Panic rises within me, but I bat it down. He’s been talking so seriously lately. We’ve been together for only a short time, but I know what he wants. Me. Us. Together.
Forever.
Am I ready for that sort of commitment? I know I can’t do much better than Matthew DeLuca. That sounds cold, but it’s true. We’re madly in love with each other. Not only does he treat me like the woman he worships and loves, but he also respects my mind and work ethic. He values my opinion. We work well together at the winery. We have an amazing relationship. I’m a lucky girl.
It all still feels unreal, us being together. And this scares the crap out of me.
Marina
I SIT IN front of the mirror and take a deep breath, shrugging off Mom as she tries to hug me. Again. She’s been a regular waterworks the entire morning, but now that I’m in full makeup, I refuse to shed another tear until the actual ceremony.
“You look so beautiful,” Mom says on a wistful sigh. “I can’t believe my baby girl is getting married.”
She’s said that multiple times this morning too. I understand she’s feeling nostalgic, but her tears and trembling voice are doing me in. I’m an emotional, exhausted wreck. Wedding planning is hard, and I’ve been such a control freak, I hardly let the planner Mom and Dad hired for the wedding make a move without consulting me first.
The room Matt provided for the bridal party to wait in right before the ceremony is perfect. Bryn had a hand in putting it all together, and I can tell. I really love that girl. So glad we’ve become such good friends.
“I hope everything goes smoothly,” I murmur to myself, but the way Mom just straightened, I know she heard me.
“It will be perfect. I just know it. You’ve already had your one flub for the day. Everything else will be fine,” Mom says with a steely voice that tells me she’s not in the mood for contradictions.
Now it’s my turn to straighten. I meet her gaze in the mirror. “What do you mean, ‘your one flub’?”
“Ivy and Archer having to back out.” Mom waves a hand, dismissing our friends just like that. “I understand we can’t predict when a baby will decide when he or she is ready to make their way into the world. It threw us off a little, but Matt and Bryn have stepped in and everything’s going to be just fine.”
As if she heard her name mentioned, Bryn glided into the room, quietly closing the door behind her. Her lipstick is completely smudged, so that means she must’ve snuck off and met with Matt.
A spark of jealousy lights inside of me. I wish I could secretly meet Gage and let him kiss my lipstick off.
But I can’t. We’re getting married in a matter of minutes. I’m going to be Mrs. Marina Emerson. I’m excited. More than ready to be Gage’s wife. After all—the stress from planning will fade away like a bad dream.
“Hey.”
I blink and shake my head, realizing that it’s Bryn standing behind me now instead of Mom. She has her hands on my shoulders, a reassuring smile on her face. If she wasn’t such a good friend, I could almost hate Bryn for how beautiful she is. She’s gorgeous—her face and body such flawless perfection, she could be a movie star.
The bridesmaid’s dress looks amazing on her. It’s going to be a beautiful wedding. Everything has been planned, down to the finest detail. So why do I feel like such a wreck inside?
“What’s up?” I say, offering Bryn a quick smile. “You snuck off and met Matt, didn’t you?”
“Yeah. How could you tell?” Bryn looks embarrassed which is cute.
“You walked out with lipstick and came back with none. That’s a dead giveaway,” I say.
She rolls her eyes, her cheeks turning the faintest shade of pink. “I think he wants to ask me to marry him soon.”
“Wow. Really?” I’m surprised, yet not. If any of those guys were a not-so-secret romantic, it’d be Matt. He’s never tried to hide it either, but his worshipful side has come out big time since Bryn came into his life. “That’s wonderful.”
“Yes.” Bryn shrugs, her expression turning miserable. “It is.”
I stand up and peer at her, noting the way she tilts her head so her gaze is cast downward. Like she doesn’t want to look me in the eye. “What’s wrong?”
Bryn shakes her head. “Nothing. Let’s focus on you. It’s your wedding day. You don’t need to worry about my insecurities.”
Beautiful Bryn has insecurities? “You’re worried about your relationship with Matt and whether he loves you or not? I don’t think you should be concerned. That man is so gaga over you it’s sort of disgusting.” Matt is always shooting Bryn moony looks, like he can’t believe she’s with him. “He’s madly in love with you.”
“And I’m madly in love with him but . . . I’m scared.” Bryn whispers the last two words and lifts her head so I can see the tears welling up in her eyes. “So stupid. I know we have a great relationship, but it’s moving so fast. We haven’t been together that long but all of a sudden he wants to marry me? How can he be sure? Does he even know the real me? Do I even know the real him?”
“Oh Bryn.” I give her an awkward hug because I don’t want to wrinkle our dresses or mess up our hair. “Don’t worry about the what-ifs or how fast your relationship has moved. You love Matt. He loves you. Be happy that he’s so willing to commit to you.”