Page 16 of That Secret Something

I gritted my teeth. “No jokes about the wedding.”

Would it be frowned upon to pepper-spray my own best friend? Hmm.

I inhaled, letting the air fill all the spaces in my chest. I was doing this for Lily, I reminded myself; I could handle a few unhinged brides-to-be.

Another wave of immaculately dressed women stormed through the doors, ransacking the displays and cooing over every piece of architecture. My anxiety bubbled under the surface, and I sucked another three deep breaths in, counting to ten. Getting crushed by a stampede was high on my irrational fears of dying.

“Oh, they have more over there!” Lily suddenly exclaimed and ran off to one of the other tables standing in the ornate hall. She waved yet another book packed full of colour swatches. I was sick to death of looking through booklets; they were the bane of my life. Why did there need to be sixty-seven different shades of red? And what kind of name is Lusty Lipstick, anyway?

I sidestepped a couple, the woman dragging the man towards a selection of complimentary cheese canapés, before arriving at Lily’s new favourite table. She thrust the book at me, and it weighed a ton. What the hell is in this thing? Forty-six different types of rock?

“What do you think of this?” she asked, sweat beading on her forehead.

I peered over her shoulder. “Crispy Asparagus? What? Are the chair-coverings edible?”

“Jess!” She waved a newly manicured hand in my face. “Please, be serious.”

While Lily continued leafing through the booklet, a sharp scent suddenly teased my nostrils. My eyes searched, then landed on the flowers on the table. A memory reached out and tugged at my mind.

The smell of lilies might make other women think of Valentine’s Day or anniversaries, but not me. I’d never actually been with anyone long enough to have an anniversary or had a relationship around the dreaded in-your-face love day. Instead, the smell of lilies reminded me of my childhood.

Mrs Lawson—Sally, as she’d always insisted I call her—frequently displayed lilies in the large red vase on their dining table. It was something I hadn’t thought much about when I was a kid. The flowers in the vase were just something that blended into the rest of the Lawson furniture—the type of things we didn’t have, like soft, cushioned carpets, expensive paintings and family photos on the walls, matching plates and mugs in the cupboards. It was just a house to me at first—a place that I’d go to play with my best friend. It wasn’t until I was older that the lilies in the red vase would catch my eye when I walked into the room.

I’d asked my mum about it once, why she didn’t have flowers in our dining room. She’d put down her library book and looked at me pointedly over her reading glasses. “We don’t have the money to spend on something that’s going to wilt and end up in the bin.”

I’d noticed more things after that. How Lily and Rebecca would have the newest trainers and trendiest clothes, while mine would be handed down from my older cousins. How Mr and Mrs Lawson would order takeout often, and even have fresh food delivered, where Mum and I would cut coupons out of magazines to use in the supermarket.

The Lawsons had never made me feel like a charity case, or a good deed they could boast to their friends about. Still, there were days when I felt like I didn’t quite fit in, fearing that one day they’d have enough and throw me in the bin with the lilies.

Lily clicked her fingers. “Jess, come on. What do you think?”

I tore my attention from the flowers and focused on the shade of blue held under my nose. The colour reminded me briefly of Maggie Thompson’s ‘It’s a Boy’ banner, but I pushed those thoughts away, happy at least to be done with that job, even though this one was proving to be just as stressful. “I think it’s nice.”

Lily snapped her head to me, mouth curling. “Nice? I need specifics, Jess.”

I pressed my lips together. Yes, this was the third venue tour of the day, and I would much rather spend my Sunday doing other things than being trampled on by posh twats, but Lily was my best friend. My neurotic, bride-to-be, psychotic best friend—but best friend, nonetheless. One I’d endure a bridepocalypse for.

I sucked on my teeth, swearing to give Rebecca a piece of my mind for leaving me to do this on my own. “Are these chair covers included with the venue?” I asked. “Or else at a discounted price?”

Lily’s eyebrows drew together, the vein in her forehead bulging as her eyes scanned the page. “Urgh. I don’t know!”

“Here.” I looked over the fine print, trying to ignore the nosy women hovering over my shoulder. I need wine after this. Lots of it. “There’s a fifteen percent discount, but…these prices are…” My eyes widened. “Astronomical. I know a guy that can give us some samples for at least half of this.”

“Oh, Jess!” Lily wrapped her arms around me. “Thank you. Thank you. You’re the best.” She let go of me and checked over her shoulder. “Unlike that sister of mine. Just wait ’til I see her!”

Yes, just wait. Rebecca is in for an onslaught.

“Can you help me too? Do you have a business card?” A woman stepped into my eyeline, all make-up and lipstick and boobs.

“I, uh…” I dragged my eyes upwards from her generous cleavage. “Sorry, I’m not taking on other clients at the moment.”

A stampede of click-clacking heels passed us, the women bumping into my shoulder and screaming like schoolgirls. Everyone turned their heads and followed, desperate not to miss out on whatever exciting thing was happening. I knew that whatever was making these women excited could only be a bad thing. Every nerve ending in my body told me so.

“What’s going on?” Lily dragged my arm, pushing me towards the horde of bridezillas. The to-and-fro with a hundred different flowery perfumes assaulted my nose, making me dizzy. Lily let go of my arm, drifting with the crowd towards the front. I pushed away, needing some space. She could fill me in later; the last thing I needed was a panic attack.

Someone grabbed me, and I spun around, coming face-to-face with familiar green eyes.

“Hey, Grant. What’s going on?” Rebecca asked. Her gaze roamed up and down my outfit. I was too stressed to care how dishevelled I must have looked.

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