Chapter 3 #2
Bitterness tests the back of my throat as I remember how I spent six months engaged to this man, and not once did she ever sit me down to talk to me about the actual wedding. Hell, she’s fast-tracking this, like the engagement to Katrina might expire before the new year. It makes me angry.
But Jamie’s right, and so is my business instinct. We need the money, and with the amount of additional fees we can charge for this event, we’ll have enough to brave the winter, without worrying about most of our monthly expenses.
“I hope you’re not bitter about this.” Terrence continues to run his mouth.
Sheila sighs deeply. She doesn’t seem happy about what he just said, but she stands by her son with a stern, bold smile, looking at me as if she expects me to react. In the meantime, Jamie’s shoe keeps nudging mine to the point where I might have a bruised ankle.
I’m just about to answer, when the tearoom door opens again. To my astonishment, the Morgan brothers come in.
“When Ian said you were here, I thought he was mistaken.” Cole laughs as he and his brothers join us. “You look fantastic, Willow.”
I stand up, beaming like the sun, as I greet all three. They lean in, one at a time, dropping a soft kiss on my cheek as we say hello, then shift their focus to Sheila, Terrence, and Katrina—who look like they just swallowed a keg’s worth of lemon juice.
“So, you’re really doing this, eh?” Cole asks Sheila, albeit rhetorically, by the sound of his voice. “You get an A for audacity.”
“Willow’s agency has great credentials,” Sheila replies with a careless shrug.
“What are you three doing here?” Terrence grumbles at his stepbrothers.
Asher gives him a wry smile. “We’ve been living here since before you were born, squirt. Mind the tone.”
“Gentlemen,” Sheila tries to stifle the brewing conflict.
“Are they treating you well?” Toby asks Jamie and me.
“Well enough, thank you,” I say, while Jamie stands up and puts his iPad away.
“We’ll draw up the contracts and have them sent to your office by the end of the day,” I tell Sheila, “with a complete breakdown of the prices and a specific mention about the estimates. There’s no telling what the suppliers will charge for such last-minute requests, particularly so close to the winter holidays. ”
“I’m fine with that, as long as my son has the wedding of his dreams in Thornwood,” Sheila says.
Cole gives her a hard frown. “What did Dad say about Thornwood?”
“He’s been under the weather. I didn’t bother him with the details,” she replies, her shoulders squared as she looks up at him.
There’s tension between them, the kind of tension that spans years and has been kept in check for far too long. They clearly can’t stand each other, but they’re also forced to share the same space. I wonder what’s going on under the surface.
“You should. He married our mother at Thornwood. That place is sacred to him. Last I remember, he was hoping for a spring wedding for Terrence and Katrina, so he’d be in better health and able to have it here,” Cole insists.
“I will not have this discussion here right now,” Sheila replies. “Take it up with James when he comes back from the clinic.”
The last thing I need right now is a crash course in Morgan family drama. I put on my bravest smile and decide to put my business above all else.
“If that is all, Jamie and I need to get going,” I cut in. “There are plenty of preparations to make if we’re to deliver Katrina and Terrence’s perfect winter wedding.”
“Oh, I love the spirit,” Sheila quips.
Terrence and Katrina seem pretty content, as well, cuddling and smiling with an almost perverted satisfaction as they look at me. I turn to Cole and gently squeeze his wrist, the touch of his skin quick to alter my senses, then give Asher and Toby a playful wink.
“And I will see the three of you on Friday for our date,” I add.
With lightning speed, the humor fades from Sheila’s and Terrence’s eyes. Katrina’s just surprised, but nowhere near as emotionally invested in my downfall—so she doesn’t have a dog in this fight.
“Date?” Terrence manages.
“I’ll be in touch with the contract shortly,” I say, shutting down the conversation.
“We’ll walk you out,” Asher says. “And yes, Friday is all set and ready to go.”
“Wonderful!”
I walk out with my head held high, fully aware that Sheila would sell her soul to the devil himself for a chance to gouge my eyes out. But she can’t do anything about this. And Terrence looks downright pitiful, standing next to his belle while I am accompanied by his three stepbrothers.
His ego must be screaming in pain.
By the time we reach the top of the front steps again, Jamie is one breath away from struggling to hold in his laughter. I hook my hand through his as we make our way down the stairs, but not before I give the Morgan brothers one more thankful smile.
“See you,” I tell them.
“Oh, God, that was just too much on so many levels,” Jamie gasps as we get in the car. I turn the heat on first, then let the engine rev till it’s purring softly. “It was savage, Will.”
“But we got what we wanted, didn’t we?”
“Plus, a side dish of sweet revenge. My lord, Terrence was transfixed. He did not see any of it coming. And Sheila. I have to give that cold-hearted shrew credit. She held it together. We’ll need to be careful, though. You need to be careful,” he says, gradually assuming a more serious tone.
I offer a sigh as I pull out of the parking space and head for the estate’s main gates. “Yes, I know. She’ll keep poking and prodding every chance she gets.”
“And we’ll keep taking her money,” Jamie says. “That’s not the problem. You do need to be careful about how she might interfere with your dating life.”
“Sheila has no control over the Morgan brothers. They made that much obvious just now.” I giggle softly. “Man, she almost choked on that bitter pill, didn’t she?”
“She might’ve had a little trouble swallowing.”
However, Jamie does raise a solid concern. Sheila is playing a game here—and chances are, it’s the kind of game that will burn me, if I’m not careful. We need to make this wedding happen at any cost, and we need to make it happen at the standard we always promise to deliver.
High end. Perfect. Sublime.
Without any compromise. Without complaints. Without any reason for Sheila to turn around and claim we botched Terrence and Katrina’s wedding in any way, shape, or form. Otherwise, she’ll use my status as Terrence’s ex-fiancé to trash me and our agency. She will bury us, if I give her the chance.
I won’t.