Madam Momus and Her Dirty Diaries.

Sneak Peak: Madam Momus' Niece and The Beast

Cole fished it back out again. "You have bragging rights, put this on Instagram and tag him!" even though Cole was younger than me, he topped my height by several inches and held the photo well out of my reach.

I took a few jumps but eventually, I snatched the photo back, this time folding it and putting it in my back pocket. "What I should be doing is throwing it out, I'm getting married remember?"

"Yeah, I know Gem." He said with an exasperated sigh as he rolled his eyes, no doubt sick of the way I had shoved this engagement down everyone's throat.

The thought of Jarryd instantly lifted the weight of my memories with Sasha. Just the thought of his kind eyes and sweet smile banished the thought of Sasha's dark pleading eyes into the furthest part of my mind, where they should've stayed. My relationship with Sasha may have been a tragedy but I was finally getting my happily ever after and I wasn't about to let some faded photo ruin my wedding planning bliss.

My phone began to buzz in my back pocket like I was expecting it to. Jarryd had a habit of calling me several times a day, so naturally, I kept it close by.

"I was starting to think you'd forgotten about me." Pain blossomed in my cheeks from smiling too hard, but there was nothing I could do about it. Just the thought of Jarryd made me smile.

He laughed. "How's the packing going?"

"Good. I got Cole to help so hopefully it will go a lot faster."

"That's great babe." I could hear him shuffle on the other end. "I got bad news though..."

"What? What is it?"

"I won't be able to meet with Slade today, can you do it?"

Slade was our marriage officiant and an old friend. She was also a wedding planner, wedding cake baker and seamstress. For as long as I could remember she always wanted to be in the business of marriage, even though she didn't believe in it. You know how they say, those who don't do, teach? Well, in her case, those who don't wed, plan.

I looked around my childhood bedroom, stripped of the decorations and memories. I was standing in a sea of boxes that held pieces of my life. My parents had assured me that I could keep my bedroom just the way it was, but I didn't want to have a place to run to. I didn't want a safety net outside of Jared. Cleaning out my bedroom was more of a symbolic exercise. Before Jared, I had always done things with one foot out the door but I was determined for my marriage not to be one of them.

"Gem, you there?" Jarred prompted and I quickly snapped out of my haze.

"Yeah, sure, I could do that."

"Thanks, babe. I love you." He sounded relieved.

"Love you too."

It took me an hour to find Slade because I went to her offices and was told she was at the dress shop which was a 20-minute drive away. When I got there, they told me she was at the bakery, which was back in town so I had to drive back.

Slade's bakery was a tiny shop, with an open-plan kitchen. Customers could see her when she was baking. The décor was all white and I always felt like I was stepping into heaven. Heaven that smelt sinfully sweet.

I found her in a bright yellow apron, levelling a buttercream cake. Her flawless brown skin was radiant against the whites and ivory of the store.

"Gemma!" She looked surprised but happy to see me nonetheless. She flipped one stray braid back after ripping her gloves off.

"Slade, I'm so sorry Jarryd said he wouldn't be able to meet-" She grabbed my arm and pulled me into the back. Away from her two employees and cake tasters. "Woah, ok?"