“That’s all right, Mom. I know how hard he works.” To help you live above your means, Jessica added silently.
“Where’s Monica?”
Jessica shrugged. Unlike her mother, who needed constant recognition for the smallest of tasks, Sed’s mother got things done and required no supervision.
Sed’s youngest sister, Elise, spoke up. “Mom’s out with the florist helping with the arbor over the altar. They’re trying to figure out how to keep the flowers in place with all the wind.”
“She probably needs my help,” Jessica’s mom said and she turned to go.
Jessica felt a touch sorry for Monica, but at least her mother would be out of her hair for a while.
“I wonder if Sed is here yet,” Jessica said. She hadn’t spoken to him all day. She missed him. Usually when he wasn’t on tour, they were inseparable. And when he was on tour without her, she was miserable. It had only been twelve hours since she’d seen him last, yet it felt like ages. Maybe she should have watched him sleep for a while that morning instead of covering her eyes with her hands when she sneaked out of bed to avoid seeing him before the wedding.
“You should text him,” Beth advised. “Make sure he got up.”
Sed had still been asleep when she’d left. She trusted that he’d gotten out of bed on time, and if he hadn’t, she knew Brian would retrieve him if necessary. Before the bridal party left that morning, Brian had given her his word to keep Sed in line, though the thought of anyone keeping Sed in line was rather ludicrous now that she thought about it. Perhaps she should have enlisted the aid of his mother. But Monica had enough to keep her occupied as she was in charge of overseeing the setup of the beach for the ceremony. Still, Jessica couldn’t resist texting Sed. Not to check up on him. Even though today was about celebrating their closeness, she felt very far away from him at the moment.
Happy Wedding Day, she texted. I can’t wait to marry you.
After she sent the text, she helped Beth zip up the long red bridesmaid gown she’d chosen. All of Jessica’s bridesmaids would wear the same color but because each member of her bridal party was unique, she hadn’t forced them all to get the same dress. They’d picked gowns they liked, that she hoped they could wear again. She wasn’t sure how Sed would feel about the sexy dresses his little sisters had chosen, but she wasn’t going to tell them they couldn’t wear them. They were grown women, not the girls in pigtails he still thought of them as. Jessica had had enough angst thrown in her direction over the decision when her mother had found out that the bridesmaids weren’t going to be dressed as clones. Mom had thrown a huge fit about them looking like a mismatched group of beggars. Jessica had ultimately won that battle, however. And though they were all dressed differently, the deep red color made them look harmonious enough. She liked that they didn’t all look exactly the same.
Jessica was pacing by the time Aggie returned over half an hour later with the corset. What if she was too fat to get into the contraption? And why hadn’t Sed texted her back? And was her mother still harassing Sed’s mom? She hadn’t returned yet. And why was Malcolm crying again? She needed the baby to be in a good mood today. Or at the very least, asleep.
“Did you really make this, Aggie?” Beth said in breathless awe as she rubbed her hand over the pale pink orchids embroidered into the leather of the white corset.
“Yeah.”
“Where did you learn to sew like this? It’s gorgeous.”
“Grandma taught me.”
Beth chuckled. “Yeah, she tried to teach me too, but I ended up pricking all my fingers and never finished anything. I guess you had a natural talent.”
Aggie bit her lip. “No, I just persisted because I wanted an excuse to sit with her. She was always too busy to slow down, except when she was sewing.”
“Oh,” Beth said and she smiled, no longer looking terrified of her own cousin.
Jessica tried not to gloat. She slipped out of her dress, with Beth holding it up, and then stepped toward Aggie.
“This was supposed to be your wedding gift by the way,” Aggie said to Jessica. “I had to dig through hundreds of gifts in the reception hall to find it and then the caterer thought I was trying to steal it.”
“Sorry you had to go through so much trouble due to my unquenchable cravings for rocky road ice cream,” Jessica said, poking at her belly that was not all baby. Most of it was her.
Aggie wrapped the corset around her.
“I didn’t mind,” Aggie said, cinching the lacings at Jessica’s back. “Too tight?” she asked, concern in her voice.
“No,” Jessica said. She felt very tall for some reason. If the corset didn’t make her a bit thinner, at the very least it gave her fantastic posture. “You can tighten it more.”
“You have me worried about the baby now,” Aggie said.
“He’s about the size of my thumb at the moment. Doesn’t take up much room.”
“Can you get enough air, though?”
Jessica nodded. “I’m fine. Really.”
“You look sexy as hell in that thing,” Beth said. “I almost wish I was a lesbian. Will you embroider one for me, Aggie? Not that I have a man to wear it for, but I can wear it while I study. Maybe it would help me think.”
Aggie chuckled. ”Of course, hon. And maybe you’ll meet someone at the reception. There are at least ten thousand people coming, judging by the size of that reception hall.”
“Only five hundred,” Jessica said, rolling her eyes. She would never in a million years figure out how her mother had found five hundred people to attend the reception, much less RSVP that they were coming. Jessica didn’t know five hundred people. Maybe they were all Sed’s acquaintances. She hadn’t recognized many of the names on the guest list. At least she and Sed had gotten the final say on the guest list for the wedding, though her mother had kept sneaking people onto that as well.
She slipped her dress back up over her shoulders, closed her eyes and held her breath as Aggie zipped it. The gown zipped with ease. Jessica released a sigh of relief. She turned and hugged Aggie before bursting into tears.
Aggie hugged her tightly and patted her back. “Don’t cry, kitten,” she said. “You’ll ruin your make-up and then we’ll have to listen to your mother bitch some more.”
Jessica laughed. More of a huff. It turned out that laughing was a chore when one was cinched tight into a corset. Maybe that’s why Aggie didn’t laugh very often. At least she hadn’t been very joyful when she’d been acclimating Jessica to the stripper world in Vegas. Aggie laughed a lot more now that she was with Jace, and she still wore corsets.
Wiping at her tears, Jessica drew away from Aggie and plastered a smile on her face. “I owe you one, Aggie.”
“I’ll be getting married soon enough,” she said. “I’m sure you’ll help me out of a disaster or two.”
Jessica lit up. This was the first time she’d heard Aggie actually mention her wedding, though she’d been engaged to Jace for almost a year. “Have you picked a date?”
She shook her head, straight black bangs dancing across her forehead. The woman had the most flawless white skin. She must never go out in the sun.
“We’re waiting for a location to speak to us. There are things you just know are right, you know?”
Jessica nodded.
“So we’ll get married when and where it feels right,” Aggie said. “No rush. It’s not like we’re planning on having kids anytime soon.”
“You’ll have to change your dungeon into a kid friendly playroom instead of an adults-only one,” Jessica teased.
Aggie chuckled, her laugh deep and throaty. “That’s the main reason I’m in no hurry. I’m rather fond of that dungeon just the way it is. And Jace likes it even more than I do.”
“Are all the corsets you make white?” Beth interrupted. From the expectant expression on her face, she’d been looking for an opening.
“Most are black.” Aggie cupped the back of Jessica’s head. “Feather looks g
orgeous in white though.”
Jessica flushed and then burst out laughing. “I’m never going to live that stripper name down, am I?”
“Not with me, kitten.” Aggie winked at her and then turned to her cousin. Seeing them side by side, Jessica realized they looked a bit alike. Beth was far more understated than Aggie, so it was easy to overlook her beauty. Beth’s hair was brown instead of black and she was tanned from the Southern Californian sun, but the cousins had the same bright blue eyes. Same thick lashes, lush lips, and knockout smile. Yet Aggie was vibrant, and Beth seemed ready to crawl into bed to take a nap. The poor dear needed to study less, Jessica decided. Maybe she could find some spare time to help her out. They’d always studied together when they were roommates. Plus she hadn’t seen near enough of Beth since moving in with Sed.
“Let’s measure you for your corset, Beth,” Aggie said. “I think you’ll look great in black. What kind of design do you want embroidered?”
While Aggie and Beth discussed corsets, Jessica excused herself to go check on the rest of her bridal party. She found Elise and Kylie on the deck at the back of the house, watching the waves. The sky looked blacker than ever, but so far it hadn’t started raining. Jessica just wanted it to hold off until she was married to Sed and then it could rain as much as it wanted. Reagan and Rebekah were talking music in the second bedroom—a conversation Jessica couldn’t hope to participate in. She found Myrna in the living room with Malcolm in her arms. She was feeding him. Jessica practically melted as she leaned over the back of the sofa to watch him suckle. He had one hand splayed over his mother’s breast. His dark brown eyes were fixated on her face as he sucked. Jessica couldn’t wait to hold Sed’s child to her breast and have him look up at her with his father’s eyes. She could already picture it.
“He’s so beautiful, Myrna,” Jessica said.
“I can’t argue,” she said with a chuckle and rubbed the baby’s cheek with one knuckle. “I happen to agree.”
Malcolm paused and smiled up at Jessica around his mother’s nipple. Jessica cooed at him, completely in love with the little guy.
“I think he has a crush on you,” Myrna said. “He’s going to be heartbroken when you marry his rival in an hour.”
An hour? Jessica glanced at the clock over the television in the corner. It was a few minutes until ten. She would be married in just over an hour. Feeling suddenly light-headed, she moved around the sofa to flop down on the cushions.
“I should probably go check to make sure everything is ready,” she said.
“Trust the people you put in charge,” Myrna said. “Everything will go exactly as planned and if it doesn’t…” She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter as long as you end up married to the man you love, right?”
Jessica wasn’t so sure, but she nodded at Myrna’s words of wisdom. “Right.”
When Malcolm finished feeding, Myrna settled him over her shoulder and patted his back. He let out a mighty belch.
Jessica giggled. “Well, there’s something he got from his father.”
“No, I do believe he inherited that from me.” Myrna laughed as she patted her son’s back.
“Can I hold him?” Jessica asked. Nothing would calm her nerves more than cuddling with her favorite future guitarist for a few moments.
Myrna handed Malcolm to her and rose to her feet. “I’m going to go find my shoes,” she said, adjusting the bodice of her elegant red gown. “I’ll be right back.”
“No rush,” Jessica assured her.
Malcolm immediately reached for Jessica’s veil, but she moved him out of reach just in time, holding him at arms’ length.
“Are you being naughty?” she asked in a high-pitched voice and made a face at him.
He giggled and blew a raspberry at her.
“Did you learn something new?” She blew a raspberry back at him.
He blew another raspberry, which was more an exercise in creating as much drool as possible and spraying it in all directions. They continued their giggling raspberry war until Malcolm’s brown eyes widened unexpectedly and he spat milk. Jessica hadn’t been fast enough, and the warm liquid landed on her dress between her boobs and slid down her front to pool on her lap.
“Shit,” she said, leaping to her feet, still holding Malcolm at arm’s length as she glanced down at the damage. “A little help here!” she called. “Malcolm just puked all over my dress.”
Malcolm’s lips twisted together, his little chin quivered, and his eyes filled with tears. His wails of apology tugged hard on Jessica’s heartstrings.
“Shh, it’s okay,” she crooned and bounced him slightly. She couldn’t very well cuddle him against her and spread the muck from her dress to his adorable miniature tuxedo.
Her entire bridal party rushed to her aid. Myrna took her son and tried to calm him down. Beth wiped. Elise blotted. Aggie ran to the kitchen to wet a towel.
“At least it’s white,” Reagan said. “It won’t show much.”
Could anything else go wrong this morning? Jessica wondered.
The front door opened, and her mother breezed into the little beach house, looking more grave than the Grim Reaper at his own funeral.
“We’re going to have to delay the wedding,” she said.
Apparently there was plenty more that could go wrong.
Chapter Three
Sed watched himself try to fix his weird-ass tie in the mirror. It wasn’t like a regular tie at all. It was very wide and the fabric thin. It reminded him of an elongated cloth napkin. Morning tuxedo, Jessica had called it. Stupid was more like it. As he attempted to knot the tie for the fourth time, he wondered if Jessica would be incredibly upset if he tossed it in the garbage and claimed to have lost it. Finally giving up when the tie ended up looking like a clown collar, he stepped out of Brian’s bedroom to ask for help. Yeah, him. Badass lead singer and rock star asking other dudes how to dress. The things he did to keep the love of his life happy.
“Does anyone know what to do with these stupid fucking ties?” he said.
He noted that all the members of his wedding party were fully dressed—with ties. Apparently he was the only dumbass who couldn’t figure out how to tie the fucking thing.
“Over, under, around and through,” Eric said, swirling his hands around as if translating Pig Latin into sign language.
“Jace tied ours,” Brian said, and Eric scowled at him for not giving him sufficient time to fuck with Sed’s head.
“Jace?” Sed asked.
“He’s like a wedding expert,” Trey said about the man in question, who was blushing furiously and trying to look like a tough guy at the same time. “Weirdest shit I’ve ever seen.”
“My mom used to play piano and organ at weddings,” Jace said. “She didn’t want to hire a babysitter, so she forced me to go with her and I learned a few tricks over the years.” He shrugged as if it were normal for a young male to pick things up about weddings. “What can I say? I was a cute little boy.”
“Don’t short-change yourself just because you’re short,” Eric said. “You’re still a cute little boy.” He pinched Jace’s cheek, distorting his face into something comical.
“Fuck you, Sticks,” Jace said, slapping at his hand.
“Aww, will you look at that face?” Eric said, stretching Jace’s cheek into an even more distorted shape. “He was obviously a fairy wedding princess in a past life and is using this cute little boy claim as a cover.”
He released Jace’s face to punch him squarely in the shoulder.
Jace ignored the assault, but Sed didn’t doubt that Jace would get even with Eric later. When Eric was least expecting it.
“Sit and I’ll tie it for you,” Jace offered to Sed.
So Sed sat on a spare ottoman and Jace stood behind him, reaching around his neck to tie his tie. Sed was going to have to beat up someone after subjecting himself to this level of feminization and having a man who wasn’t his dad tying his tie for him. It couldn’t be his dad beca
use Dad had passed away a couple months before. Had he lived, would he have known how to tie the ridiculous accessory? Sed doubted it. His dad had been very blue collar. He’d only owned one tie—a clip-on, at that—and had only worn it on Sundays and to his grave.
Jace slapped Sed’s shoulder when he’d finished. “There you go,” he said.
“Thanks,” Sed said gruffly. He glanced down at the neat knot at his throat and the perfect creases on either side of it. “Wow, Jace really is a fairy wedding princess. What. A. Pussy.”
Sed wasn’t expecting to be tackled to the floor by Jace. Eric body-slammed Jace into Sed’s chest, and soon they were all buried in a dog pile of hard bodies and flailing arms and legs. He wasn’t able to deliver a single blow of retaliation. Sed supposed they were all feeling a bit tense and domesticated. So acting like a sextet of immature idiots—even Dave had abandoned his wheelchair to join the wrestling match—did wonders for Sed’s level of anxiety. It didn’t do much good for the perfectly pressed condition of his tuxedo, but fuck it. If today didn’t go as planned for him and Jessica, they’d get past it. The only thing that could possibly ruin his day was if she stood him up at the altar. But she wouldn’t do that to him. She couldn’t leave him in misery again. She wouldn’t.
Would she?