Page 15 of June Bride
Cathy smacked her lips and continued to flip through her magazine. Did she know that everyone in the room was judging her right now?
“A few more stitches, dear,” Apple said to Brandy. “You’re doing wonderfully. Should be finished soon, and your dress will beallready for your big day!”
Brandelyn inhaled a deep breath for strength. Right. This was aboutherday. The big day she had been dreaming about since she was a little girl curled up in front of her father’s Manhattan TV.“Daddy, is that what most weddings look like?” “No, Peaches, most are a lot simpler than that one.” “Can I have a wedding like that, Daddy?” “If you find the perfect prince charming, I don’t see why not.”
Prince charming. Yes. That’s what Brandelyn had found when she moved to Paradise Valley and first laid eyes on the lovely Sunny Croker in the nicest dive bar around. She may not have a title, or riches beyond measure, but she had a sweet smile and the kind of quiet kindness that Brandelyn had been searching for ever since she left New York. Easy enough to put that into perspective when her family wasn’t around. Now, though?
They’ll see exactly what kind of prince charming she is on our wedding day.Brandelyn’s favorite way to calm her nerves was to imagine what she would see when she turned the corner on the aisle, arm in arm with her father who was due to arrive in another few days.I’ll turn. I’ll see her, my prince charming.Sunny knew how to clean up when she really put her mind to it. The tux, the hair. Maybe a little makeup, if Sunny felt frisky. Her friend Anita really knew how to style her. Wasn’t one of Anita’s jobs as Sunny’s Best Woman to make sure the bride-groom looked her absolute best for thebride-bride?
I am Diana, she is Charles. I am Kate, she is William. It’s perfect.Brandelyn wasn’t concerned how such royal matches actually ended. She only cared about the picture-perfect scene. The flowers. The sunshine. The people lining up to see the bride and groom in all their glory. Brandy didn’t need to marry a man to have a groom. Realizing that her ideal wedding was still in her grasp even if she married a woman had been one of the happiest thoughts of her life. It was second only to meeting Sunny, falling in love, and having her proposal accepted.
It would be the happiest day of Brandy’s life. She knew that it would be Sunny’s, too.
That was part of the beauty, wasn’t it?
Chapter 10
SUNNY
The only way Sunny would get some quality face-to-face time with her fiancée was if she found Brandelyn during working hours. Outside of them? Brandy’s time was commandeered by her family, and more and more of them showed up every day. Sunny had been cleaning the guest rooms at Waterlily House when she realized it was time to have a heart-to-heart with the woman she was about to marry.Soon, my extended family will be here as well. We really won’t have any time, then.Sunny knew that the last thing she should do was spring a giant surprise on her fiancée on their wedding day. They were adults. They were mature. Now was the time to step forward and clear this foggy air.
Too bad Brandelyn had crammed in as many appointments as she could before she went on break.
“Hey, Cici.” Sunny wrung her hands as she approached the receptionist’s desk in Brandy’s office. Cars roared by on Main Street outside the window. Shadows of pedestrians filtered through the blinds that offered a little privacy to those sitting in the waiting room. Decades ago, when this clinic was first founded, it had been convenient for it to be right on Main Street. Now, however, there were calls of concern that convenience had trumped privacy. All of it made Sunny grateful that she didn’t live in town. Privacy was a big enough concern between the guests at her B&B, but at least she didn’t have to worry about sensitive information breaking out into the open.
Cici the receptionist looked up from her files with a smile. Her wiry silver-black hair and big reading glasses made her look more like a librarian than a receptionist, but she had the kindly demeanor patients requested. Unlike Paradise Valley’s only full-time librarian, who was known to make kids cry with one irate look. “Hi, Sunny. Are you looking for Dr. Meyer? She’s currently with a patient right now.”
“Oh, I figured. I know how busy she is right now.”
“Yes, yes, we’re totally booked with appointments until she goes off next week. I hear somebody’s getting married soon?” Her glossy pink lips expanded into a toothy grin. There was a smidge of that pink gloss on her two front teeth.
“I hear somebody’s getting some much-deserved time off soon.”
“Dr. Meyer’s giving me half-pay for it, too! Can you believe it? I didn’t have to ask for it off and she pays me. She must be in a really good mood.” That came with a wink.
Sunny had to regain her composure before replying. “I can wait until she has a little time. I was running some errands around town and realized there was something I really need to talk to her about. We don’t have much time for private chats before the big day.”
“Oh, I’ve heard alllll about the family taking over her house.” That was the sagest nod Sunny had seen all month, and she had wedding-types and high-brow guests alike up her butt. “I can let the doctor know you want to see her, but no guarantees. She’s booked until five, and I had to really wiggle that appointment in. Brandy will be staying in a little late tonight as it is.”
“I only need ten minutes.” Sunny clasped her hands together. She didn’t want to say she wasbegging,but she was kinda begging. “It’s not life and death, but it’s pretty important. Tell her it has to do with the wedding.” Hey, it was the truth, although Sunny hated to play with her fiancée’s emotions like that.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thank you.” Sunny pulled her phone out of her pocket sat in the waiting room. Nobody else was there, so she helped herself to some water from the cooler, perused the magazines, and finally sat next to the giant fake orchid arrangement Brandy insisted on having if she couldn’t allow real flowers into her clinic.
She settled on her phone. Good thing, for there were some messages from Dahlia about their upcoming reservation at Waterlily House.
It was the perfect distraction while Sunny waited. There was no obsessing over what she would say or how she should say it. No working herself up into a mental sweat as she anticipated her fiancée’s reactions. As long as Sunny stayed focus on her own work, let alone built up her confidence as she handled her business with professionalism, she was convinced that everything would work swimmingly with Brandelyn.
The door to the back rooms opened. Out stepped an elderly man who briefly exchanged glances with Sunny before stopping to talk to Cici about upcoming appointments. Brandelyn, in her white coat, stethoscope, and hair pulled back, stepped out with a clipboard in her hand. She barely saw Sunny since she was so focused on her clipboard.
“Be right with you,” she robotically said.
“Brandy.” Sunny stood up, already in awe at the sight of her fiancée in such a professional get up.It kills me every time.Sunny wouldn’t say she was sexually attracted to the look of Dr. Meyer, but she definitely responded with the kind of awe and respect that affected a woman for the rest of her meager existence.First time I saw her like this… shit, she was my doctor!Sunny changed insurance and had to go elsewhere long before they started dating, but she could still remember thinking the woman with her dark, curly hair and no-nonsense attitude was one of the hottest women in town.I was shocked when she asked me out later.At a bar, no less! Who knew doctors went to bars?
Brandelyn had to double-take in Sunny’s direction before she completely acknowledged her, however. “Oh, hey,” she said. “Give me a moment?”
There was something she had to tell her patient, apparently. Sunny remained sitting, ready to leap up and follow her fiancée into her office at any moment.Great. Now I’m rehearsing shit in my head.She fidgeted with her phone. Could this be over with already?
