Page 12 of Theo (Stone Brothers #6)

TEN

LACEY

I t had already been a long morning, and it seemed it was going to get longer. I knew Joan's knock which said a lot about her and her knock. She always rapped sharply and confidently. Mom looked at me and mouthed the word "Joan." I nodded.

"Come in," I called. Mom had gotten back to the estate early.

She and dad were renting a small house nearby.

Joan had suggested they could stay at the mansion, but she'd said it with just enough "if you must" in the tone to confirm my parents' plan to stay in a rental.

It had come in handy. They'd showed up for the first night of cocktails but had spent the rest of the time going to lunch and dinner and having a nice, quiet vacation away from the wedding chaos.

These people weren't for them, and I was coming to the very fast conclusion that they weren't for me either.

Joan walked into the room and gave a quick visual inspection as if she worried I'd been trashing the place. Mom gave me a short shrug.

Joan's champagne blonde hair was pulled back off her face.

She could have been considered pretty, but she always wore such a stern expression it was hard to see past that.

She set a velvet box down on my dresser.

"I brought the diamonds early. Please keep an eye on them.

They're worth two hundred thousand dollars. "

I heard my mom gasp.

"Uh, diamonds?" I asked. "What diamonds?"

Joan looked at me as if I was the stupidest person on earth.

"The diamond necklace you're wearing for the wedding.

" She opened the box. This time I gasped along with Mom.

The box was dripping with diamonds. It was a multi-stranded platinum and diamond necklace, one that was far too extravagant for my simple wedding dress, the dress Joan had looked askance at when I tried it on, but when it came to the dress I wouldn't be bullied.

"I'm wearing my Grandmother Josie's pearls. They're much more suited to my dress style and my whole look. Plus, they have sentimental value."

"You can wear the pearls at the reception. I'll be collecting these up right after the ceremony for security reasons. As I said, they're worth?—"

"Yes, you said already," I said curtly.

Mom cleared her throat. "It really is a lovely strand of pearls. The diamonds might overshadow the dress and, dare I say, the bride." Mom smiled and laughed gently, but Joan kept her expression rock hard.

"As I said, you can switch to the pearls at the reception.

" She pulled her mouth tight to let us know she thought poorly of the idea.

"Oh, and Grace will be here in an hour to start makeup on you and your bridesmaids.

" My bridesmaids consisted of my good friend, Mindy, and the rest were George's relatives or family friends.

It was sort of pathetic, but I had no sister, and we only had a few cousins who all lived too far away to bother sending invites.

As Joan walked out, something occurred to me. "I'm sorry, did you say Grace was on her way? I picked Naomi to do the makeup. She was much more in tune with my style. Grace's makeup style was far too heavy and dramatic."

"I looked through some of the photos in Naomi's wedding makeup portfolio, and frankly, I couldn't even tell the women had makeup on."

"Yes, that's the point. I want a natural look. Not a theatrical one." I could feel my blood pressure and anxiety level going through the roof.

"I'm not paying for those photographers to take photos of all of you without makeup. Grace is considered one of the best."

"From your generation," I added sharply.

Mom gasped quietly behind me.

Joan's glower softened into a creepy grin. "Your generation doesn't have a clue how to look nice. I've already canceled Naomi, so Grace will be here soon." With that she walked out.

I turned to my mom. She held out her arms because she knew I needed a cry. She hugged me and patted my back. "It'll be fine, sweetie. You're beautiful no matter what makeup you're wearing."

I took a deep breath, wiped my eyes and lifted my face. Mom held my shoulders and peered up at me. "You've got a brilliant future with George, and yes, his mother is a little too much."

"A little? She is so much worse than I even expected."

Mom leaned forward and kissed my cheek. "Take that bubble bath you were looking forward to, and you'll feel better. This is a big day, sweetheart, and Dad and I are so proud of you." Mom's eyes teared up. She was so excited about my future. If only I felt an ounce of that excitement.

Mom walked out, and I went in and started the bath.

I leaned against the bathroom counter and watched a frothy plume of iridescent bubbles begin to grow.

I pulled my phone out of my pajama pocket.

After Joan's ambush, I was feeling even less confident about my choices and my future.

I was in no state of mind to send off a text, but I couldn't stop myself.

Ironically, talking to Theo these last few days had been the only thing keeping me from going stark raving mad.

"What the hell am I doing, Theo?" I added in a sad face emoji and sent it.

The phone rang. All the emotion, tension and regret I had bottled up poured out in sobs. I answered but couldn't speak. All he heard were my sniffles.

"Send me the address," he said plainly.

"What? No, I—you don't?—"

"Ace, send me the fucking address." He hung up.

I stared at my phone for a second, then typed out the address for the estate and hit send. The second it was delivered, I realized it was a huge, giant, stupid mistake. Seemed I was making a lot of those lately.