Chapter 29 Rule One Vera - Don’t rush things
Rule One Vera - Don’t rush things
“You make a stunning bride.”
I turned to see my oldest friend, Tim, standing in the doorway.
His mousy brown hair was styled and gelled back, and he wore a simple black suit that was a touch too big.
Much like my own dress, he’d purchased it at the secondhand store for a tenth of the price of a new suit.
It was all we could afford. I raised my skirt and twirled around.
“You think?”
As my options had been limited, with only a fifty-dollar budget, I’d had very few options for a wedding dress. However, I managed to find one that fit and would be a fun story to tell our kids later.
Kids.
If you’d told me one day I’d be thinking about kids, I’d have laughed.
I turned back to the mirror and gazed at myself in the yellowing dress with bell shoulders, lace sleeves, and heavily appliquéd bust. The skirt was ballroom length and the train was longer than I was tall.
I’d curled my dark brown hair with the simple curling iron and purchased some brown and gold eyeshadow from the dollar tree to match my Mexican skin tone, and I finished the look by borrowing some red lipstick.
“I do. It’s very you, but...” Tim frowned, shiftinguncomfortably. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
“Do what? Marry Emmett?” I spun around, slightly taken aback. “Of course I do. Why would you ask that?”
He dug his hands in his pockets and scrunched up his nose. “Well, it’s just... he’s your first... man.”
I swallowed and took a deep breath. This had been a point of contention between Tim and me since I’d told him Emmett and I wanted to get married.
“Tim—”
He put his hands up. “It’s not that I don’t think you like him. It’s just so quick.”
“I love him, Tim. Not like. And... I know it’s quick, but, when you know, you know.”
Emmett and I met six months ago at the gas station he was working at. I needed help, and he instantly came around the counter and got me food, water, and took me into the back to let me rest. He was my hero, and we instantly connected.
“Yes, but...” Tim was holding back. We’d known each other for so long and had been through years of trauma together. I knew him better than anyone.
Inhaling deeply, I went to him, taking his hands.
“I know it’s weird. I never thought I’d fall for a man. Sometimes, life is weird. That doesn’t mean I’m any less me. I’m still gay.”
The very word stung my soul. My inner, hurt child cried out, as memories of our shared past flashed in my mind.
“Vera,” he started, his blue eyes softening, “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to accuse you of anything. It’s just... weird. Seeing you two.” He laughed lightly.
“I know. Who would have thought I’d have to come out of the closet as liking men too? If Camp Davis heard about this, they’d never let it go.”
“Let’s not give them any more fuel to hurt people.” He grinned, despite us knowing just how real and how awful that place was and had been for us.
“Agreed. Now, are you walking me down this aisle or what?”
“It’s my honor.”
His cell phone chirped and he pulled it out of his pocket, checking a text, frowning.
“What? Is everything okay?” I asked.
He stuffed the phone away and swallowed deep.
“Yes. I think. I mean, I’ll tell you later. Nothing important.”
Tim was often cryptic, so while I was curious, I let him have his secret. Reaching for the handpicked bouquet, I hooked my arm through his and and started toward the rest of my life.
“Do you take this man, Emmett Grant, as your lawfully wedded husband?”
I stared at the man who’d swept me off my feet just months ago.
He was the most handsome man I’d ever seen, with his warm, hazel eyes, and his honey-brown hair.
He had dimples in both cheeks, as well as his chin, all of which popped out with his dazzling smile.
It was that soft, comforting smile that won me over that first day, and it was the smile that made me nod, while holding his hands today, and say, “I do.”
“And do you take this woman, Vera Valdez, as your lawfully wedded wife?”
“I do.”
“Now, the rings.”
We were married in a church, despite having been afraid of them most of my life.
My parents were here, although his weren’t.
It was a small ceremony, with Tim as my friend of honor.
It was a point of contention between me and my family that I didn’t walk down the aisle with my father.
A month-long argument was finally settled when I agreed to a church wedding in order to have Tim give me away.
Sometimes you have to sacrifice a little to gain a lot, and I was gaining so much by marrying Emmett.
My freedom.
We exchanged our modest rings, bought at the same store we’d bought our wedding clothes, and then were told to kiss.
“You may kiss the bride.”
Leaning in, we shared a chaste, quick peck, and then pulled away to the applause of my parents, beaming and cheering.
“Now, let’s go eat!”
Hand in hand, we walked down the aisle, out to Emmett’s car, where we drove over to my family’s restaurant.
They’d closed it down for the afternoon so we could have a private meal, despite there only being five of us.
As we ate tacos, rice, and I was allowed a margarita for the first time, the conversation was relatively pleasant.
“Where are you guys going for your honeymoon?” Dadasked, sipping his beer.
“Oh, nowhere super crazy, Mr. Valdez. My family owns some land up near the Mackinaw Bridge, so I’m taking Vera there and we can explore the area.”
“I hear it’s beautiful up there.” My dad nodded.
I tried to keep active in the conversation, but I was distracted by Tim, who kept pulling out his phone and frowning.
“Is everything okay?” I whispered.
“Yeah, I just... I want to show you something before you leave.”
“Oh?” I raised a brow and shot my gaze to his phone. He turned the screen off quickly.
“Yeah, not here. In a bit.”
Dinner went long. My dad was enjoying his drinks, and my mom was enjoying a night off work. They both were making a point to remind me every few minutes just how happy they were that I had settled down with a man.
“We were worried for a bit, Mija, that you were a bollera,” he spat the slur at the table, causing both me and Tim to flinch. “But you came to your senses after that expensive camp. Although it must have worked,because here we are!” He raised his glass but no one else did.
Tim, Emmett, and I simply stared at him. My father cringed, embarrassed at his drunken words, and quickly apologized.
“I’m sorry, Mija. We are just so happy you found a good man to marry. Maybe have a few children with. A man who can take care of you.”
Dinner finally cleared, and my dad tried to fix things with a pat on the back and a card to Emmett with tenhundred-dollar bills inside.
“For your honeymoon.” He winked and went to the kitchen.
Emmett looked at me, an awkward smile on his face. “I’ll go get the car. I think it’s started to rain.” He gave me a quick kiss and darted out into the darkness, leaving Tim and me. As soon as he was gone, I spun to face my friend.
“Okay, now what has you so into your phone all day?”
Tim pulled out his phone and turned on the screen.
“This morning, I got an anonymous text with a photo. I kept trying to tell them to stop, but they kept sending more.”
“What of?” My heart dropped.
Tim turned his phone, and I peered at the screen. My mind went blank, and I couldn’t take in what I was seeing.
“What is...” I scrolled through; more and more photos of the same were there. “I don’t understand. That’s...”
“Emmett.”
“Yes, but who’s the...”
I couldn’t put it into words. Emmett, my Emmett, was in a nice suit, at a fancy dinner, holding a beautiful woman in a white dress.
“Bride? I don’t know, but it’s not you.”