by Willow Aster
“A wine tasting?” Mom uses her napkin to help Dad clean up the mess. “Her sister is getting married.”
“Cosette knows that Juliette and Beecham plan their social calendar months in advance.”
My dad turns to Cosette and winks. “Well, I can’t imagine any event that would be better than celebrating Cosette and Caden. It will be the social event of the year.”
“Pfffft, the social event of the year is the fourth of July in the Hamptons. A small event at an unknown resort will not be newsworthy,” Vivienne says.
Appetizers are brought out to the table, and a small plate is set in front of Louie. My parents stare at him as if they are watching a freak circus show.
They kind of are.
“I’ve never seen teeth like that on a dog before,” Dad says and Alban chuckles. The dude is completely engaged now that he can actually hear the fucking conversation.
“Those aren’t his, my wife had them made.” He shrugs as if he thinks she’s as crazy as the rest of us do.
“Louie went to a well-known specialist, Dr. Pussy.” Vivienne dabs her mouth and Cosette squeezes my hand beneath the table.
“They are something. Dr. Pussy must be very talented,” Mom says, and I close my eyes for a few seconds to keep from laughing at the ridiculous conversation.
“Yes, he really is.”
“There won’t be a ring bearer in town with a better set of chops than yours,” Dad says, grinning at Louie.
Louie proceeds to dry heave at the table ferociously, and Vivienne pats his back as he coughs up an oversized piece of filet mignon. Everyone gasps.
“I’m so sorry,” Cosette whispers to my mother as Vivienne is in a frenzy making sure he’s okay.
“Are you kidding? This is the most fun we’ve had in a long time. We love you, Cosette. And that means we love your family.”
Cosette relaxes against me. It’s exactly what she needs to hear. The girl was born to be a Taylor.
I’m at dinner with the brothers, on the countdown as a single man.
“Don’t mistake my attitude with not being happy for you,” Jesse says, as he runs a hand through his outrageously tall hair. “But you guys are making me look fucking bad. Each one of you keeps proposing and planning weddings faster than the next.”
I snort. “I promise you we aren’t doing it to make you look bad.”
“Stop being a pussy and just propose then,” Spence barks at him.
“Don’t say pussy. Vivienne ruined the word for me because now all I see is Louie’s set of chompers when I hear the word.” Gus snorts. “But listen, I am down with all of this. I love weddings. Good food. Hot chicks. Free cocktails. I would like to request that you’ll all be hosting an olive-free bar. You know, out of respect for me and all,” Gus says, as he reaches into the center of the table for a few tater tots.
“Oh, for God’s sake. An olive-free bar?” Spence hisses and shakes his head.
“It’s a respect thing, brother. I will not be attending if it is not an olive-free zone. Because I’ll be whooping it up in the cocktail department, you know, drinking on your dimes … and I don’t want to have to concentrate on making sure the bartender doesn’t fuck up with the wrong garnish,” Gus says over a mouth full of tots.
“Are you drunk right now?” I ask because he’s acting crazy.
“I am not. I just have to draw the line somewhere. We all have our things. You don’t like Cosette’s dicklicker ex, Jesse doesn’t like confined spaces, Spence doesn’t like people … aside from Emma. And I don’t like olives. I’m hardly the most concerning one in the group.”
“You’re definitely the most concerning one in the group for more reasons than you even know.” Spence rolls his eyes and tips his head back to down his beer. “I think it’s great that you and Cosi are doing this quick. I’m guessing her ice queen mother doesn’t like how fast this is happening?”
“She’s not happy about it, but we don’t really care. I think Mom and Dad were pretty entertained by the Dubois when they met them last week. Her dad’s on board, but her mom isn’t quite there. We made it clear that this is our day. We aren’t about the big party, we just want to start our lives together.”
“I like the sound of that. I’ve had a ring for Mya for a while, but after fucking things up with Tiffany, I don’t want Mya to think I don’t take this shit seriously. I want to find the perfect way to propose,” Jesse finally says. My baby brother escaped a lifetime of hell when he left his last fiancée at the altar before he met Mya.
“Don’t let that concern you. What you had with Tiffany is nothing like what you have with Mya. We all see how happy you are. If you’re ready, pull the trigger. When you know, you know.” I hold my glass up and he clinks his against mine.
“Exactly. Like I fucking know how I feel about olives.” Gus shakes his head and clinks his glass to ours.
“That has nothing to do with the fucking conversation, dickdog. But we love you anyway.” Spence holds his glass up now as well.
“I can’t believe I’m getting married in a week.” We found a little resort on the Hudson River to accommodate our group. It’s exactly what Cosette and I want.
“I’ll drink to that,” Spence says. “Emma’s planning a wedding fit for fucking royalty. I just saw an email with information for a horse and carriage ride.”
He tries to act irritated, but we all know he’s as involved in it as she is.
“Don’t try to act like you aren’t part of every detail. You want the Hallmark movie wedding too, dickpube,” Gus says, barking out a laugh. “You’re a sentimental bastard whether you want to admit it or not.”
Spence laughs. “Whatever. So, are we doing a bachelor party for you?”
“I think we can count this as the bachelor party. I’ve had plenty of wild times. I’m ready to start my life with Cosette. We’ve got the fitting for our tuxes in two days. The timeline’s pretty tight.”
“And what did Cosette decide to do about the ex-boyfriend and his family?” Jesse asks, because Vivienne Dubois is adamant about the Toussaints attending the wedding.
“She went to speak to them. Jeremy’s parents were actually really supportive. They said they were happy for her, and that they really want to be there. She met with Jeremy afterward and she told him that she’d like to move forward as friends but after all that he’d done to try to come between us, she just didn’t feel comfortable having him there. He actually agreed and apologized. So there you go.”
“Good for her,” Spence says.
My parents decided to stay out here until after the wedding. Penelope and Beckham are flying in two days before the wedding, and everything is coming together.
Cosette and I have decided to keep both of our condos and knock the wall down between our two homes and do some major renovations. We’ll be doubling our space. We want to put in a large home office, since Cosette will soon be branching out on her own, and she’s agreed to work with us on all of our future projects.
“Is that weird-ass dog still going to be the ring bearer?” Gus asks as he shivers at the thought.
“Yes. Cosette knew it would mean a lot to her mother.”
“That woman is fucking crazy. I can’t imagine what it was like to grow up in that household.” Jesse says. “Cosette is meant to be a Taylor.”
“I think that all the time.”
She’s most definitely meant to be mine.
I knew it the first time I met her.
Most people have all sorts of anxiety leading up to their wedding day, but Cosi and I aren’t experiencing any of that. We’ve been working on the layout for our new home, and she drew up the plans, which we handed over to Spence a few days ago. My brothers and the team are going to get to work while we’re on our honeymoon in the South of France. I’m looking forward to two weeks alone with my wife.
Tonight is the rehearsal dinner, and Alban and Vivienne are hosting the event at their lavish home. I’m sure it will be far more extravagant than our wedd
ing day, but her parents wanted to do something for us and I was fine with it as long as Cosette was.
The meeting between the parents went better than I thought it would. I’m sure my parents found them to be a bit overwhelming, but they’d never say a negative word about Cosette’s family. That’s the way my parents roll. They are loyal as hell, and Cosi is a part of the family now. She has been since the day I fell for her.
My mom and Cosette have been spending a lot of time together. They’ve stayed up late every night talking, and my mom is honored that she’s seen my bride’s dress ahead of time.
Cosette and I knock on my brother’s door, as Gus is going to drive over with us to her parents’ house. The rest of my family will be in two other cars.
“You excited, baby?” I ask, as I graze her ear with my lips as she knocks on the door.
“I’m excited to officially be Mrs. Caden Taylor. Tonight is about giving my parents the chance to throw a party for us, but I’m just excited to spend my life with you.”
“Damn, I’m a lucky man,” I say as the door flies open.
“Sorry I’m running late,” Gus hurries out to the hall with his shoes in hand, and his hair is disheveled.
“What the fuck happened to you?” I ask as I link my fingers with Cosette’s as we make our way back to the elevator.
“Whoever bought that condo next door moved in today, and they’ve been banging and pounding nails in the wall all fucking day. I was trying to take a nap, you know, get my beauty sleep before tonight, but that did not happen. It’s like a pack of animals moved in there. I am not okay if my neighbors are going to be out of control fraternity boys, do you understand me, brother?” He shakes his head like this is the most inconvenient thing he’s ever experienced.
The door flies open and the tiniest human I’ve ever seen pokes her head out. She’s got her light brown hair tied up in some sort of messy knot on top of her head, gigantic brown eyes, and a little cherub face.
Fucking adorable.
Nothing like the pack of wild animals I expected to see behind that door.
She holds her little hand up and smiles and Gus comes to a stop and stares at her, as if he’s never seen a child before.
“Hi there, cutie pie,” Cosette says, and Gus studies her.
“Olive, you better not be opening that door, baby girl. Come help Mama in your room,” a voice calls out from the distance.
She waves before pushing the door closed and Gus gasps. “She did not fucking call her daughter Olive, did she? No, no, no. It must be a nickname, right?”
Cosette’s head falls back in laughter as we start walking again. “Olive is an adorable name.”
“I would name my nemesis Olive. Not a cute little thing like that. I can’t live next door to someone named Olive,” he says, and he steps on the elevator and falls back against the wall.
“She’s quite possibly the cutest human I’ve ever seen next to my gorgeous fiancée,” I say, nuzzling Cosette’s neck.
Gus claps his hand together. “You two need to take this seriously. Who the hell bought that condo?”
“I’m not positive, but I’m pretty sure the realtor told me it was a single mom with a little girl. A far cry from wild animals and fraternity boys, you dickwick.” I shake my head and laugh.
“I feel like the universe is messing with me, giving me a neighbor named Olive.” He crosses his arms over his chest. “But I’ll drop it for tonight because it’s your day.”
“Damn straight, brother.”
“Maybe the mom will be as adorable as the little girl.” Cosette wriggles her brows at Gus.
“I don’t mess around with single moms. I have rules.” Gus pinches the bridge of his nose as if he can barely handle the thought.
We arrive at the Dubois home, and twinkle lights line the drive and walkway up to the front door. When Cosette steps inside, she gasps. There are floral arrangements on every surface within view. Floral archways lead to the formal living area, and pink and white blooms fill the space.
“Um, wow,” Cosette whispers. “So much for subtle.”
Louie comes flying around the corner with his full set of veneers leading the way, and he’s wearing a black velvet jacket and a pink corsage on his chest.
“The dude has a better wardrobe than me, which is saying a lot. Aside from the weird set of falsies, he almost looks like he has swagger.”
My parents walk in just then, and Cosette’s parents come around the corner to greet us.
My mother swoons over the flowers, Penelope, Emma, and Mya whisk Cosette away asking for a tour of the home, and Alban leads us into the living room for cocktails.
They have a bartender on staff and Gus beelines over there, most likely to go over his pretend allergy to olives, and Jesse and Spence both flank each side of me.
“You ready for all of this?” Spence asks.
“More ready than I’ve ever been in my life.”
“Happy for you, Caden,” Jesse says, and he pulls me into a hug.
Our families may be completely different, but Cosette and I were made for each other.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Wedding Day
Cosette
When I was a little girl I used to play this game with my friend next door, and we’d both take turns being the wedding planner and the bride. I always enjoyed being the bride. I loved fairy tales and happily ever afters as a kid. Somewhere along the way, I lost sight that life could really be that magical, but here I am living my very own fairy tale.
I’ve found my real life prince, and I’ve never been happier. I’ve never felt more complete, more loved, more cherished.
I glance in the mirror at the satin strapless princess-style dress that I’m wearing, and I swoosh the full tulle skirt from side to side. I may have wanted to pass on the over-the-top wedding, but I certainly didn’t skimp on the gown. It’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of. The satin bodice works as a corset and hugs me from my chest to my waist. It also makes it appear that I have a little more going on upstairs than I really do, which is a bonus.
I spin in a circle and the tulle skirt sparkles where the light hits it. My hair is slicked back in an elegant chignon, and my teardrop earrings add just the sparkle that I want. Aunt Chavon brought them for me, as they were my great grandmother’s, and she and Uncle Perry thought this was the perfect day to give them to me. My mother thought they were old and dated, and pushed her Harry Winston earrings on me, and as gorgeous as they are, I like the idea of adding a little history to my look.
There is a knock on the door and I hurry over to let Mya, Emma, and Penelope in.
“Oh wow, Cosi,” Mya says, covering her mouth with her hands as her eyes are wet with emotion.
“Girl, there are no words. You look like a real live princess,” Emma says as she pours us each a glass of champagne and hands the flutes to each of us.
“You could be on the cover of a bridal magazine. In fact, page six is going to be very mad they missed this event,” Penelope teases, as they’ve all heard from my mother about my sister’s grand wedding and all the attention that it garnered.
Emma groans. “I don’t know how anyone interviewed your sister. No offense, Cosi, but she’s a real piece of work. She just told Gus that he was invading her personal space and he was sitting one row away from her.”
My head falls back in laughter. “Why is she saying anything to poor Gus?”
“Because apparently she has a cocktail with an olive in the glass and he asked her to please eat it quickly because it was giving him hives,” Penelope cracks up. “My brother is such a drama queen sometimes.”
“Yeah, Juliette whipped around and shot daggers at him. I thought Gus was going to rip the glass from her hands. She told him to mind his business and stop invading her personal boundaries.” Mya shakes her head and shrugs.
“I’d like to knock that girl into a boundary of her own,” Emma huffs.
“That’s her sister,” Mya whisper-hisses at
her best friend.
“I’m quite aware how tough Juliette can be. I’m just shocked that they passed on going to the wine tasting to be here tonight. It’s very out of character.” I laugh and apply one final coat of light pink lipstick and rub my lips together before reaching for my veil.
The girls help me attach the veil to the back of my head, and there’s a knock on the door.
My father stands there looking very regal in his black tuxedo. “Are you ready, darling?”
“Looking good, Mr. D,” Emma says before she kisses me on the cheek and Mya and Penelope follow suit.
The three girls wish me luck and make their way out to the chairs. We have the gorgeous ceremony set up out on the water with enough twinkle lights to brighten a small country.
“You look gorgeous, Cosi,” my father says, and he swipes at the single tear rolling down his cheek. He’s not normally an emotional man, but he is full of surprises lately. After all that has happened over the past few months, I feel closer to him than ever.
“Thank you. You look very handsome yourself.” I kiss his cheek.
“Are you ready?”
“I’m so ready. Let’s do this,” I say, linking my arm through his.
There are no wedding planners for this event, it was all put together by me and Caden in an unbelievably short period of time, and I’m thrilled to see how gorgeous it looks.
When we open the door and walk out through the lobby of the resort, we make our way outside. There is a light breeze and the sun is just starting to descend. The sky looks like someone painted it just for us. Pinks and oranges and yellows blend together like watercolors on a canvas.
My breath catches in my throat when my father stops to allow me to take it all in. We have a tented area to the right, with two long tables on each side.
The ceremony is taking place right on the water. Twenty or so white chairs flank the grassy area with an aisle running down the center. Blush, rose, and cream flowers flank each row with delicate blooms of roses, hydrangeas, and peonies. Sprigs of greens are mixed in the colorful bouquets to give them a natural feel as well. My bouquet is a grander version and I close my eyes and breathe it in before the music starts to play.