Page 79 of Of Pranks and Passion

“Ugh. Way more than you think,” Sierra groaned. “I thought I was going to pull my hair out before the big day finally camearound. And I was busy with work, too. Are you going to wait until you finish getting your degree or–”

Crap. I never discussed that with Easton. I didn't think he wanted to drag it out that long, since the actual goal was to get rid of my sister, but I wasn’t sure. He might want to drag it out just to piss her off.

“We haven’t discussed dates. Easton wanted to make sure it was sometime that worked best for all of you. Especially his dad. He said Mr. Warner was really busy, and it was better to work around his schedule.”

Mrs. Warner looked surprised to hear that, sitting back in her seat a little. “Wow. I didn’t think he’d care. Whenever I thought about him getting married, I assumed it’d be a courthouse wedding whenever it suited him. He likes his privacy, and I thought he’d want that moment to himself.”

“Gary deserves a big party,” Easton said blandly as he came back into the room. He gave Sierra an irritated look for stealing his spot, but didn’t comment. Instead, he stood behind the couch with his hands bracketing my shoulders on the back. It felt protective without being overbearing, and when I tipped my head back to smile at him, he dropped a chaste kiss on my lips before turning to his stepmom. “I don’t want to wait forever. How soon can we do it?”

Mrs. Warner floundered a little, like she didn’t expect Easton to ask her input, but she pulled herself together pretty fast and straightened her spine.

“Well, if you want something nice like your siblings had, it’ll take at least a year. Venues will have waiting lists, and getting anything sooner than six months is nearly impossible.”

Easton made a face. I could tell by that look that he didn’t want to wait that long. Biting my lip, I considered our options before my eyes landed on the tree in the middle of the room.

“What if we did it here? Is that an option?”

Evie’s eyes lit up. “Oh! That could work! Right?” She looked at Mrs. Warner, whose eyes were suspiciously wet.

“Yes. We can do it here. That’s a wonderful idea, Gary. If we do it outdoors, it’ll be big enough for all our guests, I’m sure.”

I looked up at Easton to get his opinion, but all I got back was a shrug. I should’ve figured that’d be his answer. Now the hard part.

“Um… My sister wants to…help.” The words tasted bitter in my mouth. I didn’t want Brienna anywhere near my wedding, but that was the whole point of this thing. Easton may have agreed to a relationship, but he didn’t want a wedding. This was a ruse to remind Brienna that I was protected. I still think it would’ve been easier if he just intimidated her in the first place, but I found it better just to go along with Easton’s crazy ideas. They always lead to something fun. Like after I got high for the second time, he took me to a 3D movie and laughed his ass off when I panicked, thinking things were actually flying at my face. Once I convinced myself it wasn’t real, I had a blast, and I loved listening to him laugh, despite the glares we got from the other movie goers.

“Well, that’s sweet. We’ll be sure to include her,” Evie said with a smile. Why couldn’t my sister be like her? She was so nice.

“Easton? Can I speak to you and your fiancé for a moment?” Mr. Warner asked, with an expression that said it wasn’t a suggestion but a very polite demand. I excused myself from the conversation about the wedding, nervously taking Easton’s hand and clinging to it when he led me out of the sitting room and down the hall to an office where Mr. Warner was waiting behind a desk. He gestured to the seats across from him, watching us both with narrowed eyes.

Easton didn’t even hesitate to drag my chair, which had been a few feet away from his, to his side, so we were as close as we could get without me being in his lap. I appreciated it, but Iworried about what his dad would say. I squeezed Easton’s hand, desperately trying to keep myself from shaking.

“First, I’d like to apologize to you, Gary. You came here to share exciting news, and I was rude to you. I’m sorry.” It was the second time someone had ever apologized to me, and I still didn’t know how to handle it. He waited for me to nod in acknowledgement before continuing. “If it had been anyone else, I would have argued against a quick engagement. But as my children have reminded me, Easton does things his own way and always has. If I want to remain a part of my son’s life, I need to let him live life on his terms. Within reason. I pushed him to go to college and expand his mind a little. He’s very smart, as I’m sure you well know, and I didn’t want him wasting that potential smoking weed with his friends.”

He shot Easton a look that said he wasn’t happy with that particular lifestyle choice. Easton didn’t do it all the time, not like Smiley, so I didn't see it as a problem. He never drove while under the influence, either. We walked home after he indulged. He made smart choices. There was nothing wrong with relaxing a little.

I wasnotgoing to argue with Mr. Warner about that.

“Regarding the wedding, I have some stipulations.”

Easton straightened, already glaring, but Mr. Warner raised a finger to stop him. “Let me finish first. You and your siblings were quite clear about my place in all of this. I won’t get in your way. But you are still my son, and when my children get married, there are certain expectations. I know you don’t enjoy taking money from me, but I’ll be inviting some prestigious partners, and they expect a certain level of extravagance.”

My stomach clenched uneasily. Easton already said he wanted to go big. Why did it feel like when Mr. Warner said it, the extravagance would be a million times worse? I didn’t want a wedding like that. I didn’t belong around fancy people.

“I don’t need your money,” Easton argued. “I can afford extravagance just fine.”

“I’m sure you can, though you still haven’t told me how you earn that money. But how many guests were you planning to invite? Because my intended additions will net you at least one hundred. Weddings are expensive, Easton. Weddings in my circles are even more so.”

“Who said anything about inviting your business partners?” Easton growled. He really didn’t like the idea of taking his dad’s money. I put my hand on his arm, rubbing gently. It only settled him a little, but he looked less like he was going to get up and walk out.

“We, uh… We were discussing having the wedding here with Mrs. Warner… Wouldn’t that help with the cost?”

I wanted to help Easton, but I was uncomfortable arguing with his dad. If this was my real wedding, I’d probably be happy going to the courthouse. Weddings were unnecessarily expensive. I’d rather spend that money on a house. Or the honeymoon. Average weddings were tens of thousands of dollars. Do you know how many libraries you could see on that kind of budget?

Mr. Warner’s face softened a little. “It will help, yes, and there’s certainly room here for that many guests, but it won’t cover everything. And I don’t want either of you putting yourself out to accommodate my guests.”

Easton still looked ready to refuse, but Mr. Warner must’ve been prepared for that, because he put his hand up in a staying motion before speaking again. “I have a compromise. You and your fiancé can sit down and do the math. Put together the guest list of people youwantthere, the amount it will cost to cover their attendance and food, that kind of thing. I will pay for everything but that amount. That way, you are paying for yourown wedding, and I am offsetting the cost of inviting my own guests. Does that sound fair?”

It sounded fair to me. I wasn’t close with my extended family, they lived out of state, but my parents would probably want to invite them if the wedding was fancy. And Easton could include his family and friends on his list. I’d be working forever to pay Easton back for my half of it, but I’d bring that up later. He would probably argue about it and here wasn’t the place to have that conversation.

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