Page 104 of Fake It For Love (Faux Love)
“Nothing,” Ryan snapped.
“Claire was giving him a hand job under the table and I told her to stop,” Norah said.
Tony started laughing. I was certain I was bright red. I wanted to crawl under the table. “Norah!” I gasped.
“Like he doesn’t know,” Norah said.
“It’s cool, man,” Tony said. “At least you’re near a room. Norah does that shit to me all that time. They think it’s funny.”
“It’s not,” Ryan said.
“I cannot believe we are having this conversation right now,” I said.
“We’re a couple of married couples,” Norah said. “Almost married.”
Fortunately, the conversation was over when it was time for the best man’s speech. I delivered mine after and rejoined Ryan. With every tradition performed, I was doing a mental checklist. It was a lot like giving a performance. Once they finished with the cake, I could take a breather. Norah was so worried the cake would fall over. It had been one of those recurring nightmares. She was the one who chose a small mountain as her cake. It was defying gravity, which was a risk I would have never taken. Norah was all about going big.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this party is ready to open up to the beach,” the DJ announced.
Norah had insisted on an actual dance floor for their first dance. She wanted formal and then all beachy. I loved her eccentric ways. And she was lucky to have found a man who would support her wild whims. After the announcement, a cheer went up and the shoes came off.
“Are you off duty?” Ryan asked.
“One more dress change,” I told him.
“You have got to be shitting me,” he said.
I patted his cheek. “You know Norah is a diva. She is not about to let this moment pass her by. I had to talk her out of a fourth dress.”
“I’ll be right here,” he said. “Don’t leave me alone for too long. There are a lot of drunk women out here.”
“And I’m going to be one of them in about thirty minutes,” I promised.
Once again, Norah and I stole away to the bridal room. “This is it,” she said slightly teary-eyed.
“What’s it?”
“My last dress,” she said. “It means the night is coming to an end.”
“It’s just getting started,” I said. I unzipped the other garment bag. It was another white dress with a hem that hit mid-shin. It was very vintage with old lace and a beautiful silhouette.
“When you get married, you have to have three dresses,” she said.
“Oh no.” I shook my head. “That is way too much pressure. It will be a struggle to find one dress.”
“Ha! You’re thinking about your wedding!”
“No, no,” I said. “I was just saying if and when I plan my wedding, one dress.”
“Oh, you are so thinking about your wedding.”
“Let’s get back out there,” I said.
