Seasons of Sorrow by C. C. Wood Page A

of cajoling on Derek’s part, Charlotte finally agreed to a large ceremony at one of the biggest churches in Dallas. She hated the idea of two hundred people she didn’t know sitting in pews to watch her walk down the aisle. The idea of all those eyes on her gave her the willies. The guest list actually held two hundred and fifty guests, but Charlotte did know about fifty of them as they were her friends and family. The other two hundred guests were Leah Fallon’s friends, relatives, and business associates.
    Leah was determined that her son’s wedding would be the wedding of the decade. Everything she did was extravagant. This ceremony would be no different. Huge flower arrangements, special lighting, and even topiaries were brought into the church where Charlotte and Derek would be married.
    At the Fallon home, where the reception was staged, tents were to be set up with standing heaters set up to keep everyone warm on the crisp October night. Charlotte had given up trying to do anything or choose anything for herself when it came to her wedding. Leah Fallon was a bulldozer in a stylish suit.
    Charlotte hated her wedding dress. It was long, fitted, and strapless. It was also beautiful. But it just wasn’t her . Just like the dress she wore to her engagement party, the cut and color were fabulous and extremely flattering to her figure, but they were too sophisticated and revealing. Charlotte always dreamed of a ‘princess’ wedding dress, with a big tulle skirt and a fitted bodice covered in seed pearls and lace.
    Leah immediately dismissed such a dress as too immature and tacky for the ‘society wedding of the century’. Charlotte tried to argue and actually managed to put her foot down, but Derek talked her out of it. He said such a dress wasn’t flattering to her figure or her style and, though Charlotte knew better, she gave in. She wanted Derek to be happy on their wedding day.
    It never occurred to her that he should also want her to be happy on their wedding day too.
    Now the day had arrived and she was zipped into the heavy white satin dress that hugged her curvy figure and made her fair skin glow. Her dark brown hair was curled and pulled on top of her head. Her veil would be attached later. A tiara, borrowed from one of the finest jewelers in Dallas, would be pinned on top of her head, nestled in front of the curls.
    There was one suggestion Leah made that Charlotte had no argument with and that was hiring a make-up artist to do her face before the wedding. Charlotte was useless when it came to make-up. She could manage a simple, put-together look, but that was all. Anything more dramatic was beyond her meager abilities. Any time she needed more than basic make-up, Brandy had done it for her.
    The make-up artist was doing the entire wedding party, which Charlotte arranged as a sort of present for her bridesmaids, not that she was close with half of them. Leah insisted several of Derek’s cousins be bridesmaids because Charlotte only had a Brandy, Greg, and a couple of other girlfriends that she felt were close enough to be in her wedding party. Derek, however, had a million friends and had quite a few groomsmen.
    Now it was a few minutes before they were supposed to get in the limo and take the ride to the church. Charlotte asked the bridal party to give her a few minutes alone with Brandy, who was her maid of honor. They were in her bedroom, sipping champagne, so Charlotte could relax. The entire day had already consisted of chaos and a crowded apartment and it would only be more chaotic and crowded once they got to the church for the wedding.
    There was a knock on the bedroom door.
    “Come in,” Brandy called out.
    Charlotte was standing by the window, looking out onto the small park that ran parallel to their apartment complex. She turned to see Greg stick his head in. She smiled at him.
    “Hey,” she said. “What are you doing here?”
    Brandy poured him a glass of champagne without being asked