“W eddings are supposed to be fun, Fate. Breathe.” Melissa Lincoln smiled her bright, chemically whitened smile in the mirror behind her. Her long, copper-colored hair and the scent of expensive but slightly cloying perfume fell over Fate’s shoulder. “And for goodness sake, smile.”
Fate made a concentrated effort to force her mouth upward.
“Trevor hates lace. Says it reminds him of his grandma’s curtains,” she informed her best friend and maid of honor. “But every dress I like has lace overlay.” Smoothing her hand over the lace she wore, her frown returned.
Standing on the pedestal in front of a three-way mirror was the last place she wanted to be. Her mom was at home, alone, in the tiny one-bedroom apartment they now shared, probably drowning her sorrows over boyfriend number four bailing on her. Fate’s shoulders were weighed down by guilt at not being there for her mom. Chantal, the very helpful, young bridal consultant and Melissa had both told her to stand up straight several times while modeling dresses.
She’d tried talking to Melissa about it in a roundabout way, but her friend’s answer had been that Fate’s mom was the one who should be there for her, not the other way around. Melissa’s mom was a Martha Stewart in the making, so Fate didn’t bother trying to explain how the dynamic of her relationship was vastly different.
“What about this one?” Melissa held up a satin, strapless gown that was quite pretty. Except it was ivory and Trevor had specifically said diamond white. He’d made several comments about her needing to wear a white dress since she was holding out on him. If he were going to marry a virgin, he’d said, then his bride would wear the brightest white possible.
“It’s pretty,” Fate offered. “But Trevor wants diamond white, not cream or ivory.”
Melissa’s smile tightened. “Well we can’t disappoint Trevor now can we.”
“It’s his wedding day too,” Fate reminded her. Her relationship with Trevor Harris hadn’t always been easy. They’d met freshmen year at the University of Texas and been on again and off again over the past four years. But he was all she had, aside from a mother with a dangerously addictive personality. “Plus, I just don’t see what the big deal is. It’s only going to be his giant family and my mom. It’ll be over before you know it. Seems crazy to spend this much time and effort on something that will be over in a blink. But then I feel bad for not being more invested because he’s pretty excited and so is his family. So I keep reminding myself that it’s his wedding too.”
Trevor’s mom was treating the event like a national holiday. His family owned a large pharmaceutical company, Harris Pharmaceutical. He was being put in charge of overseeing a new research and development lab in New York while completing business school at NYU. After their wedding at his family’s house in the Hamptons, she and Trevor would move into an enormous penthouse apartment in Manhattan and Fate would begin her job as a marketing assistant at a company she’d found during her online job search. Maxwell Medical was a large, multinational corporation that Fate was hoping to learn more about.
While Harris Pharmaceutical still had several marketing positions available, Trevor had made a rule about them not working together. He said that couples that worked together got sick of each other and brought their marital problems to the office and vice versa. Fate agreed that she didn’t want to be one of those couples.
“So it is,” Melissa said through clenched teeth. “Here. Try this one.”
Fate used both hands to lift the skirt on the dress she was currently wearing and stepped down off the pedestal to get a better look at the dress her friend held.
“I like that one.” It was gleaming white, form-fitting with a plunging neckline. “Hold it up and I’ll snap a picture with my phone to send to Trevor.”
Melissa gaped at her in
Fate made a concentrated effort to force her mouth upward.
“Trevor hates lace. Says it reminds him of his grandma’s curtains,” she informed her best friend and maid of honor. “But every dress I like has lace overlay.” Smoothing her hand over the lace she wore, her frown returned.
Standing on the pedestal in front of a three-way mirror was the last place she wanted to be. Her mom was at home, alone, in the tiny one-bedroom apartment they now shared, probably drowning her sorrows over boyfriend number four bailing on her. Fate’s shoulders were weighed down by guilt at not being there for her mom. Chantal, the very helpful, young bridal consultant and Melissa had both told her to stand up straight several times while modeling dresses.
She’d tried talking to Melissa about it in a roundabout way, but her friend’s answer had been that Fate’s mom was the one who should be there for her, not the other way around. Melissa’s mom was a Martha Stewart in the making, so Fate didn’t bother trying to explain how the dynamic of her relationship was vastly different.
“What about this one?” Melissa held up a satin, strapless gown that was quite pretty. Except it was ivory and Trevor had specifically said diamond white. He’d made several comments about her needing to wear a white dress since she was holding out on him. If he were going to marry a virgin, he’d said, then his bride would wear the brightest white possible.
“It’s pretty,” Fate offered. “But Trevor wants diamond white, not cream or ivory.”
Melissa’s smile tightened. “Well we can’t disappoint Trevor now can we.”
“It’s his wedding day too,” Fate reminded her. Her relationship with Trevor Harris hadn’t always been easy. They’d met freshmen year at the University of Texas and been on again and off again over the past four years. But he was all she had, aside from a mother with a dangerously addictive personality. “Plus, I just don’t see what the big deal is. It’s only going to be his giant family and my mom. It’ll be over before you know it. Seems crazy to spend this much time and effort on something that will be over in a blink. But then I feel bad for not being more invested because he’s pretty excited and so is his family. So I keep reminding myself that it’s his wedding too.”
Trevor’s mom was treating the event like a national holiday. His family owned a large pharmaceutical company, Harris Pharmaceutical. He was being put in charge of overseeing a new research and development lab in New York while completing business school at NYU. After their wedding at his family’s house in the Hamptons, she and Trevor would move into an enormous penthouse apartment in Manhattan and Fate would begin her job as a marketing assistant at a company she’d found during her online job search. Maxwell Medical was a large, multinational corporation that Fate was hoping to learn more about.
While Harris Pharmaceutical still had several marketing positions available, Trevor had made a rule about them not working together. He said that couples that worked together got sick of each other and brought their marital problems to the office and vice versa. Fate agreed that she didn’t want to be one of those couples.
“So it is,” Melissa said through clenched teeth. “Here. Try this one.”
Fate used both hands to lift the skirt on the dress she was currently wearing and stepped down off the pedestal to get a better look at the dress her friend held.
“I like that one.” It was gleaming white, form-fitting with a plunging neckline. “Hold it up and I’ll snap a picture with my phone to send to Trevor.”
Melissa gaped at her in
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