All's Fair in Love and Las Vegas

Chapter Fifty-Six

        "Oh my gosh, you look amazing," Kylie whispered as I slid in next to her.

        "Thanks, you do too," I whispered back. She looked elegant in a slim black dress with thin straps. I smiled at the way Clay had one arm around her waist, clearly happy to just sit next to her.

        "Who is the groom again?" I murmured to Grayson, eyeing the man at the front of the room.

        "Lord Seymour of Cameron," he replied under his breath. "A member of the House of Lords. Incredibly powerful."

        "Right," I said, vaguely remembering such a conversation. "How did he and Gracelynn meet?"

        Grayson looked uncomfortable. "Um...at their engagement party."

        When my eyes widened, he quickly added, "Don't get me wrong, they knew about each other before then. Probably saw each other in passing. But..."

        "How awful," I said, heartbroken. Grayson and I may not love each other, but I consider him to be my closest friend. I couldn't imagine marrying someone I didn't know in the slightest, knowing there was a chance you would never be close. 

        "He's a good man," Grayson said. "But I know it's not what she wants. Once, when we were twelve, she told me she wanted a wedding in the woods, something small and secretive. She always used to talk about getting married, that she would meet the love of her life when she traveled the world. Now here she is, marrying someone she doesn't know in front of a thousand people."

        My stomach flopped at the notion. "Do you know how he feels about it?" I asked.

        He shook his head. "Lord Seymour is very private. Doesn't like to put himself in the public unless it's about his politics. No one really knows what he thinks of the whole ordeal. Maybe not even Gracelynn."

        "That poor woman," I said, my heart aching for her. Kylie and I had it bad, but she had it so much worse.

        "I know. I feel horrible," Grayson said, a hint of guilt tinging his eyes.

        I bit my lip. "You'd rather that be you up there?" I asked, referencing the fact that everyone had expected him to marry Gracelynn.

        "No," he said quickly. "Gosh, no. But sometimes I just wonder what might've happened...not that I ever liked her. But here she is, doomed to be forever unhappy."

        "Perhaps they'll be perfect for each other," I offered feebly.

        He gave me a wry smile. "The world needs more people who are as optimistic as you are, Jacks."

        The room stood as one, not giving me time to answer. We turned, facing the back doors as they swept apart. Mr. Girard walked in, his daughter on his arm and his smile brighter than the sun. But my gaze shifted to her, and that's when my optimism crumbled.

         She looked beautiful. So beautiful, draped in white with her veil over her head. Beautiful in the way you might find death beautiful. Cold and lifeless, separated from things of this world. I could not see her face, but I knew there were tears in her eyes. Her dress was enormous, but elegant, the train a good ten feet long. Lace wove up and down her arms, and all I could think was how it looked like white vines holding her down. She moved slowly, just as a princess would walk, and it looked as if she was barely breathing, she stayed so still. So poised. 

        So...bridely.

        So lifeless.

        The hot, horrified gazes of Kylie and Grayson burned right through me, both of them sending me sympathies. This. This was what I would be come next month. Nothing more than a statue, carved with beauty and devoid of feelings. Even if I did love Grayson, I suspected this was how I would appear. My suspicions were only confirmed when I glanced over to see Laura smiling and wiping away happy tears. As if she were seeing her own daughter walk down the aisle.

        I needed to get out. But I couldn't get out. So I gingerly sat with everyone else, trying not to explode. My chest felt heavy and thick, like a bad case of heartburn. Next to me, Grayson kept squeezing my hand, trying to send me silent reminders that it was an hour long service. I didn't know if I could make it an hour.

        Lord Seymour at least looked happy. His smile was gentle as he took his bride's hand. He whispered something in her ear, but Gracelynn did not acknowledge whatever he'd said. Or perhaps she had and it was just so small that the audience hadn't noticed it.

        The ceremony was just as spiffy and dusty as I had predicted. Major sections of it were in honest-to-goodness latin. Clay kept getting close to drifting off, and every so often Kylie would have to nudge him back to reality.

        Finally, they reached the end of the traditional vows and were instructed to kiss. I'd never seen a kiss that was so empty and sad. Neither of them seemed to notice that they'd done so. That it was just another action in being perfect.

        In being Lord and Lady Seymour.

        The rows began emptying, and I couldn't get out of that room fast enough. It took forever for us to be ushered out, but once we did it was a rush to get out. Get outside and away from that cloud of gloominess.

        "Jackie. Jackie, it's okay. Breathe," Grayson said, pulling me through a set of glass doors and outside. It was cold, the winter air harsh on my skin, but not unbearably so.

        "S-sorry," I stuttered. "I shouldn't-shouldn't be this worked up, it's not even...not even my wedding."

        "It's okay," he said soothingly as he gave me a hug. "I promise, our wedding will be so much better than this. It'll be happy and fun and full of mischief since we know it's all a sham. Right?"

        "R-right," I said, sniffling. Fresh tears formed in my eyes as I whispered, "But those poor people..."

        "I know," he said firmly. "I'm going to talk to her, but other than that there's nothing we can do."

        I hated being helpless. So I nodded, wiping my eyes. He asked if I would be okay and I nodded again. Grayson took off, heading back inside to find Gracelynn. Meanwhile, I went searching for Kylie and Clay and found them sitting on a stone bench in a hallway.

        "I've never been so depressed," she said flatly, her head propped up in her hands. "You'd think it was a funeral."

        Clay looked around. "Where's Grayson?"

        "Trying to find Gracelynn. See if she's okay," I said, crossing my arms to comfort myself.

        The reception was to take place in that same ballroom, so we were offered snacks while we waited. Clay requested goldfish crackers and was heartbroken to discover that the Girard household didn't even keep a stock of goldfish crackers.

         "What's the point of being rich if you're not going to have goldfish?" he questioned the universe.

         Kylie smiled. "We'll pick up some at the airport, okay?"

         This seemed to console him. Moments later, Grayson appeared. We all stood, waiting for his verdict.

        "She's fine. She-she said he's actually been really sweet so far," he said, smiling. A bucket of relief was poured over me. Then he added, "Much sweeter than I was."

        "That's fair, you tricked her into eating a grasshopper when you guys were six," Clay recalled.

        I stifled a laugh. "You really know how to get a girl, don't you?"

        Grayson smirked, asking, "What, you want a grasshopper too?"

         "Ewww, no," I giggled, in much higher spirits. "You need to work on your flirting skills."

        "He should be taking lessons from me," Clay said with a hair flip.

        Across the hall, the ballroom doors reopened and people started pouring in. Clay took Kylie by the hand, telling her, "Come on, I want to get like ten pounds of food. And have a dance with you, but ten pounds of food is the priority."

         She laughed as he pulled her away. Grayson turned to me and asked, "What about you, do you need ten pounds of food?"

        "Actually, I'd like a dance with you," I said with a warm smile.