When Sparks Fly

“Maybe both?”

“Probably. In the past few days we’ve learned that she’s a bit of a hypochondriac, and her love of sports was an exaggeration. Apparently, she and her sister don’t always see eye to eye on things.”

“Oh man, this sounds like it’s going to be messy.”

“It’s possible. According to the maid of honor, our lovely bride threw her sister’s bachelorette party. She invited a hundred people, most of them her friends, not her sister’s, and took her to a dance club and got her super shit-faced.”

“Oh no.”

“It gets better.”

“Do you mean worse?”

“Absolutely. So when the bride-to-be’s sister was getting married, she had asked for a weekend getaway with her closest friends because she hates bars. And her sister, the current bride, didn’t bother to invite any of them.”

“Which makes this a revenge bachelorette party?” This could be a complete nightmare. “I can’t believe you didn’t say anything to me about this until now. No wonder London is so stressed.”

“Well, we just found out about the previous bachelorette party over the weekend. Apparently, the sister has been keeping the maid of honor from saying anything because she’s got some dirt on her. Anyway, it’s a total soap opera, but I think we’ve got it mostly under control.”

“Is all the pink part of the revenge or what?”

“Oh no, that’s legitimately what the bride wants. She actually asked if we could dye a white horse pink and put a horn on it so she can ride it like a magical unicorn princess.”

“You told her no, right?”

Harley gives me one of her famous looks. “I informed her that we couldn’t do that to a horse, but if she’d like to take her dog to the salon and see if they’d be willing to take on that challenge, we would happily find him a unicorn costume.”

I give my head a shake. “And what does the groom have to say about that?”

“Not a lot, really. He has the backbone of an amoeba. It’s very clear that she’s the dominant one in that relationship.”

“I’m so sorry you and London have had to deal with this on your own. I’m glad I’m finally back, at least in some capacity. You two are going to need a vacation when this is all over.”

“We’ll be fine. And London has managed the stress surprisingly well. Although, she has made about five million of those star things. I’m literally finding them everywhere. It’s almost like the sky is falling. But it would be great to have your input on some of the events coming up later in the fall.”

“All I want is to be productive again. I wish I could help London with the creative stuff, but I’m not great at it with two hands, let alone one.”

“That’s London’s Zen place anyway. She would spend all day making centerpieces if she could.” She parks in the spot right in front of Spark House and reaches over to squeeze my hand. “I’m really glad you’re on the mend. I can’t tell you how scared we were.”

“I know.” I squeeze her hand back. “Me too.”

Her eyes go all soft and watery. Out of the three of us, Harley is the most prone to showing emotion. If she starts to cry, I’ll probably end up doing the same. “I put mascara on today and I have no idea if it’s waterproof or not, so don’t you dare get weepy on me.”

She waves me off and gets out of the car, grabbing my chair from the trunk. I’d love to be able to crutch around, but thanks to freaking Declan with his don’t-overdo-it speech, I doubt Harley will make it that easy for me. Besides, she and London have already been through a broken, pinned ankle with me before, so it’s not as though they don’t know what I’m like during recovery. As soon as I’m given the go-ahead, I tend to push myself too hard, too fast. Since they know that, they’re bound to put up a few roadblocks so I don’t overdo it and set myself back.

“What about the crutch?” I ask as I pull myself out of the back seat and pivot so I can drop down into the chair.

“You can have that later.” She wheels me up the ramp and hits the button, so the door opens automatically for us.

I inhale a deep breath and exhale on a sigh as I take in the familiar sights, sounds, and smells of Spark House and then frown. “Does it smell like cotton candy in here?”

“Indeed, it does.”

“Does that mean there’s also a cotton candy machine somewhere around here?”

“Also, a yes.”

In addition to the gaudy pink and unicorn theme, there’s a carnival-style component to this bachelorette party that will continue through the wedding theme. Because that’s where these two met, at a carnival, on the Ferris wheel.