Page 67 of Venom and Lace
“Sorry,” I whispered and bit the inside of my cheek. She was going to kill me, poor lady. A moment later, she was done, and I admired her handiwork in the mirror.
Juliet gave me a thumbs-up and handed the hairdresser a hundred dollars. The hairdresser’s eyes widened, and she grabbed her bag and ran out of the room lightning fast. We both chuckled as Juliet came up behind me and rubbed her hands over my arms.
“Nova, you look so beautiful.” Her eyes watered and my mouth fell open.
“You promised me, you whore. No crying or you’re going to make me cry and ruin my makeup.” I stood and hugged her tightly. “Save it for after the ceremony. Then cry all you want. Hell, I’ll probably cry right along with you.”
She giggled and handed me a flask. “Liquid courage. You look like you need it.”
“You know I do,” I sighed and held on to the flask like it was a million dollars.
There were so many people here, it was hard to wrap my head around it. Cars lined the side of the road as far as I could see, small groups of people being shuttled to the main barn. The day had been overwhelming, and I was already counting down the minutes until it was over.
“Have you seen him today?” Juliet grabbed another flask from her purse and took a drink.
I shook my head. “Not since last night. He said it was bad luck to see the bride before the wedding.” I laughed. He was taking it so seriously, this whole wedding business. He’d even planned out a whole honeymoon in Italy—seven days of pasta, wine and just me and him alone, which I didn’t know how to feel about.
He’d tried to kiss me last night, his face reddening when I shot him down. I had explained repeatedly that we needed to keep sex out of it. It was a fake engagement, a pretend fairytale wedding. Sex would complicate things more than they already were. He hadn’t been happy about it. Told me to think on it because we could “have a lot of fun on the wedding night” and he “cared deeply” for me.
But I was not the same fool I had been the past few months. I wasn’t going to fall for smooth talk. Not again.
I gazed across the field at the open barn doors, people rushing to get inside. Covington stood out like a sore thumb with his maroon cowboy hat and matching suit. My breath caught in my throat when I saw Iva holding onto his arm.
“She’s here,” I breathed and gripped the edge of the windowsill. Juliet pressed her forehead against the window, and we watched as Iva threw her head back and cackled at something Covington said.
I shouldn’t hate her. It wasn’t her fault that Cian was a liar. She was a victim in all this, too. But I would be lying if I said there wasn’t a small part of me that wanted to run down there and shove her face into the giant wedding cake, or throw wine all over her and ruin her dress, or—OK, calm down. You’re going too far again.Rage fantasies were becoming my new favorite hobby, but it obviously wasn’t good for my mental health.
“It’s not her fault, Nova. Remember that.”
“I don’t know if I can do this, Jules.” My hands trembled as I unscrewed the lid off the flask and took a shot. The liquid burned down my throat, doing little to comfort the panic rising in my chest. “I think I’m making a huge mistake.”
“Hey, no, it’s OK.” She took the flask out of my hand and laid it down, squeezing my hands. “It’s just nervous jitters. Remember, this isn’t forever, OK? Just until Ryzen closes his deal. Then an easy divorce and, poof, back to a normal life.”
Normal? What was normal anymore? I sighed. “You’re right. I just need to breathe and get this over with.” I breathed deep through my nose and out my mouth. Again and again until my heart slowed down. “OK, I’m OK.” I nodded, my shoulders relaxing. It was just jitters. Everyone got them when they were about to be trapped into a fake marriage. No big deal. She was right.
There was a knock on the door, and I smiled when I saw Grams.
“Oh, darling, you look stunning.” She wrapped her arms around me, then Juliet. “Can I have a word with my granddaughter, dear?”
“Absolutely, Grams.” Juliet grabbed her purse and headed for the door. “I’ll be downstairs in the living room when you’re ready.” She held up her fingers in our secret code, and I did the same.
Grams held me at arms length and looked me over. “You clean up real nice.” She chuckled.
“Thanks, Grams.” I grinned and handed her the flask. “How about a pre-wedding shot?”
“Oh, dear, I’m afraid I’ve already had too much.” She pulled a small flask from her cleavage and shook it.
Typical Grams. Always prepared for any situation.
She looked down at the floor, her lips in a flat line. “I want to talk to you about something serious.”
I furrowed my brow and sat down on the bed, bringing her down with me. “What is it? Are you OK? Is something wrong?”
She looked over her shoulder at the closed door. Once she was satisfied, she turned back to me. “Do you know a Mr. Blackwood?”
My mouth went instantly dry, and I instinctively stood up. “What do you know about him, Grams?”
She shook her head and reached into her purse, pulling out a business card, and handed it to me. “He came to see me last week. Said he was a friend of yours. Had a business proposition for me.”