Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Lily was at my door bright and early to take me dress shopping. I tossed my hair into a messy bun as I opened the door.
“Ready to go?”
“Kinda.” I gestured to my sweatshirt and leggings. “Should I dress up more than this?”
“You’ll be getting in and out of clothes all day,” she said, shaking her head. “Of course not.”
“Good. I’m trying to make it a few more days before I wash my hair again. I’m way too tired to try and style it.”
“It looks good in the bun,” she said. “Better than mine. And look on the bright side, if we go now, we can get coffee.”
“You said the magic word.” I grabbed my purse and got into her car.
“Want to go to our normal place?” she asked.
“Yes. I need their red eye right about now.”
“So, how is wedding planning going?” she asked as we pulled out of the driveway.
“I have a ring. It’s ... gorgeous.”
“I need a picture.”
I grabbed my phone and took it out. She gasped. “That’s so unfair. My first ring was so ugly.”
“It’s woodland themed. He picked it out. I didn’t even know I would like it.”
“Now that you mention it, I could see you with that style. That, and vintage.”
“You know me so well,” I said. “But you have a reason to. I have no idea how he guessed that one.”
“It could have been a lucky guess,” she replied. “It doesn’t have to mean anything.”
“It probably doesn’t,” I admitted quietly, trying to curb my disappointment. She raised an eyebrow at me, but thankfully, we were pulling into the coffee shop.
“Let me get my order of caffeine before you judge me,” I said.
“I’m not judging,” she replied. “I just have questions.”
The smell of coffee hit me as we walked in, and I wasted no time getting in line.
“I know what you’re thinking. I shouldn’t be putting too much stock in him knowing my style.”
“I’d think the same thing, but I also think your lines are getting crossed, which I know you don’t want.”
“I don’t,” I replied. “He’s just being so nice . This is what he was like when I talked to him in high school. He really seemed into me, and then Calvin came into the picture, and I realized what he was really after.”
“And right now, Calvin isn’t around.”
“Exactly. But you should see him when I mention my brother. His whole demeanor changes.”
“Remember that,” she said. “Especially once you’re walking down the aisle.”
“Who’s walking down the aisle?”
I jumped, realizing Lily and I were at the front of the line.
Riley was the manager and part owner of the shop. Despite her status, she often worked as a barista and helped out around the store. I liked her a lot, and I knew Lily did too. I’d talked to her ever since the shop opened, but as was my usual style, I kept her at arm’s length and knew more about her life than she did mine.
I stared, wondering if I should tell her about my impending fake nuptials. She looked so curious with her slight smile and raised eyebrow, and I knew I couldn’t lie to her.
“I am,” I said. “But it’s for money, not for love.”
Lily turned to me. “Wow, immediately giving out the truth.”
“I can’t lie to the woman who makes the best coffee in Nashville,” I hissed.
“Married for money, huh? Is this like the whole thing with Lily?”
“No,” both of us said at the same time.
“My family isn’t forcing me to do this or anything,” I rushed to clarify. “I mean, one person is kinda the reason why, but I have a choice here.”
“Which is more than I had,” Lily added.
“And that’s below the bare minimum,” Riley told Lily. “So why marry him for money?”
“My brother fired me and is trying to ruin the neighborhood I live in, so I’m getting married to his enemy to prove a point.”
“That’s shocking but also really in character.”
“I feel the same way,” Lily said. “We’re going wedding dress shopping today.”
“ Fake wedding dress shopping,” I corrected.
“The vows might not be real, but the wedding itself absolutely is.”
I bit my lip. I didn’t need real anywhere close to this wedding. Even only in words.
“That sounds so fun. I wish I could join you two. Will you take pictures and show them to me?”
“Of course,” I replied.
“When’s the fake wedding?”
“I’m thinking in two weeks. We haven’t set a date or anything, but his family is coming, plus his coworkers. Meanwhile, I’m probably gonna have an empty side of the aisle.”
“I could come,” she said. “And my family. If you’re okay with my husband and two kids, that is.”
“You’d come to my fake wedding? Er, real wedding with fake vows?”
“ I’m coming to your real wedding with fake vows,” Lily said. “It’s gonna be fun, even if you’re doing it for money.”
“Which no one else knows about, by the way.”
“I’ll keep it a secret,” Riley said. “I won’t even tell my kids about it. They’re the ones that would spill the beans.”
“Then you’re welcome to join.”
“Where is it at?”
“Ah, I have no clue. We haven’t talked about it yet.”
“I had mine at Opryland,” Riley said.
“The hotel?”
“Yeah.” She pulled out her phone and showed me pictures of a gorgeous setup. “Oliver insisted we do exactly what I wanted.”
“I bet Levi would like this.”
“But what about what you like?” Riley asked.
“I always wanted my wedding to be at my house,” I said. “It was my favorite place growing up.”
“That would be nice,” Lily replied. “You have a big backyard, and the guest list isn’t huge.”
“You should do it there, then,” Riley urged.
I shook my head. “Levi said we were going big or going home. I doubt he would wanna do that since it’s not glamorous.”
“It’s your wedding too.” Riley pointed at me.
“And he’s footing the bill, so he gets a say.”
“At least offer it,” Riley said. “Maybe he’ll surprise you.”
“I’ll try.”
“Report back what he says,” Lily added. “Sebastian says he’s a good guy, but the jury is still out for me.”
“I want to hear it too,” Riley said. “I never get to know anything about your life.”
“It’s because I read and watch other people. Their lives are more fun.”
Riley hummed. “I can understand that logic. It’s still wrong, though.”
I opened my mouth to answer but Lily pointed out that there were people behind us. We quickly placed our order and paid so we could get out of their way, promising to tell Riley more later.
After we had coffee in hand, Lily drove me to the same place where she got her second wedding dress. It was a local business in a nearby town, and when I walked in, I saw so many dresses that my eyes popped out of their sockets.
“It’s a lot,” she said with a sheepish smile, “but all you have to do is tell the stylist what you like and she’ll do the work.”
A smiling woman greeted us and whisked me away to the dresses. She faltered when I told her that I would need my dress immediately, but she said they had some dresses in the back that they could sell same day and have altered to fit me.
But when we went to the back, I realized they weren’t selling nearly as many as they had on the floor. My heart sank as I looked at them.
“Well, you were overwhelmed,” Lily said, giving me a crooked smile. “Some of these are still pretty, though.”
“They’re so basic,” I said with a sigh.
“None of these speak to you?”
“I shouldn’t worry about what speaks to me,” I muttered. “I should try on whatever looks like it will fit the best.”
“I’m gonna repeat Riley’s advice and say get what you like, not what’s easiest.”
I bit my lip and considered the dresses.
“I want something that matches my ring,” I told her. “Something lacy and floral.”
“Okay.”
“And something that just screams me .”
“Do you see anything like that here?”
“Not really.”
Lily hummed. “Then let’s find something that suits you somewhere else.”
“We don’t have to make this a big deal.”
“We absolutely do. I know how awful it is to be in a wedding dress you hate, even if it’s a fake one. I don’t care what this is for. You’re finding something that suits you. I have all day and am hopped-up on caffeine.”
“Are you sure?”
“ Yes. Now, let’s hunt down the dress of your dreams. I have some ideas, but they might be a little out there.”
“That’s my favorite kind of idea.”
Lily’s smile grew. “What about a vintage wedding dress from a thrift store?”
“What are the odds that we’ll find a thrift store with a wedding dress that I like?”
“Low, but we have time. Come on.”
She grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the store. The first few places had very few dresses that suited me, yet we still found stuff to look at. The next was more of the same, and by that time, our coffees were empty and I was getting discouraged.
“If this place doesn’t have anything,” I said as we pulled up to the next shop, “then we go back to the bridal salon. I can’t keep dragging you all over town.”
“You’re not dragging me anywhere if I’m having a good time,” Lily replied as she opened the door. “Besides, the reviews called this shop eclectic and fun. That describes you.”
But even those words weren’t enough to describe the 70s color on every surface. My jaw dropped, and I could see myself buying all the furniture they had and finding a place for it in my house.
If only I could wear furniture as a wedding dress.
Lily took me to the back where all of the clothes were, and they had a decent selection of white gowns for brides.
“I think we hit the jackpot,” Lily said.
And we had. All I saw was gorgeous lace and floral patterns. My eyes widened. “I’d wear every single one of these.”
Lily flipped through the tags, trying to find a size. “I think this one will fit.”
She pulled out a long-sleeved dress covered with intricate lace, the body of it flowing to the ground like a waterfall.
“Oh my god. It looks similar to Gram’s dress.”
Her smile was bright. “Want to try it on?”
The fitting room was nothing more than a broom closet, but I didn’t care. I was focused on the feel of the dress in my hands, the way it stretched over my skin. It wasn’t a perfect fit, but it could be altered.
The second I walked out of the dressing room and saw myself in the mirror, I actually felt like a bride.
A fraudulent one, but a bride nonetheless.
“Oh my God,” Lily said. “That’s gorgeous.”
It was. I looked like Gram when she was getting married in the black-and-white photographs stashed in one of the closets at the house. My throat went dry at the sheer sight of me in the dress and tears welled in my eyes.
Lily caught it immediately. “Are those tears of joy?”
I slowly shook my head.
She stood and put an arm around my shoulders. “What’s going on?”
“T-this is perfect,” I said under my breath. “Too perfect for this.”
“We could go back to the other place.”
“But I want this one. It’s ... I can’t just leave it here.” I swiped at my eyes frustratedly. I wasn’t an emotional person, but something about getting fake married to a man who only cared about getting revenge on my brother made me one.
Lily pursed her lips before squeezing my shoulders. “We can repurpose it for after the wedding. Then you could wear it every day and give it new life.”
“Or I could renew it and give it to a bride in need.”
“Yes. That too. You get to wear it and make it beautiful for a day, and then someone else can. We can do the same for everything with this wedding. Nothing goes to waste.”
The thought made me feel better. “That’s a good idea. This all just seems too . . . good.”
“We’ll see the cracks at the wedding,” she said. “Not to be negative, but it shows eventually.”
“I’ll be thinking of more books to buy to make myself feel better.”
“And you’ll have so much more free time. You could go see Riley at the coffee shop.”
“I could read as you write.”
“See? Think positively about this. Don’t forget the good things.”
“Is that how you went through with things in the beginning with Sebastian?”
“Sometimes. Other times, I wrote terrible things about him, but you’re going into this knowing what you’re getting into. You aren’t as naive as I was. And no matter what happens, I’m here for you.”
I smiled at her gratefully before turning back to the mirror. “Okay. Then this is the one. The perfect dress for a fake wedding.”