Made To Love Her

C
opyright © 2016 by Z.L
. Arkadie

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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I
sigh heavily
. This is my first answer to Maddie’s or Allie’s question—I still can’t tell Vince’s sisters apart. There are three of them—Lexie, Maddie and Allie. Each has bleached blond hair, a tiny mousy face and speaks in high-pitched voice that gives me a headache. At least now I only have to contend with two of them. We’re back at the bakery. We were here yesterday for six hours. One of Vince’s sisters—Lexie, I think—stomped out in a huff because I didn’t want a wedding cake with red roses on top. I didn’t care if they tasted like cherry meringue. I don’t know much about weddings, but I do know enough to realize that red roses do not go on top of wedding cakes, at least not the non-tacky ones. I feel as if they have been trying to sabotage me from the beginning. Today is Tuesday. We started the whole wedding planning process from hell together Monday of last week. We’ve been aided by a mysterious wedding planner named Lily, whom I’ve yet to meet. The only reason I believe she exists is that lying to me about her would be an elaborate scheme. Vince’s clan can’t really hate me that much. Could they?

The wedding cake specialist rubs her brow as if to ward off the same headache that I have. “So, Maggie, are you ready to make your final decision on the top tier?”

This is our second day of taste-testing cakes and selecting fillings. I’m starting to think that we’ve eaten enough cake to compose one gigantic wedding cake.

I open my mouth to speak but Vince’s sister throws her hand up in front of my face in a pretty rude manner. “Lily wholeheartedly suggests the chocolate layer on top,” Maddie says. I’m pretty sure she’s Maddie, the one who always wears the white pearl earrings.

“But I don’t like chocolate cake, and neither does Vince. What’s wrong with all-white cake with buttercream frosting?” I say.

She blows sharply through her nose. “Vince does like chocolate cake.”

“No. He does not.” I check my watch. I can’t believe that I’m participating in an argument over cake.

Speaking of Vince, I’m pissed to the umpteenth power at him. He was supposed to arrive yesterday at eight o’clock. I’ve been trying to call him for the last eighteen hours. At first, the phone rang three times then went to voicemail. Now my calls go straight to voicemail. I might have thought he was cheating on me if I didn’t know for certain he wouldn’t do that. Before flying out to Denver, we spent three beautiful weeks together in Hawaii. Vince and I had the time of our lives. Instead of fighting LA traffic and rushing to staff meetings, we did sunset yoga every morning and paddle-boarded afterward. Each day, Vince flew us to a new island in his helicopter. That was one of many new things I learned about him on our trip—he has his pilot’s license. We explored the volcanoes, tropical forests, and beaches like there was no tomorrow. At night, I would throw on a tank dress and flip-flops and Vince would wear Bermuda shorts and a T-shirt. Then we would drink mai tais at a tiki bar by the beach. For the most part, we kept busy surfing, dancing, mountain climbing, hiking, and swimming—doing anything but making love. It’s been so very difficult to keep the pact to not make love until after the wedding. I had to keep reminding myself that celibacy was my very bad idea. I almost reneged on it more times than I can remember.

“Excuse me, but can I have your complete and undivided attention just for this one moment please,” the sister says.

Thank goodness I’m not one for turning red, but I’ve had it up to my eyeballs with their rudeness. I think back to the promise I made to Vince: I would be cordial no matter how far they pushed me. At least he hadn’t tried to convince me that his sisters would be a joy to be around. They hate the fact that I’m marrying their brother. When he called to invite them to the small ceremony I was planning in Southampton, New York, his mother, Anne, nearly choked on her gasps. By the end of their conversation, she had laid such a guilt trip on Vince that he convinced me to have the ceremony in Denver and to let his sisters and mother help plan it. That was on a Friday. On Sunday, we flew to Denver. They had me scheduled for dress fittings on Monday morning. Every single dress the saleswoman showed me was horrendous. On Tuesday, she showed me another load of frumpy dresses, and Wednesday was the same. Thursday, I called one of my best friends, Hannah, who’s a professional fashion stylist. She gave me the name and address of a friend of hers who owns a boutique downtown.

I left early that morning to meet Kara Zane of Zane Dress Studio, which is located downtown. I tried on two gorgeous dresses before I discovered the perfect one. Of course, the sisters were angry that I found a dress without them, and they ratcheted up their passive-aggressive campaign.

On top of that, Vince flew back to New York later that day. A photo surfaced of Reno Nelson, the lead actor of the
Firescape
sci-fi/action thriller series, kneeling over a dead rhinoceros, with a rifle tucked under his arm. As a result, every single advertiser of the television show pulled out. I was still fighting the urge to fly to New York to figure out the fastest way to save the show. But the incident was too close to home. It felt like a Mo&Ma matter, and I’m just not ready to go back to shoveling the shit high-profile people find themselves buried under.

However, at the moment something clicks inside me. I’m looking into the sister’s eyes, and I see her disdain looking back at me. How many times have I handled difficult clients like Maddie or Allie? The trick is to not smile—not yet.

I calmly stuff my phone back into my purse and make sure I’m not looking at her as if I think she’s a crazy person. I place a hand on my chest. “Listen, I like chocolate cake,” I lie. “Vince, however, doesn’t have many requests regarding the planning of this wedding, but not having chocolate wedding cake is one of them. So let’s just do no chocolate cake for him. He deserves it, don’t you think?”

The sisters look at each other. They have a way of communicating with their facial expressions, and I’m starting to decipher them. I guess it’s my survival instincts. Their raised eyebrows prove what I thought. They’ve been screwing with my head, which is easy for them to do now that Vince isn’t here to side with me.

One of the sisters grunts as if she’s just been defeated. “Okay.”

The other scratches the back of her head. “Maddie, let’s just get all white with lemon cream at the top, white chocolate mousse filling in tier two, strawberry glaze for tier three, and blueberry compote at the bottom and be done with it.”

Maddie glances at me then puts her hand over the receiver. “But that’s not what Lily wants,” she whispers.

I ready my lips to say, “Fuck Lily!” This is my wedding not hers.

But Allie whispers, “Screw Lily” instead. “At least on this. Vince likes all those fillings.” Allie crosses her arms defiantly. “I’m going with what Vince likes on this one. Period.”

I raise my eyebrows, intrigued. I think I may have discovered an ally, and her name is Allie.

Maddie tells the wedding planner that we have the whole cake situation under control then hangs up the phone. We confirm the cake filling along with the white cake for the top three tiers and chocolate cake at the bottom. I would still rather have all-white cake and buttercream frosting, but I figure we all have to compromise—even if I’ve been doing most of the settling.

T
he car ride
back to the house is awkward. At least this time, it’s quieter than usual. Maddie is clearly peeved at Allie for giving in so easily. I may have won the cake war, but I plan on trying to talk Vince into eloping.

As we’re arriving back at Anne’s house, we pass a cab on its way out. My back hugs the seat as I sigh in relief. Vince must’ve made it back. Oh boy, does he have a lot of explaining to do. The car stops, and we all jump out as fast as we can and rush inside. Apparently, I’m not the only one excited to see Vince. Before the first one of us makes it to the steps, a uniquely pretty woman with short hair and a heart-shaped face steps out of the front door, waving.

Disappointed, I stop in my tracks.

The woman holds her arms out to take a hug from Allie, while studying me curiously. “I made it!”

“Carter, you made it,” Allie says.

They hug.

“Is Vince here?” I ask before realizing what I said.

Suddenly, like an angel in the sky, Vince walks out of the house and stands beside her.

He and I grin at each other. I swear it’s as if this is the first time we ever locked eyes.

I walk past the woman named Carter and bury my face in Vince’s chest. The way he smells… The warmth rising from his body… Gosh, I’m so happy to see him that I want to cry.

“I’ve been trying to call you,” I say.

He plants a strong kiss on my forehead and then my lips. “Sorry, babe, I lost my phone. New York was crazy. A town car almost hit me, and my chartered flight was grounded due to mechanical issues, so I had to take a commercial flight.” He scratches the back of his neck. “The best part was I ran into this one at the airport.” He points his thumb at Carter, and she smiles. “This is my cousin, Carter.”

I smile, and she smiles back. It’s a huge relief to finally get a genuinely warm expression from someone in Vince’s family.

“Well, I’m going in the house. But, Carter, we have to talk, so hurry up and get your tush inside,” Allie says. She rubs Vince on the arm. “Glad you’re back.”

He kisses her on the cheek. “Glad to be back.”

Allie smiles tightly at me before trotting up the steps and into the house. That was unusual. She normally pretends as if I’m not here.

“Nice to meet you, Maggie. Vince told me a lot about you,” Carter says.

I shake her hand. “I hope he said great things.”

“He basically said you were smart, ambitious, and beautiful—a triple threat.”

“Wow, that
is
great.”

She chuckles. “I would say so.”

Vince rolls his eyes playfully. “Oh, come on, I said more than that, Carly.”

“Hey,” Carter grouses.

Vince laughs and looks at me. “I used to call her Carly for fun.”

“Yeah, because Robert Tango could never remember my name, and Vince never corrected him.”

“Hey, I thought Carly had a certain ring to it.”

She rolls her eyes hard. “No, it doesn’t.”

We look at each other after the laughter simmers and good vibrations surround us.

“Anyway, I’m here to help you in whatever way I can,” Carter says to me. The look in her eyes tells me that she senses what I’ve been going through with Maddie, Allie, and Lexie.

“Thank you,” I say in a sincere tone.

“You’re welcome.”

W
e go inside
. Dinner is in two hours, and before Vince and I head upstairs to freshen up, Lexie, who hasn’t said a word to me since the beginning of Wedding Dress-gate last week, tells us that Lily will be joining us for dinner. Finally, I’ll get to meet the mysterious Lily.

Vince and I make it to his old bedroom, and he shuts the door behind us. We kick off our shoes, wrap our arms around each other, and fall onto the bed, kissing. Our mouths go at it feverishly. It’s just so good to taste him, feel him, and hear him groan with pleasure again. My nether regions throb for us to take this session to the next step. Vince slides his finger against my clit through my silky panties.

“Baby,” he sighs.

“I know… screw it,” I whisper thickly.

Vince’s tongue dives deeper into my mouth. My head is spinning. He separates my knees and tugs at the clasps and zipper of his pants. I’m wet with anticipation. Then there’s a loud gasp.

Vince and I turn our fiery gazes toward the door.

His mom is standing at the threshold, a stack of fluffy royal-blue bath towels at her feet. “Um…” Anne puts a hand over her eyes. “These are for you.” She squats with her eyes closed and feels for the towels.

Vince springs off the bed while zipping his pants. “I’ll get them, Mom.”

I grab a pillow, wanting to bury my face in it, but the show is far too awkward to miss.

Anne stands up and steps back, banging into the wall. “Okay.”

Vince bends down to pick up the towels. “Mom, you should’ve knocked.”

“You’re right, son. But next time, could you please lock the door?”

“Yes. I will.” He stands and looks at her for a moment. “Mom?”

Her eyes are still closed. “Yes.”

“You can open your eyes.”

She slowly opens her eyes and glances at me. I pull my legs up to my chest and hug them tightly. I feel as if I should apologize for leading her son down to the den of sex, lust, and all the dirty things she never pictured him doing.

Her gaze flicks to Vince. The way she’s looking at him… It’s as if she’s seeing him in a different light. “Sorry, honey. I’ll see you both at dinner.”

Anne backs out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Vince stands still. He’s still discombobulated by what happened. “Okay, tomorrow, we’re in a suite at the Ritz-Carlton.” He flexes his eyebrows at me. “Especially if we’re back on.” He dives onto the bed. “Now where was I?”

I squirm out of Vince’s grasp. “Wait a minute.” His erection is rigid and ready to dive into my wetness.

“Come on, Maggie,” he groans.

I roll off the bed to stand. “Maybe she stopped us for reason. We’ve gotten this far.”

“Baby, let’s stop this nonsense.” He scoots off the bed and throws his hands up. “This is me, thoroughly sexually frustrated.”

“Well, I am too, but I’ve been thinking.”

He rolls his eyes. “What now?”

“Let’s just elope. That way, no one gets slighted. We don’t have the wedding in Southampton, where I want it, or here, where your sisters and mother have been giving me hell.”

Vince tilts his head and studies me sympathetically for a moment. “Has it gotten worse since I’ve been gone?”

“All the way until the end of today.”

“What happened at the end of today?”

I tell him about my minor cake victory—how in a split second, I decided to treat his sisters like my difficult and spoiled former celebrity clients, and it worked.

“Of course I can continue to handle your family like they’re a special case, but I’ve really had it up to here with them and the mysterious Lily.”