"Mum, seriously!" Chloe said, looking up and blinking. They looked absolutely ridiculous and I couldn't help laughing.
"I can solve this problem. Chloe, who's bigger Jace or Logan?"
"Nell!" She snapped, mouth popping open.
Bethany pretended to be shocked but she laughed and ruined the act. "Bet you don't feel like crying now, huh?"
"You're the worst maid of honour ever."
"But your make-up is still perfect. You're welcome."
"I think I'm just going to see how your dad and the boys are getting on," Bethany said.
I put my glass down. "Wait, Bethany. I'll go and order them around, you stay and have a few minutes with your daughter. If she starts getting teary just bring up the size thing. Works every time."
She smiled and shook her head, discouraged. "Thank you, Nell."
The guys had a room down the hall. They didn't really need one since they didn't do the getting ready together thing but Damon had insisted so they could have a few drinks together before the ceremony. There was also talks of cigars and card games but I hoped that was just a joke.
I walked down the hallway and knocked on their door but over all the laughing, and what I assumed was teasing of Logan, they didn't hear. If I walk in there to find strippers I was going to lose my shit.
Pushing the door open, I crept in. It was fine, they were all going to keep their privates - no strippers, just lots of booze. "Logan, you better not get drunk!" Jesus, now I sounded like Chloe.
Damon was the first one to look up. He froze and his eyes widened. I did look pretty damn great. My hair was naturally wavy and messy but it'd been curled and ruffled up, similar to Chloe's but I didn't have anything fancy in mine, I'd probably lose it anyway. I wished I could afford a hairdresser to come and do the same thing for me every day.
"Nell," Logan said. "You look incredible, and no I'm not getting drunk. I've only had two pints."
"Good. Keep it that way or Chloe will have your balls," I replied, trying to keep my eyes on Logan while I could feel Damon close by, feel that his eyes were fixed on me. It gave me butterflies.
Usually Logan would say something crude but Chloe's dad was in the room so he wisely chose to do nothing but laugh.
"How is she? Not planning her escape?" He asked.
"Oh, she's already gone, that's what I came to say."
A few of the guys laughed and Jace shoved his arm. Damon barely moved, his eyes were still fixed on me and not on my breasts. On me.
"You're really not funny, Nell," Logan said, glaring.
"She's fine, she looks amazing, and you're going to lose it when you see her."
His grin lit up his light eyes. "Yeah? Is she nervous?"
"She's not showing it if she is. I'm forcing champagne down her neck so that'll squash any last minute nerves if she has any."
"You're a true friend," he said dryly.
"Alright," I said cracking my knuckles, "line up guys, I need to fix your sorry attempts at tying the cravats."
It looked like they'd tied them they way they did their shoe laces. Chloe wanted the big, perfect wedding and she was bloody well going to get it.
Jace appeared in front of me first, smirking back at a now glaring Damon. Men. "You're crap at this," I said, undoing it and tying it again.
"Good thing you've come to the rescue then."
"It is. Are you excited for today?"
"That your way of asking if I'm going to ruin the wedding?"
"No, that was me asking if you were excited. My next question... well, not really a question, was going to be a death threat along the lines of I will bury you in the grounds of this castle if you mess this up for them," I said, smiling sweetly.
He laughed as I finished and dropped my arms. "I got over Chloe a while ago, Nell. I'm happy for them both."
"Good answer. Now move along, I've got another six of these things to do."
Jace walked away and Damon was up next. After briefly shooting daggers at Jace's back with his eyes, he turned to me. His lips parted and looked at me through hooded eyes.
"Hi," I whispered, my heart flying in my chest.
He tilted his head to the side and took a deep breath. "Hey," he replied, taking hold of my upper arms and pulling me against his chest. We didn't really have time for this but I couldn't help it, he was like a magnetic force that I was powerless to withstand.
I felt lightheaded. With shaking hands, I reached around the back of his neck, lifted the collar and then removed the badly tied cravat. Damon's hazel eyes pierced into mine with a thousand promises that I wanted.
"You look good," I said, focused on the task in hand so I wouldn't let the things I was feeling right now consume me.
"I can't..."
I looked up, amused to see him lost for words, it didn't happen often. When I met his gaze the look in his eye stole my breath. Neither of us said a word. Everyone in the background faded until their conversations were merely a background hum. I could smell Damon's aftershave, a smell that instantly made things better, and hear his slightly heavy breathing. And my heart, my heart was racing in my chest, beating so fast and so hard I was certain he could hear it too.
"There," I said so quietly I barely heard myself and patted the cravat. "All done."
Damon didn't say a word in reply and I was becoming concerned about what was going through his head, but I had a feeling it was the same as what was happening up in mine. Something melted away inside me and I fought to grip hold of what I needed to do in order to avoid repeating history. For the first time ever I understood why they couldn't walk away.
"You are so beautiful, Nell," he whispered. His voice was hoarse and sexy and turned my insides to mush.
I licked my lips and smiled. "Thank you. I'm glad you like the dress."
"It has nothing to do with the dress."
Blowing out a deep breath, I said, "I have to finish fixing everyone else up and get back to Chlo." What I really needed though was a strong drink.
"I know," he replied, cupping the side of my neck and kissing me. He didn't let the kiss turn wild or deep and it only lasted a few seconds but it was still the most poignant kiss of my entire life.
He smiled and I saw a glimpse of the old Damon back. "Fuck, I need a drink," he said, giving me one last kiss and then walking to the table that looked like a bar had exploded all over it.
I bit my lip as I watched him walk away and when I turned to tie the next cravat I found Logan standing before me, arms folded, eyebrow lifted and lips smirking.
"Don't even fucking say it!" I hissed in a whisper, making him laugh.
I left the men when they were acceptably dressed and headed back to Chloe's room. My heart hadn't slowed down after my moment with Damon, so I was desperate to get back and have something to take my mind off it.
When I walked in Chloe and her mum were hugging, neither was a blubbering mess so their chat had been successful in that right. Chloe turned as she heard the door close. "How are they?" She asked.
"All fine. Logan can't wait to get you down the aisle." She beamed and then it hit me. "You're getting married soon!" We shouldn't even be old enough to do this shit yet.
"I know. I can't wait." She took a deep breath. "Thank you, Nell."
"For what?"
"For all those kicks up the butt when I was trying to work through my feelings for Logan. You helped me to see a lot of things much clearer."
That was why she was pushing with Damon. She thought I was in the same place as her. There was a big difference between us. She was able to give Logan everything he wanted but I couldn't do that for Damon.
"You're welcome. I'm just glad you saw sense."
She rolled her eyes. "Me too. Are we ready to get me married?"
I linked my arm through hers and grinned. "Absolutely!"
Bethany, still with tears in her eyes, stepped forwards and handed us both our flowers. "You girls look beautiful. Chloe..." She waved her hand, fanning her face. "Okay, I can
't say another word or I'll cry again. I'm going to find your dad and send him to your room, then I'll see you in there."
"Thanks, Mum."
I watched them interact and wondered if I could ever have that with my mum. We weren't close but I was sure that if I ever got married she would be excited. I hoped she would anyway. It was pointless thinking about it. She was too wrapped up in her relationship with Dad and I wasn't going to get married.
"Any last minute nerves?"
"No. Was Logan really okay?"
"He's fine, just anxious to get a ring on your finger."
Her smile warmed my heart. I loved how much she let herself love him. "Okay. Good. I was worried."
"You think he'd call off the wedding?"
"No." She shook her head. "I don't know. You'll understand what I mean when you get married."
Rather than bite her head off at being yet another person that thought I didn't want to tie the knot just because I was still young, I smiled and gave her a hug. No one needed to know my past or the shit I carried around with me.
"Can I come in," Bill said, knocking on the half open door.
"Of course, Dad," Chloe replied, turning to face him.
His face lit up when he saw her. "Chloe, you look..."
I wrapped my arm around my best friends shoulder. "She's gorgeous, right! Logan is going to be uncomfortably hard the whole day."
"Yes," Bill said, shaking his head in grossed-out amusement. "Thank you very much for that, Nell."
Chloe didn't even go red like I'd hoped. I guess there were only so many times you could do things like that before it stopped being embarrassing.
"You're welcome, B. Now, let's get this show on the road."
I let go of Chloe and kissed Bill on the cheek. "You look beautiful too, love," he said.
"Thank you. I'll give you a minute but you literally have like sixty seconds before we need to get our arses down that aisle."
They both nodded, and I left them alone. Chlo was an only child so I knew it was hard for him to see her all grown up. I rounded the corner and saw a flash of something black before I was shoved against the wall.
I gasped and went to knee the guy between the legs but got caught when he clamped them together, pre-empting my move. Looking up I saw an amazing pair of very familiar of eyes looking back at me.
"What's wrong with you!?" I hissed, slapping his chest.
Damon pressed me harder into the wall with the weight of his body. "You."
"Me? What have I done?"
Groaning, he ran his hands down to my hips. "That dress, the legs, your hair, everything." Oh, looks like Logan isn't going to be the only one hard all day. "I haven't been able to think straight since I saw you," he said, trailing one hand lower. My dress was knee length, which seemed to be very agreeable with Damon. When his fingers skimmed the skin of my thigh I gripped his arms.
"What're you doing?" I asked, looking back and forth down the hall. We were in a public place and Chloe and Bill would be walking past here any second. He moved up and I groaned as he brushed the lace of my French knickers.
"You can't do this here, Damon." I said the words but I so didn't mean them. The thrill of being caught turned me on more than it should. He made me feel free and unashamed. But still, I didn't want my best friend's dad to catch me getting fingered in the hallway.
He tilted his head to the side. "You don't mean that."
No, I didn't. "Come on, we-" I gasped and shoved him away as I heard Bill and Chloe's voices drifting down the corridor.
Damon laughed, grabbing my wrist and pulling me back. At least we weren't still pinned to the wall when they appeared. He kissed the side of my head and I felt my heart leap.
"I'll see you after," he said and headed inside.
Smiling in pure fucking hope I wasn't flushed, I said. "Let's get you married, Chlo!"
She squealed and hugged her dad's arm. "Promise me you won't do a stupid dance down the aisle."
Grinning far too wide, I winked at her dad.
"Nell Presley!"
Holding my hands up, I said, "I swear I'll be good."
"She will," Logan's sister, Cassie, said pulling my arm. She'd been in the ceremony room all morning making sure it looked perfect.
"See, Cass will kick my arse if I'm bad."
Taking a deep breath, Chloe nodded. "Okay. I'm ready. God, I am so ready for this."
"Then less chatting and more walking, sister!" I said, pulling Cassie towards the door. We were going in first and then Chloe would follow.
"You're not really going to dance, are you?" Cassie asked as we lined up beside the open door, ready for the music - our cue.
"Oh my God, you don't even know how tempting it is since she forbid it."
Cassie laughed and shook her head. "If it wouldn't ruin her day I might've done it."
"What? You?"
Slapping my arm gently, she said, "I can do crazy, spontaneous things too."
"Oh really? Perhaps you should be proving that tonight."
"How?"
"I'm sure you'll think of something. Or someone."
Her mouth popped open as if I'd just suggested she walked down the aisle naked. It was going to be interesting seeing what she'd come up with because casual sex was clearly an alien thing to her.
The music started and I gave Chloe an encouraging smile before walking into the room with Miss Spontaneity in Training.
Nell
Cassie and I walked down the aisle at the designated pace. Heaven fucking forbid we messed up the timings.
"Almost there," Cassie whispered, smiling a bit psychotically. That basically meant don't dance or skip or do anything but carefully put one foot in front of the other. When people really didn't want me to do something it was very hard not to... Perhaps one day I'd be a grown up.
We reached the end and stood to the side, waiting for Chlo. Her extra special music started and she appeared in the doorway with her dad. I watched Logan as he first caught a glimpse of her and my heart melted in a puddle.
Chloe beamed as she watched Logan and walked towards him. Cass was already crying. I didn't feel like crying, although I was mega happy for her.
The venue was grand but they'd opted for a short and sweet ceremony that I really appreciated. I wasn't anti-love or anything but having people harp on about love and marriage for an hour like they did in church weddings, made me want to stick my head in a blender.
Everyone's eyes were glued on the happy couple. Everyone but Damon's. That little shit stared at me like I was ESPN. I could feel him watching me and it made me self-conscious. I didn't mind him checking me out, in fact I'd be insulted if he didn't, but this was on a whole new level of creep that I wasn't used to. And maybe I kind of loved it a little bit.
Chloe and Logan led the way out of the ceremony room as husband and wife, and Cass and I followed. We went to the reception room next door for drinks and photos before dinner. I headed straight for the free alcohol.
"Thank you," I said as I was handed a glass of champagne.
A hand - which I knew belonged to Damon - wrapped around my waist from behind. "You look fucking edible," he growled into my ear.
Chloe's great grandmother's mouth popped open and she walked off, very slowly and very offended. Damon didn't even seem to notice and I didn't particularly care.
"Am I now?" I said, sipping the champagne.
"If I didn't think Chloe would kill me I'd drop to my knees right now."
Turning in his arms, I glared. "Let's not do this now, we have a whole afternoon to get through before I can have my wicked way with you."
"Your wicked way with me, huh? What do you have planned, Presley?"
"Now that would be telling, but I do know there's chocolate mousse for dessert and I don't plan on eating it off the plate."
His breathing got a little heavier. "I think I'm going to like your plan."
"You most definitely will. Do you want champagne?"
"I'd rather dri
nk piss. Which isn't too unlike champagne. I'll go to the bar and grab a beer." He let go around my waist and took my hand. Guess I was going too. "Do you want anything else?"
"Nah, I'm good with champagne, thanks."
"You're not fussy as long as it gets you drunk, are you?"
"Not one bit."
Laughing, he tugged me closer to him and kissed the top of my head. I liked that a lot, it made me feel cherished.
"How long do you think the photos will take?" I asked as we propped up against the bar. This was pretty much where we'd stay until we had to go in for dinner.
"Fucking ages. You're going to have to be in a lot of them."
"What?" I groaned. "Seriously?"
"They're probably going to want their bridesmaid in the photos," he said dryly.
Frowning, I took a gulp of champagne. "Think I could convince them to just get one and Photoshop me in the rest?"
"Because that'll look great. Becks please," he said to me and then the bartender. Logan's parents had paid for an open bar, one in which I intended to bankrupt them with. Big, huge mistake if you didn't want people getting wasted and falling over or fighting. At least I was a lover when I was under the influence so I wouldn't embarrass them. Unless I got a little too love-y.
"I can't believe she's married," I said to Damon as we watched on at the photographer ordering them to stand together and clink glasses.
Wrapping his arm around me again, he took a long swig of beer. His thumb rubbed circles on my hip, making it harder to concentrate on anything else. "They look happy."
"They do." Every time I saw them I wanted what they had. "Think it's inappropriate to get drunk yet?"
Smiling down at me, he nodded. "Maybe we should wait until after the meal to get you good and drunk, hey?"
I turned my body into his, pressing against him. "Are you going to get me very drunk?"
His intake of breath made me hot all over. "Yes."
"Hmm, then what will you do with me?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?"
I couldn't decide if I wanted to or not. Knowing what was coming would drive me wild but so would the unknown. Whatever it was I was eating my pudding off his chest first, that was certain.
"Now can we have the bridesmaids with bride and groom," the photographer called out.
Damon grinned and raised his eyebrow. "It starts. Have fun."
"Fuck off," I said and put my glass down, leaving Damon laughing at the bar.
As much as I didn't want to stand around and have my photo taken hundreds of times, I would suck it up for Chlo. "Hey," I said when I reached her side. We hadn't had chance to talk after the ceremony with so many people congratulating her and then the photographer stealing her.