a scowl on her face that only got deeper the closer they got to them, and by the time they reached the table, she was out of her chair. She grabbed Janice by the arm and pulled her away from Reggie, her breath coming in angry gasps.
“Where the hell have you been?” she snarled, digging her fingers into her arm. “After that stunt you pulled last night, I would have thought you’d want to salvage just a little bit of your reputation.”
Janice was just about to pull her arm away from Betty when Reggie stepped up behind her. “Remove your hand from my fiancée’s arm before I remove it for you,” he said.
She looked up at Reggie, his eyes full of anger and something she couldn’t describe, then pulled her arm away from Betty’s clutching fingers. “Don’t ever grab me like that again,” she hissed. “You got your way, now leave me alone.”
Betty’s mouth opened in shock, then she closed it again and narrowed her eyes at Janice. “Just because you agreed to marry Reggie doesn’t mean you’re safe, just remember that,” she said, then turned and walked away.
Anger pounding through her veins, she let Reggie guide her to a chair, and sat down, shaking with anger. “Did she just threaten me?” she leaned over and asked.
He shrugged. “That’s the way I took it,” he said.
Janice looked over at Betty, who was whispering in her father's ear. “I could take her,” she said, completely serious.
Reggie started laughing. “I bet you could,” he said.
Janice grinned at him. “Well, I bet I could,” she said, a little hurt.
“Sweetheart, I’d always put my money on you in a fight,” he said, leaning over and kissing her.
“Now, isn’t that sweet,” Philip said from the end of the table. “I’m so glad to see that you two are getting along so well. That’s going to make things so much easier for all of us. In fact, considering recent events, I’ve decided to forego the council meeting and go right to the wedding. After all, I can’t see how you can object to the marriage now.”
Janice tamped down her anger at his tone of voice, but couldn’t help the blush that spread across her cheeks when there were knowing looks and nodding heads around the table. Reggie took her hand and gave it a squeeze, his eyes locked on his fathers.
“What did you have in mind?” Reggie asked, his voice calm but his body tense.
“I was thinking a night wedding out on the patio; we’ll keep the guest list small,” his father said. “I’m sure the staff can pull it all together for tomorrow night.”
“Oh, that’s a little soon. I was hoping to invite a few friends,” Janice said. “And I don’t have a dress yet.”
“Well, I’m sure we can come up with something,” Philip said, waving his hand in the air. “And I’m not sure guests are such a good idea.”
Janice pretended to pout. “Well, I suppose if that’s the way you feel,” she said. “But this is my only wedding, and this will probably be my last chance to see my friends. I’ve always dreamed about a big wedding, you know, the white dress, the big cake.”
She was proud of herself when she managed to squeeze out a few tears, which she let slide down her cheeks, then followed them with a big sigh. Philip looked at her, his face a little softer. “I suppose we could postpone the wedding for one more day, but not a minute more,” he said, shrugging his shoulders as if it was no big deal. “But then I think we’d better have a morning wedding.”
Janice tried not to smile in triumph. “Oh, that would so wonderful. Thank you so much,” she gushed, letting a few more tears slide down her cheeks.
Reggie put his arm around her. “You’ll have the wedding you always dreamed of, sweetheart, I promise,” he said, pulling her closer.
“Oh, dear, I have so much to do,” she said, clapping her hands together like she’d seen Betty do. “I have to call Melanie. Maybe she can lend me her wedding dress, since we’re about the same size.”
“Oh, I can help you find a dress,” Betty said, getting to her feet. “And we’ll have to see about a menu, and the cake. We have to have a big cake, maybe some doves or butterflies; that would be magical.”
Janice took a deep breath, then said, “That all sounds so wonderful. I hope you’ll be helping with the planning.”
Chapter