57. Sorry, Mom
Chapter 57
Sorry, Mom
Ariana
“ I think we did it wrong,” I say to the chunk of slime on the ceiling. It’s been stuck there since we were sixteen. We tried to get it down a couple of years ago, but Lil trying to stand on the bed with me on her shoulders did not end well.
Lil flops onto the mattress next to me. “You think you had sex wrong?”
“Maybe.”
“How do you think you had sex wrong?”
“Well, it was good. Like... really good.”
“It’s allowed to be good, Ari. You both did your homework first. I accidentally saw Luca’s search history the other day, and let’s just say that’s something I can’t unsee.”
I let out one of those fucking snort laughs my fiancé likes so much and roll to find Lil staring at me.
“What?” I ask.
“Sorry I dragged you two in here last night.”
“Don’t be sorry for that, Lil. We’ve slept side by side for years. And we planned to for the rest of our lives. Then I had to go and fuck it up for us. It’ll take some getting used to for both of us. Hell, we might never fully get used to it. If we’re fifty and still sharing a bed sometimes, so be it.”
Her forehead crinkles as she frowns. “Do you really think Luca will be okay with that?”
“Yes,” I answer honestly. “That night in the kitchen, after the nightmare came back, you said he’s my person. And he is. Same as you are. You’d do anything for me, right?”
Her hand grips mine. “Is that a real question or are you making a point? Because you know I would.”
Giving her hand a squeeze, I smile. “Just like you know I would do anything for you. When you share a heart and soul with someone, the rules of life are different. You and me, we’ve lived by our own rules since we were kids. Luca might not always understand us but he understands that we need each other. He’s never going to try and change that.”
“He does seem pretty accepting of his role in our chaos tornado.”
Laughing, I sit up and stretch. “Why does that make me want to watch Twister?”
“No idea, but same. I’m pretty sure it’s going to have to wait until later, though. We’re supposed to be downstairs planning your wedding right now.”
“Shit.”
Five minutes later, we’re at the dining room table. Mom has her laptop open. Lil has a notebook. I have a huge cup of coffee. Luca’s MIA. Lucky bastard.
“Okay, first things first. Do you want to have the wedding somewhere other than the backyard, Ari?” Mom asks me.
“No, I think the backyard is perfect.”
“Date and location are set then. Guest list is next.” After adding the few people I like to it, she asks, “Do you think Luca will want to invite anyone other than possibly his parents? ”
“Doubtful, but I’ll ask him.”
I pull up my text thread with Luca.
Are you hiding in the gym?
Sexy Caveman
Not very well if you know where I am
Trade places?
Negative, good buddy
Damn.
Fine.
Do you have anyone you want to invite, Hot Stuff?
Nope. All my people are your people.
Awwwww. I smile at my phone, but my lips turn down because that’s kind of fucking sad.
“He doesn’t have anyone he wants to invite.”
“Well, I guess I’m glad he has us now. Okay, moving on.” Mom looks at Lil.
Lil’s in charge of the Official Wedding Checklist since she’s all about lists. “Obviously, I’m your maid of honor, and Dad is walking you down the aisle.” She doesn’t bother looking at me to confirm.
“I actually thought I’d switch you two around. You can give me away, and Dad can hold my bouquet,” I deadpan, trying to pull her into a fight to annoy Mom. “Think we can talk him into a dress?”
“Probably. Any idea on the best man?”
I shrug. “Honestly, I’m figuring you’ll have to pull double duty and be both maid of honor and best man. ”
“Only if I get to wear one of those half-dress, half-tux things.” Lil just writes question marks on the paper.
Mom sighs, shaking her head. “Are you having a flower girl?”
“I was going to ask Danielle if Callie could do it. If not, no. Unless Lil wants to do that as well.”
“Don’t tempt me,” my best friend says with a grin. “I will stuff the pocket of the tux side with petals in a heartbeat.”
Mom ignores us. “Okay, I need to find someone to perform the ceremony as soon as possible.”
Lil throws her hand up in the air like she knows the answer in class. “Ooooh, I can do that, too! I can get ordained online. We can forget the half-tux and get me a dress with pockets. One petal-pocket, one ring-pocket. I’ll walk down the aisle ahead of Ari, throwing flower petals as I go. Then, I’ll stand in the front and blabber on about love and shit, then voila! Rings!” Lil’s not kidding, which cracks me up.
Mom does not find her amusing. “You girls can’t even be serious about planning a wedding.”
“Are you really surprised?” I ask her with a smile.
She sighs again. “No, I’m not.” Mom moves on. “What are your colors?”
“Blue and pink. Luca’s eyes and my ring, if we can find the right shades. I don’t want it to look like a baby shower.” They get sweet, dreamy looks on their faces. “Alright, you saps, what’s next?”
After hashing out some details, we take a break. “I hope Luca knows how much I love him because I hate this planning stuff,” I tell Lil as I refill my coffee cup.
“If it wasn’t for the danger bullshit, I think that boy would just drag you to a chapel immediately.”
“I’d let him. Jeans and an Elvis impersonator are good enough for me.” I shrug.
Mom walks in, looking at her phone. “Dresses will be here for both of you to try on after lunch. Parker’s already setting up the scanners.”
“Fuck, that’s fast. It’s good to be a DeVille,” Lil grins.
“Thank god I don’t have to change my name. This is all a pain in the ass.” That chapel is sounding better and better.
“That’s the only reason you’re marrying Luca, isn’t it?” Lil purses her lips and wags her eyebrows at me.
I shrug. “Of course. Just seemed like the easiest option.”
Mom glares at us, obviously over our bullshit already. Which means we’ll just keep doing it.
By lunch, we’ve gone over everything on Mom’s list. Dad and Luca are out of the house, picking up our rings and checking in about his next fight, which is still set for tomorrow night but with extra men on security duty. I’m trying not to let it make me nervous.
I’m failing.
Lil and I ditch Mom and Becca as soon as we’re done eating, with a promise to come try on dresses the second they arrive.
“What should we do?” Lil asks, when we get to our wing.
“Anything. Literally anything else for a while.”
“Can we go to the gun range so you can help me with my aim? I suck, and I really want to get better, especially with everything that’s going on right now.”
“Sure. Grab some energy drinks and we’ll go.”
“Caffeine and guns. Two of your favorite things.” She grins at me before adding, “And Luca’s cock.”
I throw a pillow at her, but she’s not wrong. “Hey, that’s your cousin you’re talking about.”
“Ugh, don’t remind me, I’m ignoring that part.”
After working on Lil’s aim, we meet Mom in a guest room full of racks and racks of dresses in white, blues, and pinks. It’s just the three of us, so I can walk around without being self-conscious of my scars. Letting Lil have full control over what she wears, I move a few of the white dresses to an empty rack for myself and strip down to my bra and panties.
“Is this ugly or cute? I can’t decide.” I turn, holding the dress up to show Mom and Lil. Mom laughs but then her eyes move lower and catch sight of the new piece of dandelion fluff. I forgot she didn’t know about it.
“When did you add that one, sweetheart?”
“When I got my nose pierced again the day we went to the salon.”
There are tears in her eyes when she smiles. “Oh, baby girl. You knew then that boy was yours.”
“I… I knew he was something special.”
She nods. “He really is.”
I try on what feels like a million dresses. Mom asked for only dresses that are cut in ways that wouldn’t show my scars, but there’s still so many. So. So. Many.
Nothing has felt right. The dress is one of the only things I actually care about. Sure, Luca wouldn’t care if I wore a paper bag, but I want to ramp up the Special Occasion Ariana effect.
I go through the racks again and find one I must have missed the first time. Before I even try it on, I know it’s perfect. The top is sleeveless, with lace covering my shoulders and throat. The skirt stops at my knees and is pouffy without being too pouffy. The seamstress comes in and pins the dress for alterations, along with the pink one Lil picked out.
I look around at the racks of designer dresses in my house. At my soul sister, my best friend. At the ring on my finger. I love my life. My family.
Overcome with emotions, I blink back tears and wrap my arms around Mom. She tucks me under her chin and rubs her hands up and down my back.
“Thank you. Not just for taking care of all this planning stuff. For loving me. For letting me and Lil be who we are. For loving Luca. For everything. I’m so grateful for you and Dad.”
“There was never a doubt in my mind that you were ours, sweetheart. And that the three of you were supposed to walk through life together. I’m grateful we can give you a place to do that. Grateful we get to be a part of it. Watch over you. Be here for you. Love you. All of you.”
Ariana DeVille is exactly who I was always meant to be. Now, I get to be her twice over.