“I know. I’m sure it’s not what you want. If they have to move the wedding inside, they move it inside. No big deal.”
Corrie looked away, her lips in a thin line. “My mother picked this place. Said it would accommodate everyone on the list. The coordinator told me this morning that we had twenty-five more guests than they can seat at the reception.”
“I’m sure they can make room. Things like that happen all the time.”
Corrie shook her head. “Nothing is going right, Shannon.”
She stopped working on the running makeup and captured Corrie’s gaze. “What does your fiancé say about the rain?”
Corrie’s nose flared, and for a second Shannon thought she’d have a bawling bride on her hands once again. Instead, her chin came up. “I don’t know. I haven’t seen him yet.”
“What do you mean?”
“He flew in a few hours ago. He was supposed to fly here with me yesterday and then told me at the last minute that he had a meeting he couldn’t avoid.”
Hair on the back of Shannon’s neck started to slowly dance.
“He’s always working. My mother says that’s a good thing, that we won’t get tired of each other.”
Shannon laid a hand on the countertop. “What do you think?”
Corrie swallowed. “I think it’s a crappy way to start a marriage. It feels like I’m just another merger for his company.”
Shannon was starting to understand Corrie’s point.
“And all this . . . the rain, the screwed up guest list . . . it’s an omen.”
She took a breath and waited. “Are you having second thoughts?”
Corrie nodded once. Her eyes started to well up again.
“Hey. It’s not too late to back out. If you really don’t want to do this, you don’t have to.”
Corrie looked at her like the thought had never crossed her mind that she actually had a choice.
“Trust me. You’re better off walking away now than going around faking forever with a man who isn’t right.”
“I can’t do that. My mother would kill me. All the guests are flying in.”
Oh, the pressure. Shannon knew it well.
“Listen. I understand that there is a plan here, but you still have a choice. Take it from me, once you say I do, it’s going to take a lot more to say you don’t.”
“You think I’ll end up divorced.”
Shannon didn’t want to put that on her. “If you both love each other enough, you can work through anything.”
Corrie narrowed her eyes. “Did you love your husband enough?”
“I did. But it takes two, Corrie.”
She closed her eyes.
“I’m not saying your fiancé doesn’t love you.” Not that Shannon would know.
The door to the bathroom opened, and Corrie’s friend appeared with the makeup. “He’s here,” she announced.
Corrie released a breath and brushed away the remainder of her tears. “I’m okay.”
Shannon stood back and let the conversation drop while Corrie attempted to erase the stress with powder and blush.
“I’ll leave you girls.”
Corrie painted on the fake smile Shannon had seen the day she’d met her. “I’m fine. It’s just rain, right?”
Shannon left the room, anxious now to see who Corrie’s future husband was.
Three steps into the dining room, where the waitstaff had already pushed tables aside in an attempt to create a makeshift aisle, Shannon’s heart jumped.
Mrs. Harkin stood in animated conversation with Mr. Phone.
Slowly, as if feeling her disapproving gaze, he turned her way. The smile he wore while talking fell.
“You,” she whispered under her breath. Maybe he was just a guest here for the wedding and knew the mother of the bride.
Only those hopes faded when Corrie emerged from the bathroom, walked past Shannon, and straight up to Mr. Phone.
He turned his attention to Corrie and kissed the side of her cheek. Their conversation was too far away for Shannon to hear, but it became perfectly clear who the man was, and who his girlfriend was.
Not only was Mr. Phone not good enough for Corrie, the man was robbing the cradle.
Chapter Four
Shannon flagged down the bartender and sat at the bar. “I’ll have a margarita.”
“Make that two.”
She turned to the man who moved up beside her.
“It’s an open bar, might as well, right?” he said, smiling.
Was it an open bar? She didn’t know. “Right.”
“Now that the groom finally showed up, we can get this shit show moving so we can do it again tomorrow.”
Shannon couldn’t stop from laughing. “So that is him,” she said more to herself than the stranger standing beside her.