Page 61 of Shifted

"Madison, I think your time here has concluded?" Maria smiled at her politely, leaving her shocked.

"You can't be serious? I'm the best in Boston. Do you know who you're getting rid of?" She exclaimed, a nasty look on her face

"Someone with too much of an ego." She turned behind her to see Theo. She stormed past him, leaving the apartment and leaving me laughing. He walked over to me as Maria and Bella discussed other options.

"What fire sparked in here? My sister looks like she's about to explode in anger?"

"Big weddings off, eloping is in." He nods in some understanding.

"And you're her minion through all of this?"

"Maid of honor is more like it… my work never ends," Bella calls me over, and I oblige.

"What's up?" She pointed to the Boston Common.

"Yes?" I question.

"Here, we are getting married here. With very few people tomorrow." My stomach dips in surprise. Tomorrow sounded insane, rather nearly impossible, and who knows what kind of permits we’d need for that.

"Tomorrow? Are you pregnant?" She shakes her head and lifts a magazine to show a winter wedding in the Common. Great, that's just what I needed her to see: another bridal magazine.

"That took months of planning. May I remind you it's also twenty degrees outside?" She shrugs, beaming now with a smile. "I'm getting married tomorrow!" She squeals. I look over to Theo with an expression that reacts to his sister's insanity.

"I'm going to run to the florist then," I offer. I take her sampling of what she wants in a bouquet and quickly leave; I can't believe it. My best friend is getting married tomorrow.

?

I slam a pillow into her face and watch as she squirmed in shock. And as she settles back into comfort, I do it again.

"Stop!" She groans.

"You're getting married in four hours, so I think it's best advised you wake up." With that, she shot up out of bed. "Four hours?! Where is Grayson?" She panics. Someone needed to give this girl a Xanax or maybe sedate her.

"Obviously not here, silly. He's with your brother doing a last-minute tux fitting this morning." I opened her bedroom door as hair and makeup people fled in. "Operation, get Bella married," I said aloud, and an arm of one of the hair people yanked me into a seat to get me ready.

After 2 hours, I found myself in front of a mirror, straightening out my dusted rose dress. That was something I appreciated about Bella; she had taste, and that was what I was grateful for not looking like a tart at this wedding. I’d never been a bridesmaid before, but I’ve watched a couple of movies to learn that sometimes dresses are tough.

"Where's Reed?" Theo says, walking in behind me. I was surprised he was here and not trying to do his own task, keep Grayson together. "Shouldn't you be with the groom calming his nerves? Making sure the poor boy doesn't run?" He tilts his head as he analyzes me in the mirror.

"He'll live without me for a few minutes." He moves my hair from behind my back to my shoulders, fixing it for me. We stood in silence, nerves of our own best friends today, taking vows to each other for the rest of their lives.

"Reed is in the middle of a 27-hour shift that he couldn't get off since this was so last minute." He nodded in understanding, but I could tell it bothered him. Reed always bothered him in some way, but I figured he’d be delighted that he wouldn’t be here today.

Something brushes my arm, and I look down to see the flowers I’ve arranged, "It's your bouquet, and we have to go. A minister is freezing outside right now," I sighed.

"Today is the day our best friends marry each other," I mused, and he shook his head. "No, today is the day my best friend marries my sister," he groans, “And I have to be there to witness it." I can’t help but laugh. He was so defiant against them at points in ways I could never understand.

"But they love each other, so you should support it." Theo sighed, knowing I was right, and leaned his head on my shoulder from behind. In the end, his desire for his sister's happiness was the most important thing.

"I support it; I just don't like it." The warmth of his skin against mine was so distracting that I didn't even realize I had been staring at him for a solid two minutes.

"We should go, remember the minister," I said as I broke away from him and walked into Bella's room. The veil ran down her dress, and the silk fabrics fit her perfectly. She stood staring at herself in the mirror. "Today is a day I'll allow you to be obsessed with yourself," I joked. The sight of me made her smile with some sort of relief, and she turned to me. I intertwined our hands as I admired her.

"God, Bella," I whisper. My sight blurred as I stared at her, and I felt myself begin to choke up. It was all so real. The boy she once had a silly little schoolgirl crush on, her brother's best friend, would now be her husband. When we were just seventeen, I used to tease the crap out of her. When I found out they were officially together, I knew Theo would want to kill them, but I couldn't be more excited. She found her happiness and had yet to realize it to the full extent.

"Don't cry—if you cry, I cry, Hope." I nod swiftly, wiping the fallen tears, and hand her a bouquet.

"Let's get you married.” My stomach grew tight in thought, but today was Bella’s day, and nothing would be ruining that.

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