Society Weddings (Corrigan & Co. Book 11) (10 page)

“Touché. I still think you should talk to
him, but you do what you need to do.”

“Right now, I need to get you to the
chapel.”

“Lead the way,” I tell her, sliding my heels
back on.

We walk to the small chapel on the castle
grounds. There’s not much space in there, but we don’t need it.
Most of our friends are in the wedding, so only the mentors and a
few other people need to sit. We’re keeping things short and sweet
with our own vows, and then the kiss.

“Looking good, sis,” Noah tells me when we
walk up.

He looks great in his black suit and orange
tie. “You too, little brother.”

We hug each other tight, and I take his arm
as everyone lines up in front of us. For this wedding, my brother
will be walking me down the aisle. Taking a cue from Faith, we have
reserved seats up front for both my dad and Brayden’s. Mallory is
in the front row on my side with my mother. She didn’t recognize me
today, but it means everything to me that she’s here.

I see Brayden as soon as I clear the chapel
door. His eyes light up when he sees me, and I know I’m grinning
like a fool. I see him in suits almost every day, but it never gets
old. He’s sexy as sin and I can’t wait to make love to him for the
first time as his wife. His smile turns into a smirk, and I know he
sees the desire on my face. Since there are no cameras in here,
except for the ones we hired, I stick out my tongue at him as
everyone laughs.

After shaking hands with Noah, Brayden takes
my hand and leans in close. “You look beautiful, Cat.”

“Thanks.”

The official we hired says and does all of
the normal wedding things, and then it’s time for our vows. I smile
at Brayden as we turn towards each other and he begins.

“I once tried to make a list of things to do
so I could impress you. Everyone here knows that didn’t go so well.
I decided that instead of trying to impress you with promises
today, I’m just going to be honest, so here goes.

“I promise to never play video games with
you when you’re online with your gamer friends, because we both
know I’ll get you killed no matter how hard I try not to. I promise
to dress up as whatever character you want and go to those nerd
conventions you love. I swear to never try and ride a bronco, cook
for you, or sing in drag again. I will, however, order in your
favorite foods, give you foot massages, and make love to you every
night. You’ve shown me what true love and loyalty really are, and I
promise to love you forever, my Cat.”

Tears are running down my face, and he
reaches up to kiss them away. “I promise to never break into your
vault again, to never make you think you need to impress me, and to
never make you dress up as anything too crazy when you go to the
conventions with me. I’ll cook for you when I’m not too tired from
work, play the part of the perfect princess when you need me to,
and make love to you every morning when we wake up. I never thought
I’d find love, and I swear that no matter what happens, I’m never
going to stop loving you or doing everything I can to make you
happy. I love you, my Crown.”

“I don’t know what to even say after those
vows, so yeah Brayden, just go ahead and kiss your bride,” the
officiant tells us.

We kiss and then hug each other before
turning to our guests. Everyone is cheering as we lead them to one
of the smaller ballrooms in the castle. I can’t wait for this
part—Brayden wanted to surprise me with the reception, so I have no
clue what to expect.

I stop inside the door and practically
tackle my husband when I see what he’s done. “You should probably
see everything before you take me to the ground,” he tells me with
a laugh.

There are gaming stations everywhere with
big screen TVs, and each table is themed for a different game I
love. The cake topper is a groom dragging his bride from her game
controllers while Call of Duty is on the TV screen. It’s perfect.
All of it is so very perfect for me. But what about him?

“There’s nothing for you here, Bray?”

“You’re here, and you’re my wife. That’s
honestly all I’ll ever need.”

“I didn’t need all of this, either. I
seriously love it, but I would’ve been okay with anything.”

“I know. You may not have needed it, but you
deserve the reception of your dreams. It’s my mission in life to
make all of your dreams come true, so why not start with this?”

I kiss him hard, and start planning all the
ways I’m going to thank him more properly once we’re alone. I love
my prince, and I’m ready for my fairytale ending.

* * *

Brayden

“Will Darcy behave today?” my mother asks,
coming up next to me to wait for the carriage bringing my wife from
the castle to the cathedral.

She wanted to walk, but her damn dress is
too heavy, so she settled for an open carriage. I know she’ll be
making several stops to greet the people of my country along the
road, but that’s why they love her. “My wife will do whatever she
damn well pleases.”

“The world is watching this wedding.”

“The world loves Darcy, just as our people
do.”

She doesn’t say anything else, because she
can’t. Darcy has won over every heart here, except for hers and a
few members of Parliament. I don’t really care what anyone else
thinks. I’ll never ask her to be someone she isn’t.

“It’s time to go inside,” Noah tells me.
“She’s almost here.”

Since no one knows about our real wedding
last night, we have to uphold tradition. I’m not supposed to see
her until she walks down the aisle. I saw her when she reluctantly
left our bed this morning, but I can’t wait to see her coming down
the aisle to me again. That will never get old.

I take my place next to Noah, who I insisted
be here with me. The Society girls and their guys, as well as the
mentors and the Griffin family, are all here again, but this time
they’re in the pews and not standing with us. I wish things could
be different, but protocol demands things from me, and sometimes I
can only push back so far.

I watch as my cousins walk up the aisle in
dark orange gowns suited for princesses. Embroidered bodices and
full skirts are quite a contrast to what Darcy’s friends wore last
night, but at least she got her color. It’s something.

Jen smiles at me as she takes her place, and
then everyone stands for my girl. My knees go weak when I see her
coming down the long aisle on the arm of my Uncle Steven. The gown
she has on is so wide that it almost touches the pews as she walks.
It’s got an off the shoulder neckline and is covered in beading and
diamonds. It’s elaborate and formal. Nothing Darcy would ever
choose for herself, and now I realize why it was too heavy to walk
in. The crown she designed is on top of her orange hair that has
been swept up into a fancy twist. The rows of diamonds with no
space in between stand out brilliantly on top of her bright hair,
and I’m glad she got her way and has no veil cascading down her
back. A veil would make what she’s wearing too over to the top. As
it is, the white roses she’s carrying look bland next to her gown
and crown. She looks gorgeous, and my heart hurts thinking about
how she’s doing all of this for me.

My uncles kisses her on the cheek before
placing her hand in mine. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper as we turn
towards the bishop who will be presiding over this spectacle. “So
very sorry.”

She looks at me with concern shining in her
eyes, and it makes me feel even more guilty. My gamer girl doesn’t
deserve what I’ve let my mother do to her. I didn’t promise to
protect her when we said our vows, because she’s a certified
bad-ass and can take care of herself most of the time. Not now,
though. She did this for me. She’s hiding who she really is for me,
and it kills me to know I’ve taken her spirit away, even if it’s
only for a few minutes.

* * *

Darcy

I’m really worried about Brayden. From the
moment he apologized to me in the church, he’s been distant, giving
me guilty looks every once in a while, but none of his smiles I
love him so much. No one but me, and maybe Noah or Jen, would see
it, but it’s there. He’s upset, and right now I can’t ask him
why.

We’re in a dark hall at the castle. It’s
filled with stone arches, under which dozens of elaborate gold and
white tables and chairs have been placed. This room looks nothing
like our reception last night, and I’m scared that my dress won’t
even make it past the tables to where we are supposed to sit at the
front of the room.

I continue to smile and shake hands as
people come through the receiving line, but when the last person
passes, I grab Brayden and start to pull him from the room. His
mother tries to stop me, but I glare at her before pulling him
outside. Once we’re far enough from the party, I drop his hand and
cross my arms over my chest.

“What did I do wrong?”

“You? You did nothing wrong, Cat,” he says,
finally looking at me.

“Then why didn’t you look at me during the
ceremony?”

“How could I look at you knowing I did this
to you?” he asks, gesturing to my dress.

“It’s just a dress, Crown.”

“It’s so dam big it probably needs its own
zip code.”

“Well yeah, but who cares? Again, it’s just
a dress.”

“It’s not you.”

And now I get it. He thinks this stupid
dress is hiding the real me. “No, it’s not. But in the time you’ve
known me, have I ever let my clothes define who I am?”

“Definitely not.”

“Then why would you think this dress would?
I’m still the same beer drinking chick you fell for. I can dress
up, but nothing will change who I am. Does it suck to have to
pretend to be formal? Yeah, it does. And if this was our real
wedding, I’d be a little upset. It’s just for show today, though,
so I really don’t care. We’ll pretend for a few more hours, and
then I’ll take off this dress, let my hair down, and let you fuck
me until we both pass out.”

“I hate to interrupt, but people are
noticing that you’re gone,” Nate says, walking outside with a smirk
on his face.

“And they sent you?” I ask, putting a hand
on my hip.

“Why not? You are one of my best
friends.”

“You mean they were afraid we were doing
more than talking and figured you wouldn’t be shocked.”

“Well, I did walk in on the two of you in
the game room last week. I still don’t understand how you got into
that position on the foosball table,” he says shaking his head, and
then fist bumping Brayden.

“I have skills,” my husband tells him.

“Yes, you do, but we aren’t talking about
them with Nate. Now or ever.”

“What if we’ve already talked? I know you
and the girls talk.”

“Just get inside. Both of you.”

I start to walk in front of them, but
Brayden spins me and pulls me into his arms for a hard kiss. I kiss
him back as Nate chuckles. For a cat burglar who never thought
she’d find friendship or love growing up, I’m happy to say I’ve
found both. I have great friends, and a husband who fits together
with me like he’s my missing piece. Happily ever after isn’t just
for fairytales.

Ellie

“I have to admit that I never thought we’d
be having a traditional wedding in a church. Or a backyard
reception,” Aiden tells me, looking at the overflowing book I have
on our dining room table.

“You don’t mind, do you?” I ask, getting a
little scared.

“Nah, whatever you want is fine with me,
Doll.”

“Good. You had me worried there for a
minute.”

“There is one thing, though. I was hoping I
could do something out of the ordinary for you.”

“How out of the ordinary?”

“Um, I guess a lot?”

My heart starts to beat fast. I love Aiden,
but I’ve always dreamed of what my wedding would be like. I
compromised a little on the bridesmaid dresses, because Stella
found some cool ones that look like waves and Aiden did propose on
the beach. I guess I could compromise a little more. Just a
little.

“What did you have in mind?”

“I can’t tell you. I want it to be a
surprise.”

“Then how am I supposed to agree or not
agree? You can’t just spring things on me a week before our
wedding!” I yell. I’m aggravated, and why not? He hasn’t planned
this wedding. I haven’t let him, but still.

“Maybe you could trust me. Novel concept,
I’m sure, but it would be damn nice for once.”

“What are you even talking about? You know I
trust you.”

“Really? So that’s why I couldn’t do the
cake tasting on my own when you couldn’t fly to Chicago?”

“My mom wanted to be part of it.”

“It had nothing to do with the fact that you
said I wouldn’t know buttercream from cream cheese frosting if one
of them bit me? Or that you knew I’d choose chocolate and vanilla
because I have simple tastes? Your mom had her volume turned up and
I heard you, El.”

“Aiden, I…I’m sorry. I just want this
wedding to be like I dreamed it would be. I thought you wanted
that, too.”

“Don’t. Don’t you dare try and guilt me into
thinking I might be wrong. You’re a fucking bridezilla, and I’m
done. Just done.”

“What do you mean you’re done? Where are you
going?” I ask as he grabs his jacket and heads for the door.

“I’m going to hang out with my dad. Text me
where and when to show up and I’ll be there, but I can’t be around
you while you get crazier and crazier.”

“That’s not fair. I just want us to be happy
at our wedding.”

“No. You want
you
to be happy at our
wedding. You don’t give a fuck about what I want, or don’t want.
Hell, I can’t even plan a surprise for you.”