Society Weddings (Corrigan & Co. Book 11) by Crystal Perkins

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