Tate and Angie would be an officially recognized legal twosome. They would have kids and build a new world in which Mel was only a visitor. That was okay. She and Joe would likely do the same and she was excited about that. Still, she wanted a moment with her longtime friend just to tell her how much she loved her, how much she appreciated Angie always having her back, and that Mel would always be there for her. No matter what.
She tightened the strap on her shoes and crossed the bedroom to do just that.
“Angie, you’re going to have a wardrobe malfunction if you’re not careful,” her sister-in-law Suzie said. “Every time you bend over, you’re flashing boobage.”
“What?” Angie cried. “How is that possible? That never happened in the fitting room.”
“Did you bend over in the fitting room?” Suzie asked.
“No.”
“Well, there you go.”
“Oh, no!” Angie wailed.
Which was when Mel realized that this was not going to be their shared moment. Instead, she went into crisis-prevention mode.
“Up, up,” she said. She gestured with her hands for Angie to stand.
“Oh my god, Mel,” Angie cried. She grabbed her hand and said, “I don’t know what happened, but my dress is showing more of me than I’m comfortable with. I’m going to end up flashing someone and it will get filmed, and I’ll end up going viral like that unfortunate hat shop girl from London that we met on vacation who threw cake at her lying married boyfriend.”
“No, you’re not,” Mel said. “Relax.”
She opened her purse and pulled out a roll of double-sided sticky tape. She always carried this tape with her because it came in handy at different venues. It worked like magic to keep her cupcake displays from toppling over.
“We’re going to tape your dress in place,” Mel said.
Angie clutched her front. “Is that a good idea?”
“Do you have a better one?”
“No.”
“Okay, then, trust me.” Mel set to work taping the bodice down. The rest of the women and girls fluttered around the room, doing their last-minute preparations.
Mel figured now was as good a time as any to have a quick chat.
“Ange—” That was as far as she got.
“Oh, Angie.” Maria DeLaura entered the room in cloud of lavender silk. She clasped her hands over her chest and immediately started to water up. “You are beautiful.”
Mel finished fitting the last piece of tape and backed up. It was mother-daughter time. She could wait. Suzie ushered everyone out of the room, including Mel.
The bridesmaids all hurried downstairs to fortify themselves with food and the last of the coffee. Mel always had time for a snack. She was taking a bite of her chocolate croissant very carefully over the sink when a man spoke from behind her.
“Well, who knew Melanie Cooper could clean up to be such a beauty?” Ray DeLaura asked.
“I did,” Joe said. He entered the room, looking impossibly handsome in his tuxedo. Then he pursed his lips and gave Mel a wolf whistle while he looked her over from head to toe.
“Some guys have all the luck,” Ray said. He winked at Mel and moved past her to attack the plate of pastries on the counter.
“Yes, I do,” Joe said. Mel dropped her croissant and he pulled her into a careful hug. “You look gorgeous.”
This. This right here was a moment that, had Mel known about it during her unfortunate adolescence, would have pulled her through a million dark days of bad diets, binge eating, acne, braces, and assorted other teenage horrors.
“Thank you,” she said. She was pleased that she did not sound as breathless as she felt. Even after all this time, Joe could still make her dizzy.
“How’s the bride holding up?”
“Small wardrobe malfunction, but we sticky-taped our way through it.”
“If that’s the worst thing that happens today, we can call it a win.”
“How is Tate holding up?”
“Great. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone smile wider. He is so ready to make Angie his bride.”
Mel smiled. She could only imagine. “He wasn’t singing, was he?”
“All morning long,” Joe said. “Then he got panicky and sent me here to do bride recon for him. I told him I’d make sure everything was a go and then I’d take him to the church. Right now he is in the very capable hands of Marty and Oz.”
“Oz?” Mel asked. “What about the cupcakes?”
“We delivered them to the reception hall early this morning,” Joe said. “No worries. We’ve got this.”
Mel forced herself to relax. A smidgen. Truly, she didn’t think she’d be able to relax until the wedding was over and they were two or three drinks into the reception, but still she tried.
“All right, people,” Ray called out from where he hovered over the pastries. “We have thirty minutes until showtime. Thirty minutes. If you have to use the bathroom, do it now. The limo will be leaving for the church in thirty minutes.”
“That’s my cue to go get the groom,” Joe said. He very carefully kissed Mel’s cheek. “Give Angie my love, okay?”
“I promise,” Mel said. Although when she’d have a chance to tell Angie about Joe’s feelings, when she hadn’t even had a chance to tell her her own feelings, Mel had no idea.
It was rush, rush, rush to the limo, which was packed with bridesmaids. Mel sat next to Angie on the bench seat in the back while the rest of the ladies filled the side seats. The younger ones, who’d never been in a limousine before, giggled and chattered. Angie smiled at her family, but she had a faraway look on her face, as if she was thinking about something else.
“You okay?” Mel asked.
Angie turned to her and nodded. “I am. I feel as if I’ve planned everything I can for this day and now it just
