Page 69 of Before You Say I Do
Abby’s eyes widened. “She’s my bridesmaid not yours. I’ll take some hints.” She stared at Jordan, then looked away.
Jordan held her face steady. What kind of tips was Abby planning on taking, exactly?
“And you’re coming to the rehearsal dinner on Friday?”
Jordan screwed up her face. She’d forgotten about the rehearsal dinner. She had it on her spreadsheet, of course. However, since they’d landed yesterday, she’d forgotten everything she was meant to be doing for this wedding.
On the most important week.
She couldn’t abandon it now, could she? It would seem weird. She’d promised Marjorie she’d be at the rehearsal dinner. She’d promised everyone. Could she do it? Her body tensed with the weight of expectation in Marcus’s stare.
“I’m not sure. I was just telling Abby something’s come up.” She hated lying to him.
Marcus’s face fell. “I’m so sorry. Is there anything we can do to help? Of course, we both want you to be there, but you have to make sure you’re okay first.”
He really was the nicest man in the world, wasn’t he? His niceness made Jordan feel terrible.
She could do the final few days. Abby wanted her to. Marcus wanted her to. And if she wanted her business to go well in the future, she should.
“Forget I said that, I’ll be there. I’ll make it work.” Jordan rolled her shoulders. “Got to make sure we get this one to the altar, haven’t we? It’s in my remit.”
Marcus grinned. “Fabulous. Although I’m hoping she comes of her own accord, not just because you’re making her!”
Jordan glanced at Abby, whose face had frozen into a mask she couldn’t quite decipher. It was going to be torture, but it was only for the next five days. After that, Marcus and Abby would be married, and Jordan could bank her pay cheque and lick her wounds. At least she’d learned something from this whole debacle. To never get too close to the bride again. To never let her guard down.
“It’ll be a pleasure to ensure that everything is just as you want it to be for your big day.”
Abby turned away.
Marcus looked from Abby, to Jordan, then back. He frowned. “Everything okay? I’m getting some weird vibes from you two. Did something happen on the weekend I should know about?”
Jordan’s blood stilled, but she kept her mouth tight shut.
Abby went to speak, but Marcus held up his hand. “You know what, whatever it was, I don’t need to know. More to the point, I don’t want to know.” He smiled at Abby, such love held in his expression that Jordan’s stomach turned. “If you had a stripper, even if you snogged another man, it’s all part of it. So long as you’re ready to marry me now, that’s all that matters.”
Jordan didn’t even look at Abby. Because it didn’t really matter what her face said or what she was thinking.
Abby was choosing Marcus.
Jordan just had to finish the job and move on.
Chapter 26
Jordan walked into Turnbull House,the manor house hotel hosting the wedding reception. She didn’t need to ask the reception staff where the restaurant was, because she’d been here a few times already over the past couple of weeks, co-ordinating last-minute details with florists, caterers, the band and MCs. At least taking over the wedding planning had meant her duties weren’t solely focused on Abby. She was pretty sure Abby had been wholly in favour of it, too.
What meetings they had been in together had been short and sweet, with Abby preferring to do a lot of it via email and text, with minimal personal contact.
But when they had been in a room together, it’d been charged. How could it not be? It had only been four days ago that Abby had been inside Jordan.
Now, they had to pretend they were just professionally tied, nothing more.
Jordan had managed to keep her composure. Even earlier, when they’d run through the ceremony. She’d been the Jordan everyone expected her to be. A consummate pro.
However, tonight was different. Jordan couldn’t keep still. Couldn’t relax. It made sense, though. Because tonight’s rehearsal dinner was in front of everyone. The first celebration of Marcus and Abby as the happy couple. How was Jordan going to react? She was about to find out. She smoothed down her pink cocktail dress, centred her silver brooch, and took a deep breath.
The first person she encountered was Marjorie. The woman never looked anything less than glamorous. Did she go to sleep in her make-up and pearls? Jordan wouldn’t be surprised. Marjorie greeted Jordan with a measured smile and an approving nod.
“You, my dear, know how to wear a dress. Perhaps you could give Abby some tips in that department? She always tends to wear the wrong colour, or the wrong cut, don’t you think?”
