“Great; we’ll get you to speak up on style too.” She shifted her eyes back toward me. “What’s your budget for your gown?”
“Thirty-five hundred dollars.”
Jackie put her hand over her mouth and mumbled, “Jeff’s cheap ass.” I gave her a pointed glance to shut her up.
We eventually made our way back into the studio, where we all began browsing through what seemed like endless gowns. I knew it would be a long shot, but if by some miracle I was able to find a dress that fit me perfectly, then I could take it with me that day and put a great big fat check mark next to that item on my list.
The scene in the studio was chaos. We weren’t the only bridal party in there. I don’t know if Jackie, Georgia, and Candace decided to ham it up for the fuck of it or if they really were on opposite ends of the spectrum, but they were a mess. My poor mom was beside herself and clammed up, refusing to comment. Mandy was no help, honestly. She liked everything and couldn’t think of one thing to say to help me decide.
After trying on everyone else’s selections, I tried on the gown I’d picked. I knew as soon as it was fastened in the dressing room and I spun to see my reflection that it was the dress for me.
The gown was simple, yet elegant. It was form-fitting and fit me as if I were the model they’d used to make it. The straps were a wide lace that wrapped around my shoulders almost halter style. The lace continued down throughout the length of the gown and down to the train. My boobs fit perfectly and the sweetheart neckline enhanced my cleavage -- I had cleavage. It was clinging to my figure all the way down to my mid-thigh, where it began to flare out ever so slightly. It was just sheer enough to see my legs once the flaring began. The best thing was that it fit me perfectly, no alterations, no modifications, nothing. Bag that bitch and I’m out. And I knew Jeff would like it -- no, he would love it.
Mom tried to get me to pick a veil, but I declined. I was going to get my hair done and would find something to use for an accent, but I didn’t think a veil would look right with that dress anyway.
Once we finished with my appointment, we went to get something to eat before Mom had to catch her flight. Jackie knew this great BBQ restaurant, Fox Brothers, so we all agreed to go there. I can say those ribs and pulled pork were the absolute best I’d ever eaten. It was so cool when the owners came by and asked how everything was. They had to be proud of that place. It was worth the wait in line.
Once we finished, we drove to the hotel to get Moms’ bags, then drove to the airport to drop her off, and then headed back to our hotel to get ready for the rest of the night.
I made a quick call to Jeff and let him know how things went. He tried to get me to put the dress on and send him a selfie, but that wasn’t happening.
We all changed our clothes and took a cab to Vanquish. Taking a cab was the smartest decision we made because by the time we left, not one of us would have been able to drive. It wasn’t overly crowded for a Thursday night, but we had a good time. I was surprised any of us even remembered the hotel we were staying in.
Instead of making it down to breakfast with everyone else, I spent my morning snuggled up with my cool new porcelain boyfriend in the bathroom. I felt like I was going to die. My actual stomach was the only thing left in me to come out. “I swear I’m never drinking again,” I groaned to myself. Tears streamed down my face as I talked to myself between dry heaves. “I’m so stupid.” What the fuck was I thinking? The crazy thing is, I didn’t think I’d drank so much that I’d be sick.
I heard a faint chime of an incoming text. Great, just what I needed. I crawled on my hands and knees into the bedroom to get my purse. Every time I set my hand or knee down onto the carpet, I was overcome by queasiness and a pounding in my head that felt like it was going to split in two. I dug through my purse and pulled my phone out. It was nine in the morning, and the message was from Jeff.
Jeff: How was your night?
Me: We had a good time. This morning, just shoot me.
Jeff: Don’t tell me you drank too much.
Me: Yeah I did.
Jeff: That’s fucked up. Call me later.
Me: K
I crawled as fast as I could back into the bathroom in time for another dry heave that left my stomach tied in a knot. I made my way back into the bedroom and dragged myself back into bed. I felt like shit. I’d had times when I’d drunk too much before, but I had never felt this bad. Maybe something I’d eaten in the bar didn’t sit well in my stomach. And my head felt like a bomb that was going to detonate into pieces. Whatever was to blame, I would not be having a repeat performance of this tomorrow morning. We had been told about another club we planned to try out tonight, Opera, but I couldn’t even think of going out or drinking another drop of alcohol right then.
I woke to an eerie silence. My stomach felt a million times better, and my head felt closer to normal. I got out of the bed and was hit with a bout of dizziness that made me stagger. I needed food, but before that, I needed lots and lots of water. My mouth was drier than hot pavement in the summer sun. I ripped the plastic wrap off one of the cups by the sink, filled it, and drank every drop before refilling it again.
I made my way back into the room and picked up my phone. It was almost two o’clock. I couldn’t believe my entourage had left me alone for so long. I could have died in here. Well, maybe I was being overly dramatic. I scrolled through and had no calls, but did have a text from Jackie and Georgia. I decided to call Jeff first before figuring out where the girls were.
“Hey babe.”
“Hey. How are you feeling?” He sounded like he was just getting up from a nap.
“I feel so much better now. Good God, I wanted to just die earlier.”
“When are you guys coming back? Saturday or Sunday?”
“We were planning on Sunday. Is that okay still?”
“It’s fine, but I’d love to see you tomorrow. I miss you being here with me.”
“I miss you too, baby.”
“Maybe you can convince the road-trippers to come home early.”
“I’m sure I can, I’d rather be in your arms tomorrow.”
“Let me know. I have to run, our tux appointment is in an hour and a half.”
“Okay, I’ll talk to you later.”
Now to find these bitches. I decided to call Jackie instead of sending a text. They were all over in Candace and Georgia’s room waiting for me to wake up from my alcohol-induced coma. We decided to go get something to eat and talk about what we were going to do that night. I planned to also let them know I thought we should leave the next morning instead of waiting till Sunday.
Chapter 29
Friday night at Opera was fun, and it was crowded. I drank nothing except Ginger Ale all night. Saturday morning, we were all eager to get back home. We loaded up the car, paid our hotel bills, said goodbye to Atlanta and were on our way back to lovely Tampa -- home sweet home. I sent a text to Jeff letting him know we were on the road.
We made it back home in six and a half hours after one stop for gas and a couple bathroom breaks. After dropping everyone off, I couldn’t get home fast enough. I pulled into the driveway, but noticed Jeff’s car wasn’t there. I checked my phone and realized he had never replied to my text earlier. That was weird; he never just didn’t reply. He had been home on Friday when I’d last talked to him. Should I call the police and file a missing person’s report? Or just sit here worrying myself stupid until he showed up or I found out he was dead? I sent him a text letting him know I was home, then went upstairs to put on my swimsuit. I decided to lay out by the pool while I waited to hear from him.
Soft lips slanting onto mine startled me awake. “Hey there.” His eyes were filled with white-hot desire. He needed me as much as I needed him.
“Hey,” was the only word I could utter before his mouth covered mine again. When he released my mouth, I was able to ask, “What time is it?”
“Five thirty. I sent you a text that I was on my way home, but you mu
st have fallen asleep.”
“I’m so glad you’re here. I missed you.” I wanted to tell him I loved him. And I did, with all my heart. I knew I had fallen in love with him. I knew it when I was in Atlanta away from him, missing him. There was no denying it anymore. But I was scared to tell him. I wasn’t sure if he felt the same way, and I wasn’t willing to allow myself to be left hanging from a limb. I had been a fool and said it before, when I really didn’t love him, so when he hadn't said it back, it didn’t bother me. But now, if I said it and he didn’t say it back, I’d be devastated.
He pulled me up into his tight embrace. He wrapped me in his arms while his tongue claimed me, marked me as his territory. I had hoped we’d make it up to the bedroom, but he took me poolside in the lounge chair again. Every ounce of passion I felt for him was conveyed through my touch and my gaze while I opened myself to him. I would have crawled across a hot desert to feel him. And when we found our release together, the love in my heart was so intense, I wrapped him in my arms and held him tight, never wanting to let him go.
He whispered in my ear, “I only have to be away for two days this week. I’ll be gone Tuesday and Wednesday.”
“That’s good. And Sky is taking Abby Saturday and keeping her until Christmas afternoon, since I had her on Thanksgiving.”
“Well, we should let her open one present on Friday night before she leaves. She can open the rest when she comes back home.”
“I don’t know …”
“Ah, come on, spoil sport Mommy, she can have one gift early. What’s it going to hurt?”
“Okay, only one.”
“And you get one too.”
“I’ve got all I need right now.” I slid my hands down his body and grabbed two handfuls of his sexy, round ass. He leaned in and kissed me.
“I feel the same. But I have one thing I want you to have early. It’s killing me not to give it to you right now.”
“Well, you have to wait; I still have to finish my shopping before we do any gift exchange.”
My mind raced; my mom hadn’t mentioned anything about Christmas plans. And if she had, I’d forgotten. I needed to call her and find out what she and Jim were up to. My to-do list was growing. For every one task I could check off as complete, two more managed to creep up on me.
The rest of the weekend and week raced by. I barely got the decorations and tree up and my shopping done, but I did manage to find jewelry to match my dress and also found my shoes. Mom and Jim were going out of town the week of Christmas so we planned to stop by to see them on Sunday. And I was surprised to hear Sky tell me to bring Abby by before ten Saturday morning; he was going to take her to visit his mom for the weekend.
Friday night, we had our early Christmas. Abby was in heaven when she was handed her present from Jeff. “Go ahead Abby, open it,” he urged.
She looked at him with her big brown eyes and smiled from ear to ear. She loved presents. She began ripping at the edges of the paper.
“Help her, babe; I think you have too much tape on it.” Jeff knelt down beside Abby, and using her tiny fingers, he showed her how to get her fingers under the flap of paper and pull it. Of course, you know I had my camera phone out taking video. It was so cute.
Her eyes widened and she screamed, “Look!” She held up a new doll.
“You got a new baby.” I smiled at Jeff. My heart was overflowing with his kindness and thoughtfulness.
“What do you say, Abby?”
“Thank you, Mr. Jeff.” She jumped up and wrapped her tiny arms around him and kissed him on the cheek. What a fantastic day; my family was coming together.
“You’re welcome, sweetie.” He hugged her with one arm. “What are you going to name her?”
Abby looked at me with a puzzled look, then smiled. “I don’t know.”
“Maybe Daddy can help you think of a nice name for your baby.”
“Yeah, Daddy can help me.”
She scampered off carrying her doll.
“That was so sweet of you.”
“We won’t tell anyone that Jeff does ‘sweet’ shit, right?” He made sure to throw the air quotes up when he said sweet.
“Never.”
I convinced Jeff to wait to do our exchange on Christmas Eve, just the two of us. He wasn’t happy, but he agreed.
Abby stayed up for about another hour before I settled her and her new baby into bed. We had to get up early, and I didn’t want to be late getting to Sky’s.
The alarm startled me awake. I was pretty deep into sleep. The kind of deep sleep that you hear the alarm and think it’s the phone, then you think it’s the doorbell, then you don’t know what the fuck it is, and finally, you have the brilliant revelation that ‘oh yeah, it’s the stupid alarm.’
I sat up on the edge of the bed for a few minutes before prying my ass up and going into the bathroom to brush my teeth and comb my hair. I crept back into the bedroom to put on my jean shorts and T-shirt.
“Hurry back,” Jeff said as he looked up at me.
“I will.” Who in their right mind wouldn’t hurry back to a man like him?
I went and got Abby ready and grabbed her new doll and the bag we had already packed. We ran downstairs into the kitchen. I tossed an Eggo waffle in the toaster for her while I finished getting her shoes tied. Once the waffle popped up, I put it on a plate, got it buttered, put syrup on it, and poured her a glass of juice. The waffle smell was different. It didn’t smell as appealing as it had in the past.
After she was finished, I wiped her hands and mouth to make sure she wasn’t sticky. We ran out the door and got in the car.
My heart was racing the entire drive. My eyes flashed between watching the road and watching the clock. I knew I was cutting it close and was going to get there right at ten o’clock, if I made it on time at all. I parked the car out front with one minute to spare. Sky walked out the door as we parked and came down the sidewalk with his keys in his hand.
“Nik! Nikki! God, Nik, you have to be okay.” Sky was slapping my face. What had I done to him that he was hitting me?
I heard sirens blaring. My vision was blurry, and I couldn’t tell what was going on. I kept thinking someone must have gotten into an accident nearby because the sirens kept getting louder -- then they stopped.
I realized I was lying on the ground and Sky was holding my head. “What … What happened?”
“You passed out, Nik. You don’t remember? You told me you felt funny and just fell out.” I tried to lift myself up but felt like a fifty-pound weight was resting on my chest, holding me down.
“Just lie there for one moment, ma’am; we’re going to get you in the ambulance, and we’ll take your vitals there.” Ambulance? What in the everlasting fuck? “Can you tell me your full name?”
“Nikki Carmichael. But I don’t need an ambulance.” They lifted me and laid me on the stretcher. I guess they didn’t hear me.
“Nik, where’s Jeff?”
“Home.”
“Where’s your phone?”
“The car.”
“Which hospital are you taking her to?”
“General.”
“I’m following right behind you, Nik.”
The ambulance ride was a quiz of my life. They asked everything on my health history, family history, if I took drugs, drank excessively, and they kept fucking asking me what my name was. Will someone please write that shit down so you can stop asking me?
I was taken into the Emergency Room and moved into a bay. The first question they asked me was what my name was. Within minutes, both Sky and Jeff were there by my side.
“Where’s Abby?”
“The neighbor has her; you know her, Connie.”
I nodded my approval. Connie loved Abby and had watched her on a few occasions for me when I lived in the house, so I knew she was in good hands. The nurse came in and took my vitals and looked confused by both Sky and Jeff being in the bay with me. Jeff was standing beside me holding my hand.
“Who’s the husband or boyfriend?”
“I’m the ex-husband.” Sky spoke up first.
“I’m the fiancé,” Jeff growled. The vicious glares that the two of them exchanged were unnerving.
I had just noticed I had an IV stuck in my hand. I didn’t remember that happening. The nurse hooked up the blood pressure monitor to me and told me the results were normal.
“Did you eat breakfast this morning?”
“No.”
“You’re going through the IV pretty fast; that’s a sign of dehydration. We want to run some blood tests on you to eliminate some other common, yet more critical, reasons for fainting.”
She disappeared, and about five hours later -- not really but it seemed like it -- she came back in with a case of tubes, a rubber band to tie me off, and the needle. She removed four vials of blood, then promised to return in a few minutes. We all knew that was a lie.
The doctor came in shortly after she left. He asked a lot of the same questions everyone else already had asked me, starting with my name. I wanted to scream ‘check the chart, fuckwad’ but I played his little game and answered the questions.
“Do you need anything, baby doll?”
“I’m ready to go. I feel better. I want to go.”
“Well, we need to get the blood test results back and make sure there isn’t any serious underlying condition before we release you. I’ll stop back in a few minutes. While we wait, we’ll get you up to get an EKG done.”
Then it hit me. “Sky, oh my god, I’m so sorry. You don’t have to stay; I know you wanted to get going to see your mom.”
“I already told her I’d be late.”
Jeff rolled his eyes and squeezed my hand tighter. I could tell he wanted to say something but was biting his tongue. The nurse came in and wheeled me and my bed down the hall into the elevator. Jeff stayed by my side while Sky sat in the bay, waiting for me to return. Once I came back down, we were all quiet. The tension between Jeff and Sky was so thick it could have been cut with a knife.
The doctor came back in about forty-five minutes later and announced he had some results from the EKG and blood tests. My heart sank, and a tear leaked from the corner of my eye. I was hoping he’d come in and say they’d found nothing, and tell me to go home and eat a steak.
Twisted By Desire (Lust, Desire and Love Trilogy #1) Page 23