Page 13 of Own the Eights Gets Married
Georgie
Georgie cringed.
She’d know the haughty huff of the Denver socialite Lorraine Vanderdinkle, aka her mother, anywhere.
She squeezed her eyes shut. Maybe if she didn’t officially see the woman, she and Jordan could take off running down the street.
“Georgiana? Pumpkin?” came the familiar chime of her mother’s voice.
“You told my mother?” she whispered.
“Of course, I did! I went to see her and Howard to ask for their blessing. And I’ve got to tell you, Howard is a pretty great guy. I’ve never talked that much with him.”
“Me neither, actually,” she answered.
“It wasn’t like I could go to Lizzy Bennet, Jane Eyre, or Hermione Granger and ask for their approval. But I did rereadPride and Prejudice. So, there’s that,” he whispered back.
Her trifecta shrugged.
Dammit! Going to her mother and stepfather was the honorable thing to do.
“But there’s more,” Jordan said, keeping his voice low.
More? What more could there possibly be than knowing her mother had probably already decided this wedding was going to be Denver’s next big social event?
She squeezed her eyes shut even tighter. “What kind of more?”
“I’m pretty sure she’s been in contact with Bobby and Hector.”
“Oh, my God,” Georgie whisper-shouted as her eyes fluttered open.
Jordan cringed apologetically, and she held his gaze, her eyes growing wider.
“It’s like we’ve got our very own Hydra of Lerna.”
Jordan cocked his head to the side. “What the hell is that?”
“It’s from Greek mythology. It’s—”
He gasped. “I remember. It’s a three-headed monster.”
Georgie risked a glance and found her mother flanked by Bobby and Hector.
“The Hydra of Denver,” she said with a gulp, fearing the power of three.
“The Hydra of Denver? Is that a fancy cocktail or a new spa treatment at the Ritz, pumpkin?” her mother asked with a frown in her voice.
Knowing her mom, Lorraine Vanderdinkle probably thought she was frowning, but with the Botox, all that happened was a slight twitch to the corner of her mouth.
Muted frown or not, if she thought Hector and Bobby’s involvement was bad, the addition of her mother to the wedding planning mix would be absolutely catastrophic.
Georgie caught Jordan’s eye, expecting to find the same level of dread she was sure burned in her gaze when the man winked at her. He actually winked! The thing is, it was just what she needed. That tiny gesture helped ease the surge of frantic energy she experienced whenever her mother was in the vicinity.
“Come on, you two. You don’t want to keep your guests waiting,” Hector added, waving them toward the entrance.
Georgie shared a look with Jordan as they followed the wedding brigade into the hotel.
“I hope they didn’t go too crazy on this champagne breakfast thing,” she said, mustering courage.
