Chapter 29
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
O nce again, Amy had trouble sleeping. In a few hours, the wedding would be over. Thank goodness! Scott would leave so she could have closure. Even so, she felt her heart start to shatter whenever she thought about him.
But she had a lot to look forward to today. Any thoughts of the bookstore were pushed to the side because a human being can only endure so much change at one moment. She had maxed out on hers.
Amy crawled out of bed when the sun blasted through her window. Since she hadn’t gotten any late-night emergency texts, it seemed they had kept Cassie in the dark.
If she’d planned the wedding or found out earlier, Cassie would have been on a roller coaster of emotions. Had it been stressful for everyone else? Yes. But Amy would happily do it again. A hot shower revived her enough to make her way to the kitchen, where she poured a mug of coffee down her throat and reached for another one.
Her brother came into the kitchen. “What’s got you up so early that you’re making the coffee?”
Now that the day was here, she could tell Dexter about it. “We planned a secret wedding for Cassie and Greg.”
“Whoa! Are they going to be happy about that?”
Amy chuckled. “Greg is thrilled. Cassie has told us she would love to get married as long as she doesn’t have to plan it. My guess—my fervent hope—is they will both be thrilled.”
Dexter pulled a mug off the rack and reached for the coffee carafe. “I know I wouldn’t be happy if you planned a wedding for me.”
Amy took a few more sips of the coffee, caffeine-fueled energy seeping into her body. “Unless I’ve missed something, you aren’t dating anyone.”
He grinned. “That much is true. I guess that’s why I wouldn’t be thrilled about a wedding, huh?”
Amy nudged him with her arm. “That would do it.”
“Would you have wanted someone to secretly plan a wedding for you and Logan?”
She froze with her mug an inch from her mouth. Then relief surged through her that she hadn’t married him. She’d thought he was a good guy, but in the end, she’d probably been more in love with love than with him.
“I’m relieved no one did.” She felt completely different about Scott. Not that she wanted to get married to him today. But he felt honest and open. Logan never had. She’d just taken it as part of his personality—something else to love. In the end, it wasn’t what anybody should have in a relationship.
Amy put on the aqua dress she’d bought on her last newspaper run to Nashville. She knew the color brought out the blue in her eyes and hoped Scott appreciated it. Then she slipped on navy blue shoes, which had enough of a heel to be pretty with the dress but not to cause her pain in what would probably be a long day wearing them. She was ready to go after a sweep of mascara and some blush.
Her first stop today would be a big one.
She pulled into Cassie’s driveway with trepidation. The group had decided to have her pick up Cassie this morning on the pretense of taking photos for the article. She’d actually be taking Cassie to get the license.
Amy steeled herself for the job ahead. Cassie was waiting in her kitchen, wearing a pretty floral dress. Paige would be at city hall ready to snap photos for what Cassie believed was the newspaper article. Amy would use one of the photos in the paper, but the rest would be a keepsake for the happy couple.
“Ready to go? Paige is waiting for us.”
Cassie closed the door, saying, “Romeo, you’ve already had breakfast.” He meowed, so she added, “I’ll be back. Don’t worry.”
In the car, Cassie said, “I could have driven myself. I’m not sure why Paige insisted on you driving me there.”
Amy sought the right answer. “It seemed easier since I was going to be there, anyway.”
When they drove by Paige’s business, Cassie turned to her. “Aren’t we going to her studio?”
“She set up a different location. We’re almost there. And don’t worry. I’m not an ax murderer driving you to an unknown location to commit a crime.”
Cassie burst out with laughter. “That never crossed my mind.” When they pulled up and parked on the street by the city hall office, Cassie said, “This is a weird place for photos.”
When Paige came out the front door, camera in hand, Amy’s nervousness ramped up. Showtime!
“I’m not sure what you have planned, but Paige is the photography expert, so I’ll go with it.” Cassie climbed out.
When Amy said, “Up the steps,” Cassie gave her a questioning glance, but she dutifully went up them with Paige snapping photos. When she reached the top, Greg opened the door.
Cassie stopped in her tracks and stared at him. Amy had to admit the man looked good. His dove gray suit fit him like a glove, and the white shirt with a tie in coordinating wedding colors looked great on him.
His bride-to-be asked, “What’s going on, Greg? That’s a fancy suit you’re wearing for conducting city business.”
Greg held out his elbow for her to put her arm around. “Today, it’s all about us.”
Cassie slipped her arm around Greg’s but quietly studied him for a moment. “What are you up to?”
“Only good things.”
Amy and Paige followed the couple through the door and down the hallway, their footsteps on the old linoleum the only sounds. When they arrived at the clerk’s office, Greg stared at Cassie, fear on his face, his confidence gone. He turned to the clerk and cleared his throat. “We’d like a marriage license.”
Cassie gasped. “Am I getting married soon?”
The clerk, whom Cassie knew, said, “Honey, if you don’t know, there’s a problem here. Do you want this here license?”
Cassie turned to the three of them. “Do I?”
Amy took a step toward Cassie. “It will make the day we have planned go much smoother if you say yes.”
Cassie grinned as widely as Amy had ever seen. Her eyes sparkling, she gave Greg a quick kiss before turning to the clerk and saying, “Yes, ma’am. I’m getting married. Today?” She looked up at Greg.
“I’d like that very much.”
She leaned into his side. “Today,” Cassie said with conviction. Once they had filled out the paperwork and had the license in hand, Amy expected a barrage of questions from Cassie, but she only asked, “What’s my next stop?” as they went down the hall.
“Bella’s place.”
“That makes sense. She has the dress and accessories?”
“She does.”
Cassie practically skipped down the steps.
As Amy drove Cassie to Bella’s, she said, “I hope you don’t mind that Greg saw you on your wedding day.”
Cassie made a scoffing sound. “I definitely don’t hold to those rules. Besides, I agree with you. Telling me in advance would’ve been a bad idea.”
Amy’s gaze jerked over to Cassie and then back at the road. “Would you have wanted us to cancel it?”
“I don’t think so. But I definitely would have tried to take over. It’s what I do. I wouldn’t have thought you guys did a bad job, but your version of the wedding wouldn’t have been exactly how I wanted it.” She raised her hands in the air and smiled. “This way, I didn’t have a chance to meddle, and I love that. Who was in on this?”
“Your future mother-in-law, Bella, Paige, Simone, Michelle, and their men. Scott. And Dinah. I also heard that Sam from the hardware store was helping out with some setup.”
Cassie shook her head slowly. “I’m amazed I didn’t catch a whiff of it. How did you do that?”
Amy grinned. “Let’s just say it was worthy of a spy thriller novel. Lots of secrets and clandestine meetings. You didn’t know it at the time, but you helped choose almost everything.”
“You’re good. Thank you.”
Amy pulled in front of Bella’s Brides. “Now for the pretty part of the day.”
Cassie rubbed her hands together with glee. “I can’t wait to see what Bella made for me.”
The fit and flare dress Cassie had chosen from the sketch was even more beautiful in person. The narrow straps and fitted bodice with the flare to a fuller skirt suited Cassie and would be easy to wear for hours. The creamy color would be perfect with her dark red hair.
When Cassie saw her wedding dress on the hanger, she gasped. “It’s the one from the sketch and with the changes I suggested.” Hands on hips, she turned to Amy. “What you meant earlier about my choosing everything was that everything you’d said would be in an article was actually for my wedding, right?”
“Sort of. But not really. I am going to publish that article.” Amy made an X over her heart. “The idea started as a way to learn what you liked but turned into a great article.”
A beautiful, soft-pink knee-length dress hung beside the wedding dress. With a ribbon around the empire waist, it flowed loosely and would feel right next to the wedding dress.
Bella moved next to the pink dress. “I hope you don’t mind. This is your matron of honor dress. And it’s mine.”
“Mind? I would have chosen you, of course. Other than the people I grew up with and, in general, haven’t kept in touch with, you’re my oldest friend. Not that you’re getting old.”
Bella chuckled. “Let’s get this show on the road. You have two more hours of being single. Then there will be an unforgettable afternoon wedding.”
“Afternoon. I like that. It’s a little bit different. And on a weekday too.”
Amy said, “There’s a reason for that. If we’d chosen a Saturday or Sunday, you may have unknowingly booked a weekend wedding on your scheduled wedding day, but we thought it was unlikely you’d book a Thursday.”
“Oh my goodness! There is a Saturday wedding.” Her face fell. “I’d always pictured getting married and going on a week’s honeymoon. It doesn’t look as if that’s going to happen.”
Bella said, “You’re leaving Saturday evening. It was the best poor Greg could do. He wouldn’t tell any of us where he’s taking you.”
“And he’s been in on this since the beginning?”
“Almost. We’d figured out some of the details before we invited him in. Greg has been happy to be on the sidelines.” Amy knew that had made their jobs easier. “He hasn’t needed to do much beyond buying a new suit and tasting cupcakes.”
“My cake. Is it one of the flavors of cupcakes I tasted?”
Bella and Amy stared at Cassie. Amy knew Bella was thinking the same thing. What if she doesn’t want cupcakes and wants a cake instead?
“We’re doing cupcakes. I hope you don’t mind?”
Cassie’s expression turned gleeful. “I’m so happy. Everything is unconventional. Will we have music?”
“Yes. You’ll enjoy the performer we chose.”
“This is perfect.” Cassie sat while a woman styled her hair into a beautiful knot with strands around her face. Makeup highlighted her eyes and coloring. Amy noticed Bella holding her breath as Cassie put on her dress.
When the zipper moved smoothly up the back, and the dress fit perfectly, Bella let out a big breath. “Phew! I’m glad you haven’t gained or lost weight since I last measured you.”
Cassie slipped on the creamy white shoes covered in beads. “I know how you got the dress size because you had that from wedding number one, right?”
“Yes. And you’re wondering about the shoes. Do you remember a day about two weeks ago when I had been at your house and said I’d forgotten my purse? You were on your way somewhere, so you gave me your key. I went back to get my intentionally forgotten purse. I know I committed a horrible invasion of privacy when I scrounged around in your closet to check your shoe size.”
“This was worthy of a spy novel. And since you’ve borrowed more than one piece of clothing from my closet, I don’t consider it an invasion of privacy.” Cassie grinned. She fastened a pearl necklace her mother had provided around her throat and put on matching earrings. “My mother kept this a secret?”
“She knew about it for less than a week.”
“I’m sure she commented on the lack of tradition.”
Amy laughed. “She did.”
Cassie stood in front of the mirror. She made a stunning bride. Out of the corner of her eye, Amy noticed a limousine pulling in front of the building. Bella gestured toward it.
“We were going simple, but Henri, your favorite florist, wanted to treat you. He said no beautiful bride should ride in the back seat of a five-year-old sedan. Apparently, he’s been looking at my car,” Bella said with a smile.
Cassie headed toward the door. “Where am I getting married?”
Bella answered. “The church.”
“And the reception?”
Cassie had been so gleeful about everything so far. “Do you really want to know? You seem to be enjoying the surprises.”
Cassie didn’t speak for a moment. Then she smiled and said, “You’re right. Yes, I do want to know, but then I’ll start thinking about what it looks like and all the things. Surprise me. It’s a beautiful day, one that reminds me of the day I rode in here, so I’m happy to just go along for the ride.” She went out the door humming the wedding march.