Friday Night Brides (11 page)

“I probably shouldn’t have admitted that to you. Ella is going to want someone with a little more experience than me.”

She laughed out loud. “Max, do you even hear yourself? You do incredible work! You are a very talented artist and it doesn’t matter how long you’ve been doing this for! We’ve worked with photographers who were in the business for years whose work wasn’t even half as good as yours!”

“I’m seriously not fishing for compliments, but I have to admit, you’re good for my ego.”

His admission had her smiling again. “Well it’s the truth.”

He paused for a minute. “Would you still like to have lunch with me tomorrow?”

Becca knew she wanted to go out with Max. More than she thought she would. But first dates were always so awkward—sitting across from each other and sort of having an informal Q&A while you ate. It wasn’t her favorite thing to do. Although if she had to choose between going to lunch or dinner on a first date, she’d definitely choose lunch.

“Becca? You still there?” He chuckled. “If you’d rather not go, you can just tell me. I’ll understand.”

Even though Max couldn’t see her, Becca blushed as she smiled. “I would,” she said shyly. “I really would like to have lunch with you.”

“The weather’s supposed to be great tomorrow,” Max began and Becca could hear the relief in his tone. “I was thinking of maybe grabbing some sandwiches and hitting a park or something. You know, something casual. What do you think?”

In that minute, Becca thought Max just might be too good to be true.

****

“And then…there was this beautiful montage of me and the girls from just about every show we ever did with Mrs. J,” Ella said excitedly. “I’m telling you, Dylan, it was so beautiful I cried!”

“And that’s a good thing?” he asked with a smirk.

Ella had just gotten home from her dinner with the girls and had not stopped talking since she walked in the door. The townhouse she and Dylan rented was only a couple of blocks away from Becca’s house and even on the three-minute drive, she had been overcome with excitement to tell Dylan all about what Max had created.

“I want us to sit down with him and talk to him about the wedding,” she said. “And I definitely want him to do the kind of video he put together for Mrs. J.” She sighed happily. “It will be something we’re going to show our kids and our grandkids and it’s going to be wonderful.” She was sitting on the couch by now and kicking off her shoes and smiling at Dylan.

“Why don’t you give him a call tomorrow and set up a time for us to talk to him? Or maybe we can just arrange to talk to him after the show on Friday. What do you think?”

“Oh!” she gasped. “I completely forgot to tell you, Becca’s going out with him tomorrow! On a date!”

Dylan’s eyes went wide. “Really? How did that happen?”

Ella told him about how Becca and Max had sort of hit it off after his first show and how Max clearly had a crush on her. “I’m so proud of her,” she continued. “I was afraid she was going to stay in a funk over Danny, but it seems like Max is helping her get over it. Fast.”

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again,” Dylan said, “Becca was too good for Danny.”

She relaxed on the sofa and let out another happy sigh. “I missed you tonight.”

Dylan rose from his spot on the recliner and walked over to her, holding out a hand to bring her to her feet. When she was pressed up against him, he kissed her thoroughly. “How much did you miss me?”

Ella couldn’t help but grin at his words. “A whole lot,” she said breathlessly as she raked her hands up into his sandy brown hair and pulled him back down for another kiss. If there was one thing she loved, it was the way Dylan kissed. He started out slow and sweet and then let it build. “Let’s go upstairs.”

Without a word, Dylan took her by the hand and led her up to their bedroom. They’d been living together for two years and Ella still loved the fact that the place was theirs. For so many years they’d had to sneak around or get a hotel room and having the freedom to go up to their own room and make love in their own bed was as close to perfect as anything could be.

As soon as they crossed the threshold, Dylan gently pulled her back into his arms and immediately went back to kissing her. The fact that he wanted her just as much as she wanted him had her more than ready.

They moved around the room in each other’s arms as if their steps were choreographed. His hands began a slow journey from her hips and slipped under her shirt, moving the fabric up and over her head. Once it hit the floor, those work-roughened hands gently cupped her breasts and Ella sighed at the contact. It never ceased to amaze her how, after all this time, it was always so good.

They knew exactly how to touch each other, how to kiss, how to move. To some people, they’d say it was boring, but Ella didn’t mind. And from the feel of Dylan’s arousal pressing against her belly, she knew he didn’t mind either. There was something to be said for knowing your partner, your lover, so well that being intimate wasn’t simply about acrobatics or sex marathons.

“You’re thinking too hard,” Dylan murmured, his breath hot against her throat. “Clear your mind, Ella, and let me make you feel good.”

His hands moved to her hips and immediately began sliding her yoga pants down, along with her panties. That was the beauty of girls’ night—dressing comfortably. And now she was even more thankful for it. Slowly, she shimmied and kicked the garments aside and shamelessly rubbed herself against Dylan.

“One of us is majorly overdressed,” she said just as his head dipped to kiss the swell of her breast.

Lightning quick, he straightened and pulled his t-shirt up and over his head and then went to work on shucking his jeans. In nothing but his boxer briefs, he gently pulled her toward the bed and then down on top of him. His kiss became more urgent as he rolled her beneath him.

“Dylan,” she purred, loving the feel of him. Her hands raked up and down his back and then back up into his hair. He murmured how much he loved her as he began to kiss her from her lips, to her jaw, her throat and breasts.

She particularly liked it when he kissed her there.

This was how it was meant to be—slow and sweet and sexy. Those were the words that always came to her mind when she thought about Dylan. Everything he did and how he did it, was his way of showing her how much he loved her.

His mouth worshipped her.

His hands worshipped her.

Soon she was panting beneath his touch. “Dylan…I…I need you. Please.”

Dylan lifted his head and smiled at her. “I need you too, sweetheart. Every minute of every day.” For a minute he moved off of her so he could slide his boxers off and then he was back, positioned between her thighs and kissing her softly. “You know what I wish?”

She shook her head as her legs wrapped around his waist.

“I wish we were already married and working on having a baby,” he said, his voice low, his expression serious.

“You do?” she asked in wonder. Ella already knew they both wanted kids, but they hadn’t really talked about the timing.

Dylan nodded. “Ella Gilmore, the thought of you being my wife and us making a family? It’s all I think about lately. We’ve been planning this wedding for so long and it just seems like it’s never going to get here.”

Suddenly sex was the last thing on her mind. She shifted slightly beneath him. “Why haven’t you said anything before? I thought…when we set the date, you were okay with it. We talked about taking the extra time to save up some money and…how long have you felt like this?”

He shrugged and rolled off of her and onto his side. “I don’t know. We always talked about getting married and the kind of wedding we wanted and it wasn’t until you mentioned it last week about how frustrated you were getting that I realized that it was getting to me too. Just not for the same reasons.”

“Dylan…”

He placed a finger over her lips to stop her. “I’m not saying I want to cancel the wedding or anything, but I just wanted you to know how I feel. Maybe this wasn’t the right time to bring it up.” He shrugged again. “Honestly, if it were up to me, we’d be married next weekend by a justice of the peace and invite everyone over for a barbecue or something,” he said nervously and then met her wide-eyed gaze. “But I would never ask you to give up your big day, Ella. Never. I love you and I guess I needed to say these things out loud.” He rolled onto his back and seemed to sag with relief. “Actually, it feels really good to finally say it out loud. I tried to talk to my dad about it, but I chickened out. And then I was talking to Tommy at work and…I don’t know…I couldn’t make myself do it. I didn’t want anyone to think I was acting like a chick or anything.”

She reached up and cupped his cheek. “Baby, you don’t ever have to keep these things to yourself. Gosh! Do you have any idea how relieved I am to know you feel this way too?”

Now it was his turn to go wide-eyed. “So what are you saying?”

She nibbled her bottom lip. “I don’t know. I just…I don’t know if I want to go to a justice of the peace but maybe…maybe we scale back and move the wedding date up. What do you think?”

Dylan studied her for a moment. “You know our parents are going to freak out.”

Ella nodded. “I know. But it’s not their day. It’s ours. They had their own weddings and had them the way they wanted. It’s our turn.” She smiled shyly. “I think we all lost sight of that fact for a little while. But now that you and I are both on the same page, we can make a united front and tell them we’re taking our wedding back.” She giggled. “I’m almost tempted to call my mom right now and tell her!”

A slow smile tugged at his lips. “How soon are we talking?”

“Hmm…I just ordered my gown and…I hate to say it but…I really want it. I want to wear it even if we do scale everything else down. It’s so beautiful and I know it’s crazy because I get to wear beautiful wedding gowns all the time, but this will be the first and only time that it’s mine. Is that wrong?”

“Ella, you know how much I love seeing you in those gowns. Every time I come to one of Mrs. J’s shows, seeing you modeling those gowns makes me feel like the luckiest man alive. You’re beautiful.”

She sighed. “Mrs. J put a rush on it for me and it will be here in a month.”

“Why’d she rush it?”

Ella rolled her eyes. “Alterations can be a nightmare and she wanted to make sure I had plenty of time to get them done and not freak out over it. She said the sooner we got it done and out of the way, the sooner it would be one less thing on our plate.”

“God, I love that woman. She’s a genius.”

“I know. I almost wish she were my mom. It would be so much easier making her understand why we want to change things up.”

“So what are you thinking? What kind of timeframe are we thinking about?” he asked.

“Our wedding is still eight months out. Do you…” She paused. “Do you think we can move things up? Like…to maybe three months? Is that possible?”

“We can do whatever we want, sweetheart. I’m sure there are going to be some repercussions for changing the date and we may lose a little money in the process but if we scale back in other ways, we should be all right.” His smile broadened. “So…are we good? Are we really going to do this?”

She nodded eagerly. “I think we are!”

“I take it this makes you happy?” he teased.

“Oh, Dylan!” she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight. “I was beginning to feel like we were going to get stuck with some sort of circus of a wedding and that you were all right with it!” She kissed him soundly on the lips. “I’m so glad you said something! So relieved!”

“I didn’t want to be the jerk who made you give up your big wedding. From what I’ve seen and learned from all those bridal expos you model in, weddings are a big deal to the bride.”

Ella shook her head. “It was never about the party, Dylan. All I’ve ever wanted was to be your wife.”

“That’s good,” he said softly, rolling her beneath him again, “because all I’ve ever wanted was for you to be my wife.”

“It’s going to be so good, isn’t it?” she asked, her eyes scanning his face. “All that unnecessary pressure…gone.” She sighed. “So…so…good.”

“Better than good,” he promised. “We’re going to do this wedding our way like we should have from the get-go and then we’re gonna have babies and buy a house and be happy forever.”

Tears began to well in her eyes, but when she tried to turn away, Dylan gently cupped her cheek and then wiped away the few that fell with the pads of his thumbs. “Don’t cry,” he said and kissed one cheek and then the other.

“They’re not sad tears,” she said. “They’re happy ones. I love how we’re in sync with each other on this.”

He kissed her lips again. “Always.” He paused. “Do you trust me, Ella?”

“Always.”

Dylan let one hand skim down her cheek and down her body to her thigh. He lifted it and guided her to wrap it around him and then did the same with the other. “Let me love you,” he murmured against her lips. “Let’s forget about everything else and just focus on this. Us.”

He slid into her and Ella gasped and then sighed his name. She was ready for him and locked her legs even tighter around him. Ella was finding it hard to focus on anything but the feeling of Dylan moving inside of her. Arching her back, she moaned with pleasure. There was no way sex could be this perfect for anyone else.

“You’re so beautiful,” he said as he rocked into her again and again. “And you feel so damn good, Ella. You’re so sweet. And you’re all mine.”

That made her smile. Because more than anything in the world, it was exactly what she wanted to be.

All his.

Five

“I’ll see you after the show,” Max said with a smile as he kissed Becca gently on the cheek. She watched him walk away and stood there frowning.

“Uh-oh,” Angie sang as she walked up. “Somebody looks cranky.”

It had been two weeks since their first date and Becca was growing increasingly frustrated. “Shut up,” she mumbled and turned to walk toward the dressing rooms. Tonight’s show was local but at the convention center. It was a huge bridal expo—the kind she normally looked forward to—but she was beyond distracted.

“What’s going on?” Angie asked, grabbing Becca’s arm to keep her from walking away.

“It’s nothing.”

Angie rolled her eyes. “Right. Don’t bullshit me. You’re clearly annoyed about something. Your face is all scrunchy and you’re in a mood. So you can either tell me now and get it off your chest so you’re not scowling on the runway or you can stew in it until Mrs. J has to step in. Your choice.”

With a huff, Becca grabbed Angie by the hand and led her to a quiet bench outside the ladies’ room. “It’s Max.”

“Really? I thought you guys were getting along great? You were practically doodling your names in hearts at lunch the other day.”

“Yeah…well…it’s just…” She paused and sighed. “He hasn’t kissed me yet.”

Angie’s eyes went wide. “For real?”

“Totally for real.”

Sagging against the wall behind her, Angie sighed. “Wow.”

“That’s what I’m saying,” Becca murmured. “We’ve seen each other almost every day since our first date and every time he goes to leave, he kisses me on the cheek. He doesn’t even try to do anything more!”

“Have you thought about just kissing him? Like grabbing his face and laying one on him?”

“Of course I have! Every time he leans in I think about it!”

“So why haven’t you done it?”

Becca shrugged. “I chicken out. What if I’m misreading all of this? What if I’m looking at this like he’s really into me and he’s looking at this like we’re buddies? Or pals?” She groaned. “Ugh…what could possibly be worse than being relegated to the friend zone?”

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know, Ang. I really love hanging out with him—he’s sweet and funny and we have so much in common—but if he’s only looking at this as a friend-thing, I don’t know if I can keep that up.”

“Then you’re going to have to talk to him,” Angie stated firmly. “This is no different than what we talked about with Hailey and her situation with Logan.”

“It’s not the same!” Becca interrupted.

“It’s exactly the same! You have got to stop sitting back and making assumptions. You are going to have to leave your comfort zone and just flat-out ask him what’s going on.”

“Dammit. I was hoping to avoid all of that.”

“Tough luck, buttercup.” Angie stood and pulled Becca to her feet. “Come on. Let’s go get ready.”

“I’m so not in the mood…”

“You will be once things get going. And tomorrow at lunch, we’ll pow-wow on how you can bring this up with Max. Plus, we have to get Hailey to make a commitment to seducing Logan and getting that whole thing going.” She sighed dramatically. “Seriously, you guys are exhausting.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah…big talk from the girl who has been rather quiet about her own love life.”

“I promise to share all tomorrow.”

“We’ll see,” Becca replied, but she wasn’t holding out much hope. If everything went the way she was imagining it, they’d spend a lot of time getting on Hailey about her plans with Logan and then turning all of their attention to her and Max. By the time they covered those two topics, lunch would be over.

For the next hour, it was the usual pre-show chaos—hair, makeup and last minute alterations. Becca did her best to push thoughts of her and Max out of her head. She was dressed and lining up back stage. Tonight she was paired up with Jackson. For the life of her she still couldn’t understand why Hailey hated him so much—he was good-looking and polite and he must have sensed that she was in a funk because he kept cracking lame jokes to make her smile.

Mrs. J came out to give them all the usual pep talk. “We’ve got a full house out there tonight. I heard attendance was near five hundred. After the finale, I would appreciate it if you could all mingle with the crowd in your gowns and tuxedos and give them any information you can about the shop, what you’re wearing, our contact info…all that good stuff.” She beamed at them all. “I’d like you to walk around in pairs—mainly because I know you ladies are going to need a little assistance with your gowns, so gentlemen, do what you can to make sure no one gets stepped on.”

Off in the distance, music began playing and the emcee announced that the show was about to begin.

“Have fun everyone and just plan on meeting and greeting for about thirty minutes after the show, okay?” Clapping her hands together, she smiled brightly. “Good luck out there and have fun!”

Becca and Jack were third in line and for a little over an hour, she pasted a smile on her face as she modeled four different gowns. At the end of the show, all of the models lined the stage and listened as Mrs. J told the guests they were free to speak to them for the next half hour. It was on the tip of her tongue to fake a headache and head backstage, but Jack squeezed her hand and smiled. “Come on. It won’t be so bad. Quick and painless. I promise.”

She wished she could believe him. But mingling with the crowd meant she would probably spend a lot of that time scanning the crowd for Max and then overanalyzing his every look and word. Maybe lunch with the girls tomorrow and their potential pow-wow was a good thing.

As directed, she and Jack stepped down from the stage and began walking through the crowd.

They hadn’t gone more than a few feet when he leaned down close and whispered in her ear, “Tell you what…let’s do our best to keep a smile on our faces as we make a beeline for the farthest corner of the room and maybe out one of the doors?”

Becca looked up at him with surprise. “Are you serious?”

He nodded. “Look, obviously you’re uncomfortable and there are fourteen other couples walking around to keep people busy. If we just act casually, we can slip out the door and hide out until it’s time to go.”

She almost wept with relief. “If you can make that happen, you’ll be my new hero.”

“Come on,” he said, straightening. “Let’s do this.”

For the first time that entire evening, Becca felt hopeful. With her arm linked through Jack’s, they began to walk through the crowd. They smiled and waved at a few people, but luckily no one stopped them.

“Almost there,” he said quietly and then nearly stumbled as Becca came to a complete stop. Turning to look at her, Jack’s immediate reaction was concern. “Are you okay?”

Becca knew she must have gone pale. Everything in her seemed to stop.

Standing not two feet in front of her was Danny—with his arm around a tall, willowy blonde.

“Becca?” Jack asked.

“I…sorry…” she mumbled. “Can we just keep…?”

“Oh my God!” the tall, willowy blonde beamed when she spotted Becca. “I was so hoping you’d come our way! I love this gown! Danny,” she said over her shoulder, “this is it! This is the one!”

To his credit, Danny looked just as uncomfortable as Becca felt.

For all of three seconds.

“I knew I would find the perfect gown here tonight,” the blonde was saying and then she turned and hugged Danny. “Thank you for coming with me.” She paused and then gasped. “Oh! Is it bad luck if you see the dress?”

“I doubt it, baby,” Danny cooed and kissed her. Thoroughly. Then he raised his head and looked at Becca with a smirk before returning his attention to the blonde. “I think this dress would look good on you. Real good.”

Jackson—bless him—cleared his throat before anyone could say anything else. “If you’re interested in the dress, you can go up to the podium and talk to Mrs. J. She’s taking appointments and can give you all the information on it.”

“Ooh, Danny, come on! I don’t want to miss her!” The blonde took Danny’s hand in hers with a giddy squeal. “This is so exciting!” She turned to Becca and Jack. “Thank you so much!”

They started to walk away when out of the corner of her eye, she saw Danny trip and fall. The skinny blonde cried out as she tried to help him up. Becca wondered what happened when she noticed Jack’s grin. He winked down at her. “Come on. Let’s go.”

It took a minute for her heart to stop racing. Jack got her out into the hallway and immediately found a refreshment table and grabbed her a glass of water. He put it in her hands but didn’t let go. “Drink.”

She forced herself to drink and then looked up at him sadly. “Thank you.”

“That was your ex, right?”

Becca nodded. “How did you know?” Danny had never come to any of the shows or any of the parties Mrs. J threw, so she was mildly curious.

“The look on your face said it all. And his, too—at first.” He cursed under his breath. “I’m sorry. I know that sucked.”

She nodded again. “I had no idea he was dating anyone else—let alone engaged.”

“How long since you broke up?”

The reality of it all had her stomach clenching. “A month.”

Jack frowned. “I hate to say it…”

“I know. Clearly he was dating us both at the same time,” she finished quietly. “God, I’m such an idiot! Everyone warned me, but I didn’t listen.”

“Hey,” he said softly, cupping her cheek. “You are not to blame here. He is. Guys like him…” He paused. “Guys like him are skilled liars. I’m sure his fiancée has no idea he’s been screwing around.” Then he grinned. “But I can inform her if you’d like.”

Becca couldn’t help but chuckle at the hopeful look on Jack’s face. “Thanks, but…” She shook her head. “That wouldn’t be very nice.”

“Actually, it would be,” he corrected. “Looking back, don’t you wish someone had told you he was seeing someone else rather than finding out like this? And, before you answer, you know there’s a very real chance he’s going to keep doing it. Hell, he probably has someone else on the side already.”

“So she should benefit from me being stupid?” Becca asked incredulously and then shook her head again. “No. I’m not going in there and making a scene. I say let her find out just like I had to.”

Jack studied her for a minute. “Your call,” he said and then sighed. “Come on. We’ll make our way toward the dressing rooms. If Mrs. J says anything, I’ll let her know what happened, okay?” Holding his arm out just like he did backstage, he smiled and waited for her.

Nodding, Becca took his arm and quietly they walked toward the entrance to the dressing area. At the door, he stopped and stepped in front of her. “Are you going to be all right?”

“Eventually,” she said sadly. “Just not tonight.” Then she groaned. “Honestly, this entire night has sucked.”

“Hey!” he said, feigning offense.

That made Becca chuckle. “You were the highlight, but trust me. The rest of it really sucked.”

“Want to talk about it?”

She shook her head. “I think I’m going to go and get changed and head out before the girls even get back here. But thank you.” Standing on her tiptoes, she placed her hands on his shoulders and kissed him on the cheek. “I knew you were one of the good ones.”

Jack waited until Becca was in the dressing room before walking away.

****

“Change of plans,” Hailey said later that night. After she had gotten back to the dressing room she had caught Becca sneaking out and stopped her. With a little bit of persuasion, she convinced her to stay for a little while. Now Angie and Ella were with them and they were having a drink at the hotel across from the convention center.

“What plans? When?” Ella asked, looking at each of them. “I’m confused.”

“Instead of our usual lunch tomorrow, we’re going to have lunch at my mom’s. I want to show her the DVD Max made and I figured we’d make an afternoon of it—lunch by the pool and margaritas. What do you think?”

“Ooh…that sounds good,” Ella said. “Any chance there will be someone there to serve us margaritas by the pool?”

“Keep dreaming,” Hailey said with a grin. “Is everybody in?”

“I’m in!” Ella said excitedly. “Dylan’s helping his dad with some painting tomorrow so I have all day.”

“I’m in too,” Angie said. “And I don’t have to answer to anyone so I can come and go as I please.”

“Sean’s not visiting this weekend?” Hailey asked. Ever since his arrival on Angie’s doorstep, Sean had been true to his word—doing his best to win Angie over. Hailey assumed since it was the weekend he would put in an appearance.

Angie shrugged. “He asked if he could come and visit, but I put him off.”

“Why?” Ella asked. “If you’re serious about giving him another chance, then you are actually going to have to see him and spend time with him. You can’t have a relationship via text, Ang.”

“It’s not just texting,” Angie said defensively. “We’ve talked on the phone a couple of times.”

“But…?” Hailey prodded.

“But…I don’t know. He’s busy with work, I’m busy with work and I just wanted him not to be here this weekend.”

“Yeah but next weekend we’ll be in Charlotte at another expo,” Becca reminded her. “Or are you inviting him there since we’re getting hotel rooms?”

Angie blushed.

“Nice,” Hailey said approvingly. “That’s a good plan.”

“Plus, it puts us back—sort of—the way we were before. We used to meet up on the weekends on neutral territory.”

“Maybe that was part of the problem,” Ella said. “If this relationship is going to go anywhere, you’re going to have to let him into your world a little bit.”

“I know. I’m working on it.” She paused and took a sip of her wine. “Which reminds me…what about you, Hailey? Are you going to take advantage of our lodgings next weekend and make your move on Logan?”

Hailey choked on her drink. “What?”

Angie chuckled. “You heard me. We’ve all given you a little time and space with this, but it’s time for you to make a decision. Are you going to make your move or not?”

“I…I’m still not sure.”

“Oh for crying out loud!” Angie cried. “Why not?”

“I’ve never had to do that before!”

“Seriously? You never made the first move?” Becca asked.