Page 16

Chapter 16

Lynn

“O ky, can you show me what you’ve got in dresses?” I said, turning around to face Lucille. We were leaving tomorrow and while doing this without Yorix wasn’t what I’d hoped for, it was what it was. Though, it did mean I could keep the dress a surprise from him as was traditional, which I rather liked the thought of.

“Did you have anything in particular in mind?”

“Well, we’re getting married on a beach, so I’m thinking it should be available in a soft blush pink, kinda like the inside of a seashell.”

“If you’re on a beach, you probably do not wish for a train,” Lucille said thoughtfully.

“No. In fact, I’m thinking mid calf.” I then described to her the dress I’d envisioned since childhood. “No veil,” I added. “Xero’s arranged for me to wear a plumeria crown.”

“I believe I have something that will suit. Not usually worn as a wedding dress, more the mother of the bride or even a bridesmaid, but there’s no reason it can’t be.” She motioned me over to show me something on her tablet.

I gasped. It was perfect!

“Yes, that’s it! Oh, it’s so Aubrey Hepburn! I can wear it to the luau later in the wek with my hair up like hers!”

Chris crowded in. “Oh, that’s stunning. You’ll need the shoes too.”

“We can replicate both the dress and the shoes. “If you’ll take your shoes off and stand on the scanner marks, please.”

I did as she asked and Xero made quick work of measuring me. Lucille gestured for Chris to follow her into a small room in the back, where he could look at pictures of suits on the wall turned computer display when the door opened, admitting Oshar and Korah.

“Are we too late?” Korah asked.

I laughed as he looked too cute with the way his face was scrunched up all worried. “Did Xero not tell you that all he needed was to scan you to get your current measurements?”

Korah grinned back at me. “He did but this afternoon was hand-to-hand unarmed sparring, so we left it to a couple of the other instructors to supervise.”

“We’ll do the same for them another day so they can have a free afternoon,” Oshar explained.

“Oh. Well, that’s nice of them. It’s just a shame Yorix can’t be here too.” I couldn’t keep the tone of disappointment out of my voice and they looked at me sympathetically.

“Would it be better if we just left after providing a quick scan?” Oshar asked.

“What? No! I’m really glad you’re here, actually. He’s back there looking at pics of himself in about a million different suits.” I rolled my eyes. “He finds one he likes, then freaks out when he notices the brand. Please go help him decide and calm him down. It’s a tux for a once in a lifetime wedding,” Oshar growled possessively. I ignored his alpha male display and continued, “And he can wear it over and over again to different black tie things. But he just kept saying, ‘More black tie events? What other black tie events?’ and ‘That’s Dolce and Gabbana! Do you know how much that probably costs?’ and ‘Tom Ford! Are we Tom Ford kind of people? I don’t think I’m fancy enough to wear Hugo Boss or Tom Ford!’. And if that’s not enough, he’s having trouble deciding between gray or blue. I had to come out here to get some fresh air before I decided to pick for him. I’ve already chosen my dress and I can’t pick out Yorix’s tux until I can make sure they won’t be wearing the same one! If he’s wearing blue, Yorix will be in gray. If he’s in gray, Yorix will be in black. And if he’s in black, Yorix will be white. My dress is blush, so that’ll be fine.”

They both stared at me dazedly.

“And what colors will we be wearing?” Korah asked, sounding hesitant.

“That depends on what he chooses. Don’t worry, I’ll help you sort that out.”

“So, in that room there?” Oshar asked, pointing..

“Yep. He’s dressed so just go on in.” I snorted. “Everyone thinks bridezilla but no one ever mentions groomzilla.” Now the poor dears were looking very alarmed, so I reached over to pat their arms. “No, he’s not really that bad. I’m just venting. Please go convince him on a tux and then help him choose the color. Then call me in and I’ll decide on Yorix and yours.”

Oshar nodded as they both slowly walked towards the indicated door as if it held their doom.

“I don’t know, maybe we should pretend we didn’t come and go back,” Korah whispered, seemingly unaware that it carried quite well across the small space so I heard every single word.

“And leave him upset and undecided? It’s our wedding, too, and he’s our mate. We can’t do that.”

“But she said zilla at the end of those words and I think that means he’s all ‘rawr’ like that thing in the vids he made us watch.”

“I never thought I’d ever see the day you’d act like a coward.”

I pursed my lips, desperately trying not to giggle at their antics. Mylos might be big, muscly warriors but they were also adorable as hell.

Korah stiffened in offense. “Not a coward! How could you even suggest such a thing?” They stopped in front of the door.. “I’m thinking strategic retreat. After an hour, we could call, and if he’s not decided, have him come home, make him a nice meal, offer him a glass of wine, give him a massage, and once he’s nice and relaxed, we can offer to help him.”

“And by relaxed, you mean loose from all the wine and a massage that is foreplay to a hot and heavy bout of sex,” Oshar scoffed.

I shook with silent laughter. This was pure gold. I couldn’t wait to tell Chris this story later.

“Well, yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?”

The door opened, revealing Chris with Lucille behind him.“We could hear you out there talking! Thank goodness you’re here. I don’t know what to do. Everything looks great but it’s so expensive!”

Korah and Oshar exchanged looked at each other. “Okay, well, let’s pretend these don’t cost anything, okay? And look at the top three you liked best,” Oshar finally suggested.

“Because it’s free to us and the Fleet is the one paying for it?” Chris asked. “I thought of that, but I don’t want anyone to spend unnecessary money on me. It feels wrong!”

Korah stepped closer to him and placed his hands on his shoulders. “Shh. Calm down.”

Oops. Wrong thing to say. He knocked Korah’s hands off his shoulders and took a step backward.

“Don’t you shush me and tell me to calm down,” he replied, indignant.

Oshar glanced back at me. I held up both of my hands in a “See what I mean?” gesture. He sighed in response before turning back to face Chris. “You know we don’t have actual money in bank accounts like humans do, right?”

Chris stared at him “Yeah?”

“So while serving in the Fleet, we work in exchange for all we need and whatever we want within reason. This includes living expenses and medical care for extended family if we so choose, and paying for guests to attend significant events, and so on.”

Chris deflated, the tension leaving his body. “So what you’re saying is while you’re not paying cash, you are bartering and have banked or will bank enough work to pay the Fleet back for all of this.”

Oshar nodded in silent agreement.

“And when I start selling books or whatever, it’ll go into the kitty to help pay it back too?”

Korah stepped forward, giving him a quick peck on the lips. “Yes, so to speak. That’s all I was trying to say as well.”

“Alright,” he sighed. “That I can live with. Just don’t ever try to calm people down by telling them to calm down and definitely don’t shush anyone but a child or a dog,” he scolded Korah, who had the good sense to look abashed.

“I’m sorry, honey.”

“Right, um, so there’s actually four I really, really like,” Chris said, turning and gesturing for his mates to follow him inside, closing the door.

Several minutes later, Oshar poked his head out.

“You’re done already?” I asked, feeling optimistic.

“Yep. Now we need to know what colors to order for the rest of us, and a few other things.”

“Yes!” I shouted, jumping up from the seat I’d settled down to wait in, clapping my hands as I did so. Now we could get down to the final nitty gritty: choosing the suits for our grooms. They simply needed to be the right colors, preferably in the same style as Chris’s. Easy peasy, right?