by E. L. Todd
I sighed. “I’m happy he’s leaving because it’s what he’s meant to be. But of course I hate it at the same time.”
“I couldn’t let Slade leave for three months…I wouldn’t be able to handle it.”
“Well, he didn’t go to medical school for me. I have to let him do this. I would be a terrible person if I said otherwise.”
“So, you’re only saying yes for him?”
I shrugged. “Yes and no. I do want him to go. It’s his dream. I know it’ll be hard while he’s gone. But I know everything will be okay when he comes back.”
She shook her head slightly. “Three months is a long time.”
“It is,” I agreed. “But we’ll make it through.”
“Too bad you can’t visit him.”
“Yeah…” It wouldn’t be so bad if I could see him at least once a month. But Cayson said it was too dangerous.
“Slade and I will keep you company until he comes back. We’ll do a lot of cool things.” She gave me a smile but it was forced.
“Thanks.” It was going to be a long and painful three months without Cayson even though my family would always be around to prevent the loneliness from eating me alive.
“So…you’re getting married in four weeks. Can you believe it?” Her eyes twinkled in excitement.
“I know. It’s gone by really fast.”
“So, we need to talk about the bachelorette party…”
“Oh-no. I detect some penis-talk.”
“You’ve got that right,” she said with an attitude.
“No Chippendales,” I said immediately.
“No,” she said. “That’s totally cliché.”
I breathed a sigh of relief.
“We’re going to Hunk-O-Mania in Atlantic City. I got everything planned.”
My eyes almost fell out of my head. “What? Trinity, I’m not going to a strip club.”
“Come on, it’s a right of passage.”
“We didn’t see strippers for yours,” I argued.
“Because Slade was there. This time, there won’t be any guys around. What they don’t know won’t hurt them.”
“I can’t lie to Cayson.”
She rolled her eyes. “He needs to get over it. Like he’s not going to a strip club.”
“Do you not know Cayson…?”
“Well, he should go. It’s the only chance he’s ever going to get.”
“Cayson isn’t like that and we both know it,” I said. “Besides, Clementine is a mom now, Silke is in a committed relationship to Arsen, you’re married, and I’m going to get married soon…I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“You’re acting like we’re going to a brothel.”
“Does Slade know you’re planning this?”
“Well…no.” A guilty look came over her face.
“He’s not going to like it.”
“Whatever,” she said. “He can get over it.”
“How would you feel if Slade went to a strip club?”
She shrugged. “I don’t love the idea but as long as he kept his hands to himself I wouldn’t get mad. I’m not that insecure about our commitment to each other.”
“Now you aren’t…”
She pointed her finger at me. “We’re going to Atlantic City. The guys probably assume we aren’t going to a strip club and we just won’t tell them otherwise unless they directly ask us.”
I started to argue. “But—”
“This is going to happen,” she snapped. “I’m your maid of honor and you’ll do as I say.”
“Geez, you’re bossy.”
“I’m only bossy when you start acting like a pussy.”
I rolled my eyes. “Maybe I should have asked Slade to throw my bachelorette party…”
“So he can shit in a car again and get thrown in jail?” she jabbed.
I laughed at the memory. “That’s your husband…”
She chuckled. “God, I’ll never forget that. And I’ll make sure he never forgets it.”
“Why don’t we go to the beach instead? Or a spa?”
“Nope,” she said immediately. “You’ve been a good girl your whole life. We’re going to do something crazy for once.”
“You and I both know I don’t have a crazy bone in my body.”
She gave me a mischievous look. “We’ll see…”
***
When I arrived at my parents’ house the backyard looked completely different. Tables laden with deep purple tablecloths covered the terrace, and vases of beautiful flowers that looked so nice they had to be fake were on the surface. Family and friends were already there, mingling while they snacked on cucumber sandwiches and tea.
“Wow,” I said to myself.
Mom spotted me then came to my side. “There’s the bride.” She gave me a big hug and squeezed me hard. “You look so beautiful. I love your dress.”
“Thanks,” I said. “Trinity made it for me.”
“That girl is good.” She gave me a smile then led me to the front table. “Here’s your seat of honor.”
Trinity came from the left carrying a sparkling tiara. “You’re the queen for the day.” She set it on my head gracefully then stepped back and admired her work. “Perfect.”
I definitely wasn’t the type to wear a tiara but I let Trinity have her way.
Silke gave me a hug then pulled away. When she smiled at me, it seemed faint, like it was physically too painful for her to do it all the way. “Happy bridal shower.” She tried to sound perky but it was half-assed.
I wanted to ask her what was wrong but I thought now wasn’t the best time.
Clementine wore a loose dress and she still carried her baby fat. But she looked beautiful. Not too many women could pull that off. “You look so beautiful, Skye.”
“Thanks,” I said. “But you should sit down. You shouldn’t be on your feet.”
“I’ve already tried telling her,” Trinity said as she rolled her eyes. “You know how stubborn she is.”
“Fortunately, Cayson isn’t like that,” I said.
“Eat,” Trinity said. “Then we’ll start the games.”
Mom brought me a plate of cucumber sandwiches and potato salad.
“Thank you,” I said. “It looks good.”
Trinity sat beside me but didn’t touch her food. “It looks nice, doesn’t it?”
“It’s gorgeous,” I said.
“Your mom did most of it. She has that touch,” Trinity said.
“My mom is good at everything,” I said as I ate. I turned to the right and saw several tables pushed together, and on top were mounds of gifts. “Holy shit.”
Everyone at the table stared at me with wide eyes.
“Sorry.” I lowered my voice. “Are all those gifts for me?”
“Have you never been to a bridal shower before…?” Clementine asked like a smartass.
“But that’s a lot of stuff,” I whispered.
“Well, there’s two hundred people here,” Trinity said. “And none of them are cheap.”
I was a little embarrassed. “That’s just excessive.”
“Hey,” Trinity said. “You’re about to move into an enormous house. You need shit to put in there.”
“Can I have your pent house?” Silke asked. “Since you aren’t going to use it?” There was a teasing note to her voice so I knew she was joking.
“I’m giving it back to my dad,” I said.
“You are?” Trinity asked. “Why the hell are you doing that?”
I tried not to roll my eyes. “Because he paid for half of my house.”
Clementine shook her head slightly. “Why am I not surprised?”
“Why did he do that?” Trinity asked.
“It’s a long story,” I said. “Basically, the people got a better offer and my dad matched it so we could get the house.”
“Our dads are crazy,” Trinity blurted. She picked at her food but didn’t eat much of it.
“Who made this?” I asked. “It’s really good.”
“Your mom,” she answered.
“If my mom decorated and cooked, what did you do?” I asked.
“Set up,” she said defensively. “Sean and Dad helped.”
After we finished eating, Trinity stood up and passed papers around. “Everyone answer the questions. The person who gets most of them right wins a very special prize.”
“What’s the prize?” Clementine asked.
“You’re disqualified so it doesn’t matter,” Trinity said quickly.
“Why am I disqualified?” Clementine asked in offense.
“Because you know Skye super well,” Trinity argued. “Now get to work.”
Clementine sighed then filled out the questions.
Twenty minutes later, Trinity went over the answers. “Okay. Where did Cayson and Skye meet?”
I didn’t even know that.
“In the hospital the day Cayson was born,” Trinity answered. “And now the next question. Where did Cayson and Skye fall in love?” She continued to walk around while she answered the questions. “At Harvard. Skye finally pulled her head out of you-know-where and realized Cayson was the perfect guy.”
I shot her a glare.
She ignored me. “And the next one…”
Trinity went through fifty questions, and my Aunt Janice was the one who got them all right. She won a big gift card to Starbucks.
Trinity went through a few other games. I could tell they were too long because people started to get anxious. Clementine sighed and kept looking at her watch.
“Miss Ward Jr.?” I asked.
She gave me a guilty look. “I make it that obvious?”
“I don’t blame you,” I said immediately. “If I had a baby at home that’s where I’d want to be too.”
“Thanks,” she said. “And bridal showers are always boring as hell…no offense.”
“None taken,” I said with a laugh.
“I can’t wait for Atlantic City,” she said. “But I won’t be able to drink much because of my breast milk.”
Silke stared off in the distance like she had no energy or life inside her.
“Silke?” I asked gently.
She snapped out of her thoughts and turned to me. “Sorry?”
“Are you okay?” I asked. “It seems like something is off.”
She brushed it off. “I’m just tired. Don’t worry about it.”
Clementine and I exchanged a look like we knew she was lying.
“Talk to us,” I said.
“I’m really fine.” She avoided eye contact and watched Trinity.
I realized she was hiding the truth because she didn’t want to ruin my shower. “Silke, come on. I care more about you than this party.”
She released a sigh. “Arsen and I are having problems…”
“Oh…” Clementine’s eyes fell in sadness.
She told us the story with the teacher and Abby’s resistance to make Silke a stepmother.
“Wow…that’s a lot of stuff,” Clementine said.
“So, you’re broken up?” I asked sadly.
“Kind of,” she said. “But not really at the same time.”
“That doesn’t sound confusing…” Clementine said.
“You guys will work it out,” I said. “Arsen loves you. He proved that a million times over.”
She nodded slightly. “He did.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “Everything will be okay.”
“Thanks,” she said. “Sorry for talking about my problems on your day.”
“It’s not my day,” I said quickly. “It’s just the shower. On my special day, I’ll be too busy with Cayson to notice anyone else.”
Clementine cringed slightly. “You guys are cute and all but he’s still my brother.”
Trinity finished the games and then started handing me the gifts.
“Oh my god,” I whispered under my breath.
“Open these fast,” Trinity said. “Otherwise we’ll be here all day.”
I ripped through the papers and bags and read the cards out loud. Trinity worked like a machine, handing me gifts and then taking them away. Then she wrote down who brought what for the thank you cards. She was a much better maid of honor than I ever was.
An hour and a half later, I opened the last gift. “Thank you so much, everybody. Cayson and I really appreciate it.”
“How are you going to get all that stuff home?” Silke asked.
“Not sure about that,” I said quietly.
Everyone took their turn saying goodbye to me and complimented the ring Cayson bought for me. Everyone showed their excitement for the wedding and upcoming grandchildren. It took another hour for me to mingle with everyone. By the end of the shower, I was tired.
“Wow, that was a long day,” I said.
Trinity looked at all the cucumber sandwiches. “I’ll take those home to Slade. He’ll eat them all.”
“Fatass,” Silke mumbled.
“He eats a lot because he works out all the time,” Trinity said. “And my man is all muscle.”
“And bone,” Silke jabbed.
“Stop picking on your brother when he isn’t here,” Trinity said. “Not fair.”
“Whatever,” Silke said.
The backdoor opened and the guys came outside. Ward, Arsen, Slade, Conrad, and Cayson came out. My dad and Mike were behind them.
“Have a good time?” Cayson asked when he came to me. He looked me up and down, clearly liking the way I looked in my white dress. His eyes lingered on my legs longer than usual.
“It was beautiful. Mom and Trinity did a good job.”
Cayson discreetly glanced over his shoulder and looked at my dad. Then he turned back to me. There was resistance in his eyes, like he wanted to kiss me and hold me.
“He doesn’t care, Cayson.”
“I care.” He leaned in and gave me a quick peck then pulled away. “So, get anything good?”
I nodded toward the table where all the gifts sat.
He whistled. “Damn, I don’t think that’s all going to fit in my truck.”
“Me neither.”
The guys started pulling the tablecloths off the tables and breaking down the chairs.
“They look like a bunch of worker bees,” I said.
Slade stacked a few chairs then came behind Trinity. He smacked her ass then kissed the back of her neck. “I heard it was a snooze fest.”
She turned around and gave him a playful glare. “No, it was amazing.”
“I didn’t see any hot wings…”
“I don’t need hot wings to make it a party,” she argued. “You’re just—”
He tripped her feet and forced her into a dip. Then he kissed her hard on the mouth, not caring that our family and friends were around.
Mike rolled his eyes and walked away.
“If Slade can kiss her like that you can kiss me,” I said to Cayson.
“It can wait until we get home.” He leaned toward me and lowered his voice. “Besides, I want to rip that dress off of you until it’s a pile of shreds.” He gave me a meaningful look before he walked away and started helping the others.
Now I just wanted to get home.
Arsen stacked the chairs then carried them to the back patio. He didn’t look at Silke or acknowledge her.
Silke watched him but kept her distance.
I hoped they would work out their differences. They were too cute to go their separate ways.
Abby came in the background while holding Ryan’s hand. “There she is!”
Everyone turned at the sound of her voice.
“Silke!” Abby ran to her quickly, her arms outstretched.
Silke watched her with watery eyes.
When Abby reached her waist she hugged her. “Where have you been? I haven’t seen you in forever.”
“I’ve just been busy.” Silke returned the embrace and looked down at her with affection in her eyes. “But that doesn’t mean I haven’t been thinking about you all t
he time.”
“I got my grades up,” she said. “Daddy is really proud of me.”
“He should be.” She held Abby tightly. “And I am too.”
***
I knocked on Conrad’s door then peeked my head inside. “You got a minute?”
He was staring at his computer. He finished typing his sentence before he gave me his attention. “What’s up, cousin?”
I came inside then sat in the chair facing his desk. “Thanks for helping out at the shower.”
“No problem,” he said. “Little women like you need the help of strong men like me.”
“Don’t flatter yourself,” I said with a laugh.
He leaned back in his chair and rested his hands behind his head. “So, what’s up?”
“I wanted to ask you about Lexie.”
He stiffened like he was caught off guard. “What about her?”
“Well, I’m having my bachelorette party next weekend and then the wedding is only a few weeks away…”
He stared at me like he had no idea where I was going with this.
“It seems like you’re really serious about her,” I said. “If that’s the case, I’d like to ask her to be a bridesmaid. I want her to be involved with our family if she’s going to be a member of it someday. You’re my partner for this company. If you’re going to marry her, I want her to be in the pictures.”
Conrad leaned forward and rested his hands on the desk. “Skye, it’s your wedding. Ask whoever you want.”
“Don’t dance around the question, Conrad. I know you better than that.”
He rubbed the back of his head anxiously.
“It’s a simple question,” she said. “Is Lexie the one?” I didn’t think I needed to ask. It was pretty obvious how he felt about her.
“I love her.”
“So, yes?”
“I don’t know about marriage right now.” He averted his gaze when he said it.
“I didn’t ask if you were going to marry her tomorrow,” I said. “Just in general…is she the one?”
He fidgeted like he was uncomfortable. “You’re asking a lot of personal questions…”
“I’m not prying,” I snapped. “Do you want her in the wedding or not? It’s up to you.”
“It’s your wedding. Do what you want.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re being really annoying right now. She’s a serious girlfriend, right?”
“Yes.”
“And you love her?”