Page 25 of Princess of Pride
Mom waves Candace over from the side of the room, where the housekeeper stands waiting to be summoned, to refill her champagne flute. Then she gives me a pointed look, hidden behind a tight smile. “Peonies and lace, like your bedroom. Remember?” To Jameson, she says, “Head in the clouds.”
It’s better to make me look ditzy than to make herself appear controlling.
I study the three rings Mom chose, knowing better than to even suggest one of the others.
Neither are terrible, but they’re not me. Each vintage ring is something my mother would wear. One is a cluster of diamonds in the shape of the damask wallpaper pattern in the powder room near the front entrance. Another looks like a crown fit for a queen. The third has bows made of diamonds on either side, with a solitaire perched in the center like the topper of a cake. It has an Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s vibe that speaks to me more than the others. It’s also the least gaudy of the three.
I pick up the platinum shining band and try it on my ring finger. “This is nice.”
Mom frowns at it. “That isn’t supposed to be in there.” She takes another one from the velvet board. A radiant cut rectangle shaped diamond surrounded by smaller diamonds invarying shapes that form an oval around the rectangle. “Give me that one.” She snaps and points to the ring on my finger.
“I like it though. And it was in the group you picked.”
She gives me another stern look. With reluctance, I slide off the Audrey Hepburn ring and try on the one she picked. It isn’t my style either, but something about it is interesting.
“That’s the one,” Mom says with finality. “She’ll take this one.”
Jameson smiles at me. “Miss?”
Out of curiosity, I ask, “Did Lachlan pick any of these himself?”
He frowns but hides it quickly. “He trusts me to choose for him.”
I don’t know why that would have mattered. Maybe it would have made me feel connected in some way to the man with whom I’m celebrating this event.
Mom touches my knee. “Men like Lachlan can’t be bothered with minor details when they have trained staff to do it for them. Isn’t that right?” She smiles all fake at Jameson. “You were a wonderful help.” She stands and waves Candace over again. “Make sure he has everything he needs to leave.” Then she snaps at me. “Up, Darling. Let’s show your father your ring.”
I stand dutifully and follow Mom from the room. The ring, while the perfect size, feels heavy and wrong on my finger. I can always replace it with something smaller and only wear this one when I’m around her. Lachlan shouldn’t mind since he didn’t even bother to pick any of the rings he sent over.
6
DON’T MOVE
I stare at my phone and the text I typed out for Adelaide. This is the third one that has gone unsent.
I want her here at my side for this significant day, but the last time we texted she was in limbo with Kingston, trying to make their precarious relationship work and make sense of their past. She wanted to confront her dad about something too but didn’t want to go into detail.
How could I ask her to support me on my wedding day—no matter that it’s arranged and fake—when she is still fighting to make things work with Kingston?
We haven’t spoken directly since our girl's weekend in Boston about a month ago. So much has changed since then. Mostly my hope for a relationship where I had a say. I suppose that’s still to come once I’m out of my house and free from under my mother’s control.
Lachlan signed my trust over to me, but without talking to him about where we’ll live, I can’t decide on where to open my business, which means my life is at a standstill.
Him ghosting me after getting in his Batmobile and racingaway is a huge stressor. I thought I wouldn’t care, but so much relies on a conversation between us—multiple conversations that we haven’t had.
Since Lachlan left, time has passed by in a blur. Was it only three weeks ago that I—my mom—chose my engagement ring, my wedding dress, flowers, color scheme, cake, and every other detail.
It’s basically my mom’s wedding. Mom’s and Pippa’s. The two of them decided which Maid of Honor dress Pippa would wear. They also said I needed a bridesmaid to match Lachlan’s one groomsmen.
At the time, I typed out a text to Adelaide complaining about everything and saying how much I needed her. I came so close to sending it, but I couldn’t be that selfish. Since then, our texts have become less frequent. She isn’t telling me everything on her end, just like I’m withholding the misery on mine. We’re the same in that way, always have been since we became fast friends in eleventh grade.
My mom took the opportunity to appoint the role of bridesmaid to the daughter of her best friend from her book club.
I stare at Emma—named after the Jane Austen novel—through the long mirror I stand before in the guest room located closest to the side garden where the wedding ceremony will be held.
Emma is doing her best to hoist up her small boobs from the top of the lace dress. Its A-line shape makes her waist look tiny. Pippa chose it for the same reason but to conceal her growing baby bump. The periwinkle blue color complements Emma’s mahogany hair.
Pippa wears the color often. It makes her blue eyes stand out. The only difference between their dresses is Pippa’s is floor-length versus tea-length and has pearls along the neckline.
