The Husband Beside Me (The Devil Trilogy Book 2) (2 page)

I let out a sigh as I fidgeted in my seat. Hearing her talk about my dress, hit me like a ton of bricks. This whole time only words were exchanged between us about all this, but tomorrow was finally the reality of it all.

“Addie, sweetheart, are you okay?” Jessica asked, a look of concern etched on her face.

“Yeah, I'm just overwhelmed,” I admitted.

“You look like a ghost. Don't worry, sweetie, I’ll make sure this wedding is painless for you,” she said, trying to calm me down.

“I guess I’ll see you tomorrow morning,” I murmured, failing to hide my anxiety.

“Make sure you are in front of Kleinfeld’s at seven fifty tomorrow. I hate being late,” she warned in a stern voice. Her tone made it clear she was not a woman to mess with.

“Okay, I’ll be there,” I reassured her.

***

“Tomorrow, seven fifty at Kleinfeld’s, can you make it?” I asked Elissa as we worked.

“Tomorrow morning? Holy shit, girl, that was fast!” Elissa shouted, mostly because she was shocked.

“Yeah, well, Daimon and I don't want to wait and well, I need to get things done.” I fixed a false smile on my face, hoping my friend wouldn’t see through it. Not only was the wedding weighing heavily on my mind, but Darren…Darren was an issue too. He wasn’t here that evening. He rarely missed work, so I couldn’t help but wonder if it was because of me.

“Did you even think of the type of dress you want?” Elissa asked seemingly excited. I guess one of us should be.

“No, not really. Just simple, I guess,” I muttered.

“Holy shit, I better be invited to this shindig,” Jace said, laughing.

“Everyone should be getting invites soon, I guess, since it’s next week,” I noted under my breath, hoping no one would hear me.

“WHAT?” they cried out at the same time.

“Shit! I forgot, you guys didn’t know.” I figured everyone knew since he marked it with bold letters in the paper.

“Next week? Are you crazy? I thought it was like in a month!” Elissa shouted. I only shrugged. What could I say?

“No point in waiting. My girl can’t keep her hands off me.” I felt Daimon’s hand slip around my waist as he pulled me close. I could feel him nudging his head into the crook of my neck as he took in my scent. Daimon’s whiplashing moods completely threw me for a loop, leaving me confused and nervous at times.

“It’s more like you can’t seem to keep your hands to yourself,” Elissa noted as she wagged her eyebrows.

“That too.”

I guess Daimon was back to being his normal self, whatever that was. After
that
night, Daimon seemed tense and apprehensive, but he seemed to be himself once again. I moved my hand up and held onto his arm.

“Why are you here? I thought you were busy with work?” I asked him, wanting to act my part.

“Work ended early so I decided to see you. I hear from Jessica you left her with quite an impression.” Great! I was totally going to get yelled at later by him.

“I hear you’re going for dresses. Want me there?” he asked. This had to be a trick question.

“No, I don’t. I’d rather you be surprised when you see me.” I smiled as I turned to face him.

“Don’t worry about the price. Just pick the dress you want,” he said as he brushed my hair to the side of my face. His gentle touch made my body shiver. “Cold?” he murmured.

“A little,” I muttered.

“I can’t wait until you don’t have to work here anymore. Darren making you wear this damn sexy dress is driving me crazy,” Daimon bit out.

“Why don’t you rip it off her the last night she’s here, you know, commemorate the event,” Elissa said, raising her eyebrows and sticking out her tongue.

“Hmm, sounds fucking nice,” he growled low as I looked at him. His eyes focused intently on mine as he smiled at me.

“It does,” I said, leaning in close and kissing his cheek softly, but all the while I wanted to gouge out his eyes for putting me in this position.

“Addie, your drinks are up,” Jace interrupted from behind me.

“I better get back to work, babe.” I pulled away from him and picked up my tray. I could still feel the warmth of Daimon’s arms wrapped around me as I made my way through the crowd. I thought that I would be somehow sickened by him, but that was what worried me the most. I wasn’t. Throughout high school, he bullied me, and it was clear he planned to do the same throughout this marriage. I should have been angry, but I wasn’t.

***

It was seven fifty on the dot and both Elissa and I were waiting. We ensured we arrived early to avoid the wrath of my Type A personality wedding planner.

“Addie!” Jessica cried out as she walked over to us in her three-piece skirt suit, carrying her small briefcase and her Starbucks coffee.

“Holy shit, she looks serious,” Elissa said over my shoulder.

“I know. I’m scared of her,” I admitted as I forced a smile, trying to act like she didn’t intimidate me.

“I see you brought a friend. That’s good. I’m Jessica Somer.” She nodded to Elissa.

“Hi, I’m Elissa.” I could tell by the slight raise in her voice, that Elissa was also scared by Jessica.

“Okay, listen, ladies, we have a tight schedule. I realize by walking through here you might lose your mind in wedding dresses, but we need to pick one in the next few hours, because the next appointment is scheduled for one o’clock for flowers. After that, we go to a venue I think Addie might like. I’ve chosen two, so you will have to choose which one of them you like the most,” Jessica instructed as she gestured for us to follow her.

“What about the invitations?” I asked, already overwhelmed by the day ahead and the planning.

“Well, since we don’t have much time, Daimon has decided to have a website created. Apparently, he’s going to call your father for a guest list. Daimon will have a small note delivered to them, instructing them to go online and see where they need to go. It’s going to be a small affair. He was rather pleased with your decisions to keep it small and elegant. What were his words again? Oh, yeah, that’s my Addie.” She smiled, waiting for one of us to open the shop door for her. I pulled it opened and was confronted by a lady dressed in black.

“Jessica,” the woman cried out.

“It’s been awhile.” Jessica held out her hands and took her in for a hug.

“I’m here with a client of mine, the Evans’ wedding.”

“I know. It’s the event of the season, if not the year. I’m glad you came here for the dress,” she said to Jessica. “I can’t believe the dreamboat Daimon Evans is off the market. I heard that all of the society ladies are freaking out, especially Clara Stevens. She had a meltdown at her father’s company,” the woman said in a hushed voice, but loud enough for me to hear.

“Where did you hear that?” Jessica asked. She was intrigued and I…well, I was becoming irritated.

“Well, my boss overheard it from Clara’s mother, who was here with a friend of hers, whose daughter was getting a fitting done.”

“Don’t we have a dress to pick?” I asked, failing to keep the annoyance from my voice as I watched them interact.

“Yes, I’m sorry about that. Please accept my apologies. I shouldn’t have mentioned anything,” the older woman in black responded, bowing her head a little.

“No, you shouldn’t have,” I bit back, upset this moment was ruined by the mention of Clara.

“So Jessica tells me you like elegant and simple,” the woman tried to backtrack. “I have chosen a few dresses and have placed them in the dressing room, so if you would follow me, please,” the sales lady said, avoiding eye contact.

“Well, fuck me,” Elissa said as she took my hand and walked with me.

“You’re getting married within a week, which I have to say is usually an impossibility for us. I not only had to pull out dresses I thought you’d like, but I had to find ones that were in your size.”

“The price is inconsequential. You know Mr. Evans will pay top dollar if it means his girl gets what she wants,” Jessica reminded the sales lady.

“That I know.”

I tried on various A-line dresses, not one fitting the bill until I tried on the one that stopped me dead in my tracks. The one that once I looked at myself in the mirror, I knew it was made just for me. It was a Mark Zunino dress. The white of the dress wasn’t loud, but rather a simple off-white, in a deep sweetheart neckline emphasizing my breasts. It was a mermaid style dropped waist made of silk organza, and was absolutely stunning.

“At least it covers up your scar,” the assistant blundered, not realizing she had overstepped and ruined this moment yet again for me. I tried to push her comment and the image of my scar out of my mind, focusing on the dress itself. “I think we may have found
the
dress,” she said from behind me. I headed out to where both Elissa and Jessica were and stood up on the podium.

“Well?” I asked, biting my lower lip.

“Holy shit, girl, it’s you,” Elissa smiled, shaking her head in amazement, her mouth slightly open and her eyes wide.

“Wow! That’s the one. That’s your dress, Addie,” Jessica said confidently as she stood up and walked over to me. “I think if we do a low bun and place a simple veil behind, it would be perfect. What do you think?” I turned to look in the mirror and was floored by how beautiful it was.

“I think I’m in love.” I smiled at myself.

“Good, that’s what I want to hear,” the sales lady said, helping me down. “We’re going to have to do the alterations now and get it downstairs to the seamstress.”

I guess money does make everything easier.
All Jessica had to do was flash Daimon’s credit card and everything got done. The shoes, the veil and the alterations had been completed all that morning. It was flowers next.

Daimon was nowhere to be seen, which bothered me a little. Actually, it bothered me a lot. We were getting married yet I was planning everything on my own. Jessica had done everything for me to be more specific and all I had to do was pick and choose. Fucking Daimon, all he had to do was show up.

Each day made me more nervous than the next. Jessica was relentless with her constant calling and asking for detailed instructions, which by and large, she decided on her own. I was okay with that since I hardly knew what I was doing and I only had a week to do all this. I was overwrought with everything that was going on and was snapping at my poor father. I tried to call Daimon numerous times, but Lucifer never picked up. Every single time he didn’t, I lost it. The last time, I nearly threw my phone, just from sheer frustration. He was the only one I could talk to since this was only an act for both of us. With everyone else, I had to behave like I was excited and elated with everything.

The night before my wedding, I was completely freaked out. Sofia was supposed to have been with me, but she had a complication with a midterm and needed to stay the extra night. Jessica told me that she would make sure Sofia would be there the day of the wedding. Elissa at least had the presence of mind to stay with me the night.

“Are you okay?’ Elissa asked, watching me as I paced my room.

“Honestly? I’m…I’m totally breaking down here,” I said, trying to stop myself from hyperventilating. Why was I having a meltdown? It wasn’t like I was in love with Daimon and I was happy. But oh, my God, I was getting married to him. I was going to be someone’s wife.
A wife! Me! Holy shit!

“Okay, talk this out with me. Come on,” Elissa beckoned with her hands as she sat on my bed.

“I’m going to be a wife!
His
wife. In
his
world. I have no fucking clue about how these people live or what they do. I’m a poor little girl from Astoria,” I spouted out.

“Okay, keep going.”

“And you know what? I haven’t seen Daimon since that night at the bar. The asshole totally disappeared on me,” I shouted, flailing my arms about.

“You know he’s really busy with a business merger so it’s not his fault.” Elissa tried to calm me.

“Well, screw him!” I cried out. That was when the suspense chime rang on my iPhone. Elissa leaned over and saw my text.

“Who’s Lucifer?” she asked, smiling at me.

“Never you mind.” I walked over to my bed, picked up my phone and read my text.

Daimon:Come outside

Me:No

Daimon:Addie! Out now

Me:Fuck you, Daimon

Daimon:Addie, NOW

“What is it?” Elissa asked.

“It’s Daimon. He wants to see me outside,” I answered in a huff.

“So go,” she said flatly.

“No, he pissed me off,” I argued.

“Addie, for fuck’s sake, you’re getting married to him tomorrow. Don’t you think he might want to apologize for not being around? He loves you like mad. Just go out there already,” Elissa threw back at me.

Daimon:Addie remember who’s paying you

“Yeah, you’re right; he loves me that’s for sure,” I mocked and headed downstairs.

“Is that Daimon outside?” my father asked as I made my way to the front door.

“Yeah, he came to see me before the wedding.”