Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 94279 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 471(@200wpm)___ 377(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94279 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 471(@200wpm)___ 377(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
I snort-laughed. “We came here to get rid of a wedding dress. I’m not doing that again, buying a dress for a fantasy that doesn’t exist.”
The salesclerk made her way back to the fitting room. She held out a piece of paper. “This is the best I can do on the gown. It’s a beautiful dress, but it’s pretty old.”
I swallowed hard looking at the number written on the sheet. It was maybe 10 percent of what I’d paid years ago.
Wilder caught my eye. “It’s not about the money, right?”
I sighed. “Yeah. You’re right.” I looked to the salesclerk. “It’s a deal. Thank you.”
A little while later, we pulled up to the brownstone. I had two new cocktail dresses and still a small store credit left.
“What time is your flight?” I asked.
Wilder glanced at his watch. “Three and a half hours from now. I have to pick up Lucas and get this car back to my dad’s garage before we head to the airport. So I do have to get going, though I wish I didn’t.”
“I don’t know how to thank you for today. I feel lighter already. Freer.”
Wilder winked. “That might’ve been my hope all along. See you in London—maybe a few days early?”
I smiled. “Yeah, I think you might.”
16
SLOANE
“So today is going to be a fun one,” I said into the camera. “We’re making a dos-and-don’ts list for brides leading up to their wedding. And to help us, I have a special guest—Anna Wren from Park Avenue Wedding Planners. Anna has planned some of the biggest and most luxurious weddings in New York, including those of celebrities and Wall Street tycoons. She’s one of the most sought-after planners, and her fifteen years of experience have taught her a thing or two about good etiquette.” I took a breath. “And then toward the end of the show, I have a giant announcement I can’t wait to share.” I pressed a button to split the screen, and Anna went live with me. “Hi, Anna. Are you ready to get started?”
She pretended to crack her knuckles. “I am.”
We jumped right into the list, starting with simple stuff like:
Do take into account all of your bridesmaids’ body types when selecting dresses.
Don’t ask people to be backup bridesmaids. (I didn’t even know that was a thing.)
Do make sure dress fittings and rehearsals are at a convenient time for everyone involved.
Don’t fire your bridesmaid because she gets pregnant.
Most of the list was pretty comical, consisting of things I hoped most people wouldn’t need to be told, but brides got caught up when it came to their weddings. Anna and I laughed our way through the entire segment, and pretty soon it was time to ask the viewers for their input.
“Alright, ladies, you have our list. But we want to hear from you! So, we’re going to open the chat for you to give us your thoughts on what else we should add to our list.”
The suggestions rapid-fired in one after another, most of them don’ts, which clearly showed how many people have had bad bridal-party experiences.
Don’t ask your bridal party to chip in for your honeymoon. (Huh?)
Don’t tell your bridesmaids they must hold off on getting engaged until after your wedding so they won’t steal your limelight.
Don’t forbid your bridal party from eating the day of the wedding so they won’t look bloated in pictures.
One in particular caught my attention as it rolled in.
Don’t make your bridal party spray-tan themselves orange so they all have an equal amount of melanin.
The viewer’s handle? NumberSeventeen.
A tingle ran up my spine at the thought of Wilder watching. The man was traveling nonstop and pulling together a brand-new professional sports team, but he’d remembered my weekly show? It was almost nine o’clock here, so nearly two in the morning his time—assuming he was back in England tonight. He was like Waldo lately, popping up in my Instagram feed all over the place in different countries.
I smiled at the camera, feeling slightly flushed. “Alright, I think we’ll add NumberSeventeen’s don’t to our list—not requiring your bridal party to get matching spray tans so no one in particular stands out—and call it a day.” I rubbed my hands together. “But we still have the big announcement, which I’m going to share with you by reading a letter I received from a viewer. But first, I want to thank Anna for all of her help today.”
Anna waved. “Thank you for having me! And if we’ve made one person into less of a Bridezilla, I think we’ve done our job.”
“Definitely.”
“Bye, Sloane!”
“Bye, Anna!”
I pressed the button to go from split screen to just me and lifted a paper from my desk. “Alright, everyone, here we go. This is the letter I received from a wonderful viewer named Larisa … ‘Dear Sloane, I’ve been a fan of your show since I got engaged two years ago. A friend told me about one of your segments on unique venues, and I watched it and wound up booking a small farm you featured up in the Hudson Valley for my wedding. Unfortunately, things haven’t worked out, and my fiancé and I called off the wedding a few days ago. The entire thing is already paid for—in excess of fifty thousand dollars spent on the venue, catering, photographer, floral arrangements, hair and makeup, even a honeymoon suite. All of it is nonrefundable and going to go to waste, so I thought maybe I could turn something negative into something positive and pay forward the blessing I was able to afford. Would you be interested in running some sort of a contest with your followers to give away a pretty amazing wedding package? Best, Larisa Maven.’”