Page 3 of Last Chance Seduction
Bridesmaids made their way down the aisle, with Emily last as the maid of honor.She winked at me, and I did the same to her, trying not to smirk.
And then Mercy was there, no veil because she would never hide her face, and she grinned over at Justin.She walked herself down the aisle, because of course she did, and I knew she was holding herself back from running.
Justin’s hands were shaking as he reached out for Mercy.
“Are you ready?”she asked, all smiles.
Justin nodded in answer, and then the two of them were standing at the altar.
“Friends and family, we are here to celebrate the love and promise of two wonderful individuals,” the man began.
“Wait,” Justin called out.
I froze as Mercy blinked up at the man she loved, and Emily went pale, the color draining from her face.
“Is something wrong?”Mercy asked, her voice soft, tentative.
“I can’t do this.”
There were gasps and murmurs in the pews, and I tugged at Justin’s shoulder.“Is this really the time?”I bit out.
“Now or never.”Justin shook his head, pushed off my grip, and looked at Mercy.“I’m sorry.I’ll explain later.”And then he looked toward the back of the long room and tugged at his tie.
“Nina.I can’t do this anymore.”
And then the wedding planner burst into tears as the groom ran from his bride down the aisle.As the two left, the silence was so thick you could cut it with a knife.And I felt as though I was having an out of body experience.
“Mercy,” I whispered as I looked over at her.
But she just shook her head at me.“Did you know?”
“No!”I practically shouted.“Shit.Let’s get you out of here.”
“Mercy?”a soft voice said from behind her, and we both looked to see Emily staggering toward us.Alarmed, I nearly cursed again at the gray pallor of her skin.
I was moving toward her without even thinking, arms outstretched.Because there was blood seeping from her nose, and when she coughed, blood sprayed over the white of Mercy’s dress.
“Emily!”Mercy cried out.
And as I caught Emily in my arms, taking her to the ground, the bride knelt beside me.We shouted for an ambulance, and people started screaming, pulling out their phones to call for someone or to record because that’s what people did.
But it was all I could do to hold the mirrored copy of the bride in my arms as tears slid down Mercy’s cheeks.
All thoughts of a runaway groom and broken promises gone.
And I knew the nightmare was only just beginning.
ChapterOne
Mercy
It would truly make a better day for all involved if Mr.Darcy would stop glaring at me.That attitude of his was nothing new, but for once, it would be nice if he’d blink at some point.
I stared down at my all-black cat, and knew if I blinked first, it would be all over.I would have to get up from my desk, walk to the back door, and let my lovely cat out on the catio.Not that catio was an actual word, but I went with it anyway.Because my beautiful, darling, adorable son, Mr.Darcy, needed to be outside, but I wasn’t about to let him roam through the neighborhood to either get hit by a car, eaten by an animal, or adopted by another family.Hence the catio was where he was usually allowed to be.My beautiful porch was now screened in and an oasis for me considering the mosquitoes during certain times of the year.
“Mr.Darcy, I have to get back to work.I can’t be outside with you.And the last time I left you alone on the catio for too long, you learned how to unlock the door.”
Mr.Darcy finally blinked, but didn’t stop staring at me as he lifted one paw and licked it.Then he proceeded to bathe, leaning back so he could lift his back leg and show me exactly how annoyed he was with me.
