Meant to Marry Me

It was evident which one was Monica the second Bree walked through the door. Not only was every eye in the room on the woman, she was stunning. She looked a little bit like Lilly in the face, but her hair was dark black and hung almost to her waist. She was so tall and thin, it was evident why she wanted to be a model. She looked like one. There was no longer a question in her mind why Trent wanted to be with her instead of Bree. While she'd always thought she was pretty enough, Monica was absolutely gorgeous.

Lilly spotted her from across the room and came bounding over, arms open. "Bree! You're here!"

"Hi!" Bree opened her arms and hugged her friend back, though there were several unfriendly comments that leapt to mind, including chastising her for not answering her phone, not telling her where to meet them, oh, and the fact that her sister was marrying the only man Bree had ever been in love with.

"I'm so glad you made it. How was your flight?"

"Fine," Bree said, letting her anger and annoyance go, at least for the moment. "The resort is beautiful."

"It is, isn't it? Luckily, Trent's accounting job pays well." She gave Trent a playful jab in the ribs, and he chuckled, but Bree knew the look on his face. He hadn't wanted this place, and he hadn't wanted to pay for all of it either. Interesting.... "So the two of you met?"

"Actually, we, uh, already knew each other," Bree said, eyeing Trent to see if he was okay with her telling Lilly.

"Yeah, we went to high school together," Trent replied, clearly not minding at all. "We were friends."

"Get out of town!" Lilly said. It was Bree's turn to be playfully jabbed. "Really? Wait--when you used to talk about Trent and Hank, you were talking about these two?"

"Yep, these two," Bree said with a shrug. Hank was across the room talking to a few other guys who looked like they were about her age and probably in the wedding party since they were dressed especially nice. Not as nice as Trent was, though. He was wearing a jacket over his button-down shirt and tie. He looked particularly hot in the shade of blue he was wearing, and Bree had to pull her eyes back to Lilly. "Wow--small world!" Lilly said with a chuckle. "Well, come on over and let me introduce you to my sister, and you can say hi to my parents. Monica is dying to meet you." "All right." Bree gave Trent a small smile and then followed Lilly over to where Monica was standing with two other gorgeous women who also looked like they could be models. "Monica, look who's here!"

"Oh, my goodness!" the bride exclaimed, stepping toward Bree. "Well, if it isn't Bree Matthews! You look different in person. I had no idea you were so tiny."

Bree wasn't exactly sure what that meant. Was she commenting on her height or saying she looked bigger on video? "It's nice to meet you," she managed, offering her hand.

If you're loving the book, nel5s.org is where the adventure continues. Join us for the complete experience all for free. The next chapter is eagerly waiting for you!

"You, too," Monica gushed, giving her hand a weak shake before she clapped her hands together and gushed, "thank God you were available! I don't know what we would've done if you hadn't been. Trent didn't think you'd come, but here you are!"

"Oh, well, anything for Lilly." Bree turned to her friend and smiled.

"I told him there's no way you could be all that busy. It isn't as if your song is a big hit--yet. I'm sure it will be one day, though. It's a beautiful song. I just love it. It's really too bad it hasn't caught on."

"Thank you. I hope it does." Bree was running out of ways to be polite to this particular bridezilla.

"Bree, these are Monica's other two bride's maids. Hannah and Clarice."

"Hi," Bree said, shaking both of their hands. They both had the physiques of models, tall and slender, but Hannah's hair was platinum blonde, and Clarice's hair was a golden brown. "It's nice to meet you," Hannah said. "Monica played your song for us. It's lit."

If you're loving the book, nel5s.org is where the adventure continues. Join us for the complete experience-all for free. The next chapter is eagerly waiting for you! "Thanks." Bree smiled. That might be the first time anyone had used that particular compliment to describe her song, but she liked it.

"Totally. Whoever the dude was you wrote it for probably feels like a dick face now that you're all famous," Clarice added.

"Famous is a bit of a strong word," Monica said, her hand poised so that her long fingertips tapped her chin gracefully. "But it's coming. I feel it!" she said with a jovial smile.

Bree was at a loss for words again. Luckily, someone from the resort staff came in then and let them all know that it was time to serve dinner. Bree followed Lilly over to the seat she had designated for her, between a few distant family members who seemed nice enough, and then went to take her own seat with the rest of the bridal party.

Watching Monica and Trent together made Bree's stomach tighten up so that she couldn't really eat anything. Monica kept putting her arm around him, kissing his cheek, resting her head on his shoulder. Trent looked uncomfortable, and every once in a while he glanced in Bree's direction, which made her feel even worse. It wasn't as if he needed to feel sorry for her. He was happy, and she was happy for him. She'd just been caught off guard. It wasn't like he was ever going to marry her anyway. Hell, they'd never even dated. She'd been acting ridiculous for years, and now, she would be forced to grow up and move on. If anything, Monica was doing her a favor.

But if it was a favor, why did it feel like a kick in the gut?