Vegas Knot (✔️) | Love Travels #1

Twelve

The girls managed to keep the conversation mostly off me, focusing almost exclusively on Divya's wedding plans except when the debate over eyeliner turned from black vs brown into making me look hot for my hot husband. Carla's words, not mine.

In the end, we make it to the lobby with fifteen minutes to spare before Enrique is set to meet us, but as we round the corner from the elevators, the grand chandelier sparkles above a very debonair man. I can tell even from behind him that it's Enrique.

My feet glue to the floor and I stop suddenly, the girls breezing past me like a river around a tree. A few steps later, Divya realizes I'm not with them anymore and turns around to face me.

"What is it?" she asks, her brow furrowing as she picks up her cocktail length gown and rushes over to me. "Are you okay?"

I can't speak, so I shake my head.

"Is it Enrique? Are you worried about him being here? We're all here to help, okay? You have three buffers and those two are extremely loud and obnoxious. You'll be just fine."

"Right. But it's Enrique."

"I know, but you'll be okay. Deep breaths." She models deep breaths for me as she holds my shoulders, pulling them up and down with her breaths.

"No. I mean it's Enrique," I repeat, pointing to the back of the man in the center of the lobby.

"Oh, that's him?" She turns around and stares, by which point Lorena and Carla have noticed we're missing and turned around to check on us.

Their eyes follow our stares and Carla rushes back to whisper, "Is that him?"

Again, I just nod and Divya speaks for both of us. "Yes. He looks good."

"Well his back half does, anyway."

"Carla!" Her vulgar comment snaps me out of my cactus-like state. "That's my husband you're talking about!"

My shouting brings attention to me. The receptionists, valet, and at least three guests all turn to face me and, to my utter horror, so does Enrique.

When he does turn around, he's met with the staring faces of me and three friends. But instead of the horror he should be showing, a huge smile crosses his face and he jogs across the lobby to greet me.

"You look lovely tonight, Bianca," his smile grows. "I hope I'm not underdressed. I thought I might have done too much until I saw you wearing that. Wow."

I can't help but pick up my lavender dress and swish the chiffon through my fingers. We're going to eat, so I picked something with an empire waist to leave room for a food baby. Somehow, I manage to keep that information inside my mouth. "Thanks, I like it, too."

"Okay, lovebirds," Lorena sings. "Are you coming with us or are you just going back upstairs?"

"Lorena!" Carla chastises. "That's my job!"

"Shush, both of you." Divya gives them a glare that makes me certain she is ready to be a mother and they both sober up.

"Sorry, Enrique." Lorena speaks to her sparkly gold shoes rather than Enrique's face. "I keep forgetting you don't know my bad jokes yet."

And then my husband straightens his tie and looks Lorena dead in the eye. "Well, it would be a shame to take the suit off before it got to go out to eat, so how about we get going."

Silence.

The hotel buzzes around us like the waterfall over a cliff, background whooshing to the main event. No one knows how to handle it until Carla cannot contain her laughter anymore. "Oh, he's got a funny bone," she laughs.