Hitched (22 page)

And I remember why I married him.

Because he made me feel whole. Not because I'm incomplete without him, but because with him, I can see myself reflected in his eyes, and I see how complete I really am. How complete I've always been.

The first call I make isn't to Sebastian. It's to his mom.

"Hi, Sylvia. It's Kacie."

Her voice sounds cheerful. Not suspicious and full of rage, as I'd feared. "Kacie, it's good to hear from you. How are you?"

I swallow the lump in my throat. "Um, I've been better. I was wondering if you had time to talk. I need some advice, and I didn't know who else to call."

"Of course, dear. Would you like to come to the house? We can have lunch and relax by the pool?"

"Yes, that sounds great. Would… today work?"

I can hear the smile in her voice. "Sure, why don't you just head out now? By the time you get here, I'll have everything ready."

The drive feels far too long, but I finally arrive and am once again blown away by the majesty of their home. Sylvia greets me at the door and invites me in. "We've got the house to ourselves for a few hours. So no need to worry about interruptions."

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me. I'm sure you're very busy."

I help her bring our plates and glasses out to the backyard, and we sit by the pool. She's made a beautiful chicken salad with hummus and veggies on the side and fresh orange juice. Everything tastes delicious, and we eat in silence for a few minutes before I speak. "Did Sebastian tell you everything about how we met?"

She smiles kindly. "I know you got married in Las Vegas the night you met."

Well, this will go easier then. "Yeah. I couldn't remember all of that night for a long time. You must think I'm awful."

"Not at all. I think you two are young, and it was impulsive, but hardly the worst thing in the world."

"And we agreed to date over the summer, while our annulment went through. But the day I got the papers and went to show him, he was with his ex."

She nods but doesn't say anything.

"I know I overreacted. I didn't actually see them doing anything. I don't think he cheated on me—though I haven't actually asked him, but seeing them together made me question everything about our relationship. Whether we were really meant to be together. Whether Celene was a better fit for him, because of their careers and lifestyles. And I got scared. Really scared."

I take a sip of the orange juice before continuing. "I broke his heart. I know I did. And I broke mine too."

"And now?" she asks.

"Now, I don't know. I'm still scared. I'm still not sure. How do you know when you've met the right person? How do you know it will work out forever?"

"You never really know it will work out. That's a choice you both have to make each day. As to how you know if you've met the right person, I think that's something for which you have to look inward for an answer. But I don't think you'd be here now if you didn't already know the answer."

I take out the envelope of pictures in my purse and hand them to her. "I got these recently, from the night of our shotgun wedding. When I saw them, I remembered everything."

She flips through the photos, her face unreadable. When she finishes, she hands them back to me. "You two look very happy. A bit drunk, but very happy. I've never seen my son like that, but I'd like to."

"Part of me knows I made a huge mistake breaking up with Sebastian, but the other part of me is still scared I'll lose myself in him. Lose my career, lose everything I’ve worked so hard for. I'm not like the people from his work, the other doctors. I’m sure they look down on my business and what I do for a living. But it matters to me."

"Does Sebastian look down on it?" she asks.

"No."

"Has he said he'd want you to quit if you stayed with him?"

"No."

"Then what does it matter what anyone else says? The most important thing in any marriage is that you both decide together what kind of life you want, and then you work hard to make that happen no matter what the outside world thinks about your arrangement. I know there are people my husband works with who think he's less of a man because his wife makes more money. And people I've worked with in the past who think I'm a ball-busting bitch because of my success or business acumen. We discussed these things early on and agreed it didn't matter. We'd never let it bother us or come between us. And we certainly wouldn't let it interfere with our happiness."

"And that worked?" I ask. "It really never bothered either of you?"

She shrugs her shoulders. "We had our days. But generally, no, it never did bother us. Because we chose each other and our life over the thoughts of others. I have always been of the philosophy that what other people think of you isn't your business. It's theirs. So the question you need to ask yourself is, does being with Sebastian make you happier than being without him? And has he ever actually gotten in the way of your career?"

I know the answers to both of those questions. Which leaves me left with one question of my own. "How do I get him back?"

After talking with Sylvia and looking at our pictures so many times I have them all burned into the backs of my eyelids, I want nothing more than to show up at Sebastian's door and beg forgiveness for breaking up with him in the way I did. But I still can't decide the best way to win him back. I need something big. Magical. Unforgettable.

It's in the middle of all this teenage-like angst that I get the call.

"Hello?"

"Ms. Michaels?" The voice is male. Deep. Vaguely familiar though I can't place it. "This is David Melton. You had contacted me about my bachelor party?"

O.M.G. I can't breathe. I try to breathe. I need to talk. To say something. Anything. "Yes?"

"I want to apologize. My assistant chose a different company and called you to let you know, but we have a problem. The company he chose has botched things up. I was impressed with you when we met briefly the other day. So my question is, can you take over at the last minute and make some magic? Are you still up for the challenge?"

I look at my calendar. His bachelor party is supposed to be tomorrow night. I'm screaming in my head, but I remain outwardly calm. "Are you asking me to plan your party by tomorrow night?"

He clears his throat. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm asking. There will be a generous bonus in it for you if you can make it happen. Your ideas were excellent. I would consider this a personal favor if you could make something epic happen."

"I can't promise it will have all of the elements I originally promised, but yes, I can give you a night you won't forget."

"Excellent. My assistant will be in touch and can get you any other details you need. I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow night. Thank you."

My heart is racing as I call Tate and Vi with the good—and insane—news. "We got it. Get home now! We need all hands on deck to pull this off."

Thoughts of Sebastian still flit around in my mind, but I'm in full-on panic mode, making calls to secure the cars, the helicopter, the roof of the Wynn Hotel, the dancers, the music, the food, the alcohol, the lighting… everything needed to make this night “epic.”

Tate is on the phone with vendors. Vi is working with the dancers to come up with something original. We're all busting our asses to make this work.

***

The night of the party, I'm a nervous wreck.

Every moment not spent in planning was spent watching David's shows, getting a sense of his style. The evening needs to have a flare of the dramatic. He's a bit goth, a bit punk, all wrapped up in the world's sexiest magician, who will now be off the market for good.

His wife is a popular actress who's widely recognized. I'm bummed I won't get to meet her tonight.

We arrive at the Wynn well before anyone else and spend hours setting up. When David and his friends arrive, he's all smiles. "Thank you again. You're life savers."

I introduce him to Tate and Vi, and caterers bring out food and non-alcoholic drinks. "Don't get too comfortable. The helicopter will be here soon to take you to your first adventure. Then we'll come back for drinks, dancing and more fun."

On cue, the helicopter arrives and lands on the helipad.

"I can't believe you managed this on such short notice," David says, pulling himself into the helicopter.

It takes a few trips, but we eventually get everyone to the race tracks where sleek cars in reds, yellows, blues and blacks wait to be driven.

The guys are given instructions and assigned to their cars, which they drive with gleeful speed around the racetracks.

After they finish a few laps, all of them laughing and slapping each other's backs, I pull David aside. "I have one other surprise for you."

I nod my head to Tate who ducks away and comes back with someone else. As they get closer, David raises his hands to his face in shock. "No, you didn't. Fuck! Is that really Michael Schwartz?"

"It is!" It took some doing, but it turns out Schwartz is just as big of a fan of David as David is of him and was thrilled to meet the magician. I lean over to David. "I promised him VIP tickets to your next show. I hope that can be arranged?"

He hugs me with exuberance. "Of course. You can have anything. I'm in your debt forever." He kisses my forehead then reaches his hand out to the famous racecar driver. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Same to you," Michael says with a smile. "Care to go a few laps with me?"

I'm worried David's going to pass out from excitement, but they do a few laps at speeds that make me nauseous, and Schwartz flies back with us for the rest of the party.

Tate high fives me as we climb into the helicopter after them. "Good job, sis. You made the impossible happen."

Back at the party, we serve the drinks (this time with alcohol) and more food as the dancers begin their intro dances. We worked hard to create a new routine with them that included a bit of magic tricks, and some escapes from handcuffs on the pole.

David seems to enjoy himself during the bulk of the show and claps the loudest when the dancers do their handcuff trick.

As the men get lap dances or refills on their drinks, David comes over to me. "This is incredible. You've made this night more spectacular than anything I could have imagined."

"I'm so glad. It's been my dream to do a party like this, so thanks for taking a chance on our little company."

"Not little for long. I just called Richard Morgan and told him he has to use you for his bachelor party in two months."

My mouth falls open. "
The
Richard Morgan. Movie star Richard Morgan? Most eligible bachelor for like—ever—until recently, Richard Morgan?"

David laughs. "The one and only. He's on board. Expect a call from his assistant sometime next week. Kacie, Hitched is about to blow up. I hope you're ready for some serious expansion."

This time I hug him and kiss his cheek. "Thank you. Thank you so much!"

He throws a friendly arm over my shoulder as we watch the dancers do their next routine. "You're a pretty incredible woman, Kacie. What's your story? You married? In love? Kids?"

My face drops, and I surprise myself by telling him the raw truth, not the professional whitewashed answer I'd normally fall back on. "In love? Yes. Married? Not entirely. It's complicated, but the short story is, I had the perfect man, and I gave him up out of fear. Now I'm trying to figure out a way to tell him how I feel and get him back."

David smiles the smile of someone who has an idea that's either very brilliant or very dangerous. "I might be able to help with that."

I've been waiting two weeks for tonight. Two long, painful, busy, emotionally loopy weeks. Two weeks during which time our business has literally exploded. We're now in the process of hiring a whole new team to handle all the celebrity parties, thanks to David. Two weeks I had to resist my urge to knock on Sebastian's door.

Instead, I talked his mom into helping me with the plan David and I created.

Lure him to David's show under the guise that his mom got two amazing tickets and wouldn't he please be her date? Of course he said yes. Not only is he a huge fan, but he would do it just to spend time with her.

The plan worked. They are both in the audience right now.

I am backstage and blind folded. David doesn't want his secrets revealed, and I'm part of one of his big magic tricks. So I'm waiting. Listening to the show, to the crowd’s applause, to the performance David is so skilled at giving. I wait in the dark, hoping—praying—that I'm not making the biggest mistake of my life. Hoping that I don't make a fool out of myself and get my heart broken to pieces in front of hundreds of people. Hoping I don't ruin David's show.