Page 75 of The Wedding Wrecker

I smiled against her temple. "Good. Maybe we’ve both been doing too much thinking. Too much making simple things complicated. Maybe we should just?—"

"Mr. Carter!" Madame Beaumont's voice cracked like a whip. "I am happy you’re not acting like this is a middle school dance, but I also won’t have any women getting pregnant on my dance floor! Find the balance, people!”

Emma tried to step back, but I kept her close. "Sorry, Madame. I got lost in the music."

"The music," she muttered. "Of course. And I suppose the music is also why your hand keeps sliding lower?"

Emma's eyes widened as she realized where my hand had drifted. She stomped on my foot—hard.

"Oops," she said sweetly. "I got lost in the music too."

I was still laughing when Madame Beaumont called the lesson to an end. The others filed out, but I caught Emma's arm before she could escape.

"We need to talk."

"I know… but I want to make sure I give this more thought. I’m not ready to talk about everything yet.Soon, I promise." She tried to pull away, but I held firm.

"Not about us. This is about the Wellingtons. I found something?—"

"There you are!" Dick's voice made us both jump. "Emma, dear, father wants a word about the ceremony setup."

Emma shot me an apologetic look before following Dick out. I watched her go, the weight of what I'd discovered sitting heavy in my chest.

I had to tell her the truth about the Wellingtons.

But first, I had to figure out how to get her to stay in the same room with me long enough to listen.

25

EMMA

"Imean, just look at this." Lily emerged from behind a changing screen in her wedding dress, practically glowing. "It's like it was made for me."

I blinked back tears as I took in my baby sister. Sure, I’d already seen the dress when she picked it out, but the alterations were almost done now and it already looked so amazing. And she looked so,sohappy.

The dress was everything she'd dreamed of—delicate lace overlay, subtle sparkle in the bodice, and a flowing skirt that made her look like an actual princess.

"You're beautiful," I managed.

Martha Wellington dabbed at her eyes with a monogrammed handkerchief. "Marcus won’t be able to resist you, Lily. I’m sure he’ll practically claw that dress off you as soon as you’re back to your room on the big night.”

Creepy, but okay.I had to give Martha a pass, because even pervy comments were an improvement over her usual personality.

The seamstress fussed with the hem while I circled Lily, checking every detail. The dress had needed minimal alterations, which was good since we were cutting it close. Everything had to be perfect.

Perfect.The word tasted bitter now.

"What's wrong?" Lily asked, catching my expression in the mirror.

"Nothing." I forced a smile. "Just thinking about last-minute details."

"Liar. You've got that look."

"What look?"

"The one you get when you're overthinking something." She turned to face me, careful of the pins sticking out of her dress at various places. "Is this about James?"

Martha's head snapped up with interest. I shot Lily a warning look, but she ignored me.

---