually throws out before turning around and walking back into the kitchen with a huge smile on her face.

  ***

  It takes serious skill to be able to do liquid eyeliner. It’s a skill I've not mastered in my twenty years on Earth. It’s also a skill I've decided to master twenty minutes before my date. Twenty minutes!

  I must be a fool, but after watching three makeup tutorials on YouTube I’m confident I've got it in the bag. I can do this.

  I guess the vain part of me that’s been dormant the past six months is back in full force seeing as though after leaving Liv’s house and coming home, I've spent the entire time preparing for Brady’s arrival. I've exfoliated and shaved practically every inch of my body, deep conditioned my hair so that it drops shiny and straight down my back rather than thick knots that cause me to resemble the bird lady out of the second Home Alone movie and I've even put on matching underwear, something that a few weeks ago would have been nothing short of a miracle.

  Now, if only I can get this damn eyeliner right, all will be right in my world. Seriously how hard can it really be? It’s not like I’m trying to paint a miniature Mona Lisa on my eyelids, it’s just a line.

  I stare in my reflection in the arch shaped mirror that hangs above the guest bathroom vanity. Yes, I’m hiding, I don’t need Luke who I could have sworn had moved out playfully pushing me. I also don’t need Avery in my ear complaining about her job for the one hundred thousandth time. I just need silence, absolute silence.

  "Whatcha doing?"

  "FUCK!" That’s it! I give up! Screw having a skill.

  "That’s a bad word Cindy." I turn around and look down at the dark haired little girl I’m about five seconds away from throttling.

  "Bailey." I breathe. I can be calm. I can be calm. If I just keep repeating that to myself, we'll both be able to leave this bathroom with minimal injury.

  I turn back around, pretty sure ignoring her is the best course of action and forcefully screw the lid back on the eyeliner. I shove it back into my black lace makeup bag and pull out a pencil instead. It may not look as good but it basically does the same job.

  I can feel eyes on my back, waiting for me to pay attention. Bailey hops up onto the vanity and stares at me as I struggle to ignore her. Her legs are swinging back and forth, banging into the cupboard underneath every damn time. I’m gonna kill this kid. Blocking everything else out, I focus on getting my makeup perfect, humming in appreciation when I see the finished product. I've gone for a smoky eye look, something that makes me look all mysterious and exotic. My pale porcelain skin is bronzed to perfection so instead of looking like a walking corpse, I look sun kissed.

  "Why didn’t you come back with a baby?"

  "Uh what?" That’s one way to get my attention, ask a completely crazy question.

  "Jessa’s sister Courtney came back with a baby when she went to college. His names Mackenzie and he’s the cutest little baby in the whole wide world. How come when you came back you didn’t have a baby too?"

  I’m pretty sure she’s too young for the birds and the bees talk. She'll have to suffer through that when she’s older. If Mom's still using the same method she did when I was younger, in a few year’s time Bailey is gonna have to sit through Mom going through a PowerPoint presentation and putting a condom on a cucumber. Good times!

  "I don’t think it’s a case of buying something at the store and getting a baby as a free gift Bailey."

  "Can you bring me one next time. I promise I'll look after it. I look after Brian sometimes when Brady comes round for meatloaf." She holds her hands together as if she’s praying and puts the puppy dog eyes on. She can breathe out fire and start doing cartwheels for all I care, I’m not having a baby.

  "Wait." I frown, her earlier comment sinking in. "What do you mean you look after Brian when Brady comes round for meatloaf." I know full well Brady hasn’t been round for meatloaf while I've been here so Bailey can only mean while I was in LA.

  "Meatloaf Monday." She cheers. "Brian and Brady always come round for meatloaf Monday. They haven’t for a while though."

  "Really? And was this when I was at school?"

  "Yep." She nods her head.

  I knew It! I knew something fishy was going on. Talk about family loyalty huh?!

  "Thanks Bails. Hey, is Mom in the Kitchen?"

  "Yeah, she’s cooking spaghetti."

  I leave Bailey sitting on the marble vanity and walk out, ready to give my Mother a piece of my mind. I’m torn between jumping up and down with glee that I was actually right and grabbing a baseball bat to start making holes in walls. Oh, I knew something was going on by how friendly everyone seemed to be. I never thought the woman who gave birth to me would betray me like this though. If I wasn’t so frickin' angry i'd be hurt. Right now I can barely see past the red haze though.

  "MOM!" I shout, stomping down the stairs, my feet thumping on the ground.

  "In the kitchen honey!"

  I storm through the empty den and into the kitchen, finding my Mom standing at the stove sprinkling salt into a saucepan.

  "Mom..." What do I say now? Do I just confront her?

  "Hey," She looks towards me. "You look lovely. You going somewhere nice?"

  "Yeah, Brady’s taking me…" I shake my head. I’m supposed to be confronting her not getting all chatty. "I just had a really enlightening conversation with Bailey." I arch a brow and purse my lips.

  "Oh yeah. It’s nice that you girls are getting along. The attic will be done soon though so you won’t have to share a room. I think your Dad said he’s finishing it this weekend."

  "Did you see Brady after we broke up?"

  If I wasn’t paying such close attention, I'd miss the falter in my Mom's stirring of her spaghetti sauce.

  "It’s a small town."

  "Yeah, but did you actually see him, have a conversation with him, have him round for meatloaf?"

  "Ah." That’s it?

  "Ah? Is that an ah yes or an ah no?"

  "It’s an ah yes. Brady came round." She lets go of the spoon and leans it against the side of the pan, wiping her hands down her gingham apron.

  "And you didn’t think to mention it?"

  "Sweetie-"

  "Don’t sweetie me, Mom. While I was at college you were being all pally with my ex. Where the hell is the loyalty in this house?"

  "Now listen to me Cindy Martin, I know you're mad but I’m still your Mother so don’t take that tone with me. You were with Brady a long time; he was part of our family. I wasn’t just gonna abandon him because you had a tiff."

  "We were broken up for six months Mom, it’s hardly a tiff!"

  "Well, you're back together now." She waves her hand flippantly. "It’s all water under the bridge."

  "You lied to me."

  "I didn’t lie to you. I just... kept some things to myself." She shrugs. She actually shrugs her shoulders as if it’s no big deal. "Are you always truthful Cindy? Do you tell me every little thing?"

  "Well, um-"

  "How’s Vanessa dear?
How’s college going? I’m sorry if you're upset that I stayed in touch with Brady and I’m sorry if you feel I betrayed you by doing that honey but that boy was heartbroken and so were you. Of course you pulled the Martin signature move and stuck your head in the sand, closed yourself off to everybody and practically went into hiding so I helped the one person who was willing to accept my help." I open and close my mouth, nothing coming out. "I’m your mother Cindy and despite what you think, I know you better than anybody. I know that things aren’t as peachy in LA as you make out. I know that you and your roommate aren’t best friends and I know that for the past six months instead of dealing with stuff, you took the easy way out and ran. Do you know how I know all this stuff? Because I am your mother. I know when you stutter on the phone or answer a question with a question you're lying. I know that all those missed calls and unanswered texts were because you were wallowing."

  "So what were you all doing, conspiring against me? Talking about stupid little Cindy over your damn meatloaf?" My voice cracks and my eyes fill up with tears. Not because of the betrayal anymore but because my Mom just hit the nail on the head.

  "Cindy... Sit down for a sec." Her voice is gentler than it was a few moments ago and I hesitate for a second before doing as she says. "Let me tell you a story. You know that me and your father met when we were teenagers. We started dating when we were both seventeen and as far as all you kids know it was all sunshine and daisies. That’s not life though. Did you know we broke up in our senior year of High School?"

  I shake my head.

  "Well we did. We broke up for six weeks. Back then it was a different time, when people dated they more than likely got married, especially in a small town like this. Well your Dad wanted to get married once we graduated, he was ready to open his own open business up with Carl Travers."