I really had no intention of staying for the whole thing, but now I’m nodding and smiling. Agreeing.
“I’m sure you’ll have no trouble finding a dance partner,” Melanie comments with a wink as I turn to leave.
I’m not much of a dancer either. Shows how much she knows me. Years of having my nose buried in my text books have resulted in me having no time to perfect my dance moves. By the time I’m leaving the changing room, I could literally kick myself for even turning up to this thing. I should have done what everyone else did from our class and ghosted Melanie.
But here I am, stuck at a wedding I don’t want to be at.
And then I see him across the room and it feels like suddenly, everything has come to a stop. Everybody else fades to the background. It’s just me and him in the room. He’s not even looking at me, so I can stare adoringly at him without him knowing.
He is speaking into a tiny microphone that’s attached to his ear. He is part of security, I can sense that easily. Then he turns. He’s going to look in my direction!
Quick! Turn! Run!
I run straight into an old lady.
Drew
I only see her because she bumped into an old lady who was standing beside her and spilt her drink.
The lady squeals like she’s being attacked and the beautiful blond tries dabbing her dress with paper towels. It’s not working out well for her.
The incident has caused a bit of a scene and people are turning to look. The ceremony is about to begin in fifteen minutes and I know I need to take care of it before the old woman kicks off and spoils everything.
I can see Effie walking over, speaking into her own microphone rapidly. She is the kind of girl who is already starting to panic because she’s a perfectionist. I don’t want her stressing out over this when she’s got the rest of the wedding to sort out, so I meet her eye and nod to let her know I’ll take care of it. It also gives me the perfect excuse to get up close and personal with the beautiful blond...
I weave through the groups of people standing together and walk up to the two of them. The blond woman is apologizing profusely, offering to do whatever it takes to get the wine stain off the lady’s dress. The older woman seems upset by the situation, refusing her help.
“Hello ladies, can I assist you in any way?” I ask calmly. Both of them turn to me. I notice how the older lady’s eyes grow warmer when they land on me. I know I have that effect on women, especially older women when I turn my attention to them.
“My dress is ruined!” she exclaims.
It’s hard to keep my eyes on her as she complains. The blond is in a blue dress. It is long and breezy with a low neckline, perfect for a wedding. I bet she knows exactly how sexy she is. Only a woman like her with the curves she has could carry off a dress like that.
“I’ve offered to help,” she says and looks at me to sort the situation. The older woman scowls.
“How can you help now? The wedding is about to start! You should have watched where you were going!”
I know things are going to escalate. The groom and his friends are already taking their place at the altar, but people are still distracted by this scene.
I touch the older woman’s shoulder lightly and I notice how she responds to my touch.
“Why don’t we go to the side and discuss this? The ceremony is about to start,” I say.
“But my dress!” she complains. I exchange a glance with the blond. She looks sorry and completely embarrassed. I need to help put her out of her misery.
“We can take care of the problem and make sure you have a fresh dress to wear by the time the dancing starts. How does that sound?”
The lady looks at me curiously. Then she glances at the blond who is smiling enthusiastically now. Then she nods.
“Fine,” she says. “I guess that could work.”
I lead the way with one hand on her shoulder still. All I have to do is take her to one of the changing rooms without causing another scene. Someone from Effie’s team will be able to find a dress for her to wear I’m sure. Problem solved. Now, my mind is elsewhere.
Now I’m thinking of the blond woman I left behind...
Lena
I did not expect him to save the day, but he did.
Does he know that I bumped into that woman only because I was trying to avoid getting caught gawking at him?
Now he’s taken the woman to one of the changing rooms in the back so he can find her a different dress to wear. The wedding ceremony is about to start and order is restored. The last thing I need is to make things even worse.
So I stand to the back where not many eyes can find me. The band begins to play and Melanie makes her entrance and starts walking down the aisle.
There’s a part of me that just wants to leave now. I have no obligation to stay till the end. Melanie wants me to, but she’s not really my friend.
But there’s that other part of me that wants to stay and ogle at the handsome security guy with the tattoos. My knight in shining armor...
He probably wouldn’t even know I existed if I wasn’t almost responsible for ruining the ceremony. But he’s not here for me anyway, he’s here to do his job. Why would he be interested in me at all?
My mind is whizzing with thoughts. I know I should go, but just as I’m about to turn and slip away, I see him coming towards me.
He’s back in the wedding
