Writing A Wrong (Write Stuff 2)

"You couldn't drown them at birth?" I asked, holding still while Mom fixed the tendrils of my hair so they properly framed my face.

She chuckled, placing a hand on Ashley's belly. "If I would have done that I wouldn't be expecting my first grandbabies."

"Sheesh, who knew babies would turn you into such a softie?" I teased. "Have you seen Olivia? She has my something blue."

Ashley chuckled. "One guess."

I rolled my eyes. "We might have to tell Dad to get the hose."

"Sorry I'm late," Olivia said breathlessly as she rushed into the room.

"Really? On my wedding day?"

"I can't help it," she said sheepishly. "He sucks me in every time."

"Obviously. Is that your lipstick, or were you eating ribs without a napkin?" Ashley and Mom laughed as Olivia turned to see her face in the mirror.

"Chill, bridezilla. I'll fix it. Here's your something blue," she said, handing me a beautiful blue peacock feather hair clip.

"Oh, Liv, it's beautiful," I said, forgetting my aggravation as I fingered the colorful feather.

"Here let me," she said, attaching the clip to the back of my hair. "There, now you look perfect."

I gave her a tight hug. "Thank you."

Her eyes sparkled with unshed tears. "I love you, slutbag."

"Love you more, whore face." My own eyes filled with tears.

"Oh, you two with the names. No crying," Mom said, wiping her eyes with a hankie I'd given her for the wedding as Ashley answered a rap on the door.

"It's time," Dad said, poking his head inside.

"Holy shit," I mouthed to Olivia as butterflies took flight in my stomach. I smiled, hearing the familiar melody of the music I had chosen to be played before I walked out.

"I can't believe you're playing Disney music out there," Olivia said, rolling her eyes as Ashley fixed the train of my dress.

Mom's laugh tinkled through the room. "There's no mistaking this is your wedding. I love you, sweetie." She kissed me on the cheek carefully to avoid smearing my makeup.

"I love you, Mom. Thank you for everything." She and Olivia had immersed themselves in the planning of the wedding, taking much of the burden off my shoulders while I was neck deep in deadlines. My publisher couldn't have been happier with the success of my books. Even after passing on the UK trip, they had been all too happy to offer me another book deal, especially after Wicked Lovely went into negotiations for a movie. The rumor was the hot star from the popular vampire television series would play the lead after a fan voting contest had selected him hands down. Personally, I felt he was a little too pretty to play Clinton, but the readers knew best. Who was I to argue?

I took Dad's arm and we waited as Riley escorted Mom down a bamboo-decked path to her seat in the front row. The ceremony was taking place at Magnolia Gardens, an outdoor venue that sat on the shore, offering a picturesque view of Lake Sonora. Sitting at the end of the bamboo path was a beautiful Tuscan masonry-and-wood gazebo accented by more than ten thousand flowers and ornamental shrubs. I couldn't have asked for a more romantic spot to marry the man of my dreams.

Lily went after Mom, dropping yellow rose petals on the ground as she walked. Ashley went next, followed by Olivia as my maid of honor.

Finally, it was my turn. The music changed to the traditional wedding march as the crowd of friends and family members rose to their feet. My eyes found Alec, who smiled broadly, looking every bit the part of my handsome prince. As I walked slowly down the aisle with Dad, I kept my focus on Alec, remembering what it had taken to get us here. We had our rough moments, but I wouldn't have traded them for anything in the world. Mom was right. Sometimes you had to walk through the dark to find the light on the other side.

We reached the end of our walk and Dad paused before lifting my veil. "This is it, my girl." His eyes were bright with tears.

My own eyes watered. I nodded, not wanting them to spill over.

Dad passed my arm to Alec's waiting hand before joining Mom, who was openly crying.

The ceremony was simple, just the way we wanted. Alec and I exchanged vows we had written ourselves. My voice shook with emotion as I declared my undying love for him. One of the tears I had been fighting to hold back found its way down my cheek as Alec read his pledge to honor me forever. When he finished, he captured the tear with his thumb, eliciting sighs of happiness from several female spectators.

Dusk was beginning to fall as the pastor completed his closing remarks. "Ladies and gentleman, may I present Mr. and Mrs. Alec and Nicole Petropoulos." Our friends and family rose to their feet in applause as Alec pulled me into his arms to seal our union. It was our first kiss as husband and wife and the most significant kiss of my life, filled with love and the promise to take care of each other until our dying days.

"Are you happy, Mrs. Petropoulos?" Alec asked as he twirled me around the makeshift dance floor beneath thousands of twinkling lights in the trees. The flash from cameras and cell phones nearly blinded me, capturing the moment of our first dance together as husband and wife.