Culling

Part II • Chapter XV

☜♡☞

"I still can't believe I'm doing this." I shifted my weight back and forth as my aunt, grandmother and Karen hovered around me. They were touching my arms, my dress, my hair, and my face. It was all so much, and I was already nervous.

It had been hours since I woke up, bathed and began the pampering process for this wedding. I was already exhausted and I had done nothing.

Apparently Gabriel had given them a selection of two dresses, so he would be surprised as well. The dress that they had chosen was something that I never would have dreamed for myself, but I loved it. Honestly, I was very glad that I let everyone else take the reigns on this stuff, because the colors and everything that I had seen so far were perfect.

"Sang, dear," my grandmother fluffed out the back of my dress. "Did we do good? Do you like it?'

I looked at my reflection in the mirror and didn't recognize the girl staring back at me. The top part of the dress, which gathered at a point below my breasts, was heavy lace studded with pearls. The neckline plunged slightly and the back of the dress cut at a 'V' down to my waist. Pearl studded, short sleeves rested on my shoulders. Otherwise, the rest of the gown was layers upon layers on thick, silky material that flared around me until it reached the floor.

It was everything that I didn't even know that I had wanted in a wedding gown. Did I like it?

I turned and hugged my grandmother, burying my face in the taller woman's neck. "I love it! Thank you! Thank you so much."

"I'm so glad." She hugged me back and pet the back of my head. She sounded very happy.

"No," my aunt cried out in a horrified tone. "You'll ruin her hair, and watch her makeup! No one can get mushy yet, I won't allow it! You can all cry after the photographer is done."

I let go of my grandmother and looked at her. "What?"

I had no idea there was going to be a photographer there, but then again I guess it should be expected. Even if he was against the timing, I imagined that Mr Blackbourne would want this wedding to be publicized.

Still. The thought of a bunch of people seeing me during, or knowing anything about, such a private moment was somewhat upsetting.

"Just so you know, these particular pictures will stay within family only, unless you request otherwise." Aunt Gabrielle stated, as if she had known my hesitation. "We just wanted some photos to add to our family wall. Wait until you see the estate, there's an entire wing dedicated to our genealogy, marriages, births, and other nonsense that no one cares about."

"Really?" Grandmother raised an eyebrow at her.

"Don't pretend you are offended." Aunt Gabrielle nudged my grandmother with her elbow. "I've seen you hide a yawn a time or two when Timothy goes into a lecture mode."

"Timothy?" I asked as I sat down at aunt's insistence, she clearly wanted something else to do with my hair. Considering that I was no longer facing a mirror, I had no idea what was happening. "Who is that?" Did I have more cousins?

"Timothy is my brother-in-law," my grandmother handed some small roses to my aunt, who took then and started fiddling with my hair. "That would make him your great-uncle. He is the historian of the family. He's nice enough but he's..."

"Boring." My aunt finished and moved to face me. She smirked. "You'll see."

I had more family to meet? I thought the whole point of polyamorous relationships was because we had a population problem, a small number of females and lowered birth-rates? How were there so many of them? Did the Gentreau family reproduce like rabbits or something?