Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 86068 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 430(@200wpm)___ 344(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86068 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 430(@200wpm)___ 344(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“So, let’s raise our glasses to Camile and Elliot once more. May your marriage be filled with laughter that echoes through the years, love that deepens with every challenge, and countless moments that make you look at each other and say we’re doing alright, aren’t we. Cheers to you both.”
The crowd clinks glasses again. Camile beams at her friend, and Elliot looks genuinely moved, shaking his head with a grin as the applause continues.
Elliot’s brother gets up again.
“And now, it’s time for a tradition. Most of you know what’s coming. For those who don’t, well, you’re in for a treat.”
The crowd chuckles knowingly. I frown, glancing at Rhett. “What’s he talking about?”
Rhett leans in close, his shoulder brushing mine. “It’s a thing we do. It started back in college, at graduation. Someone made a montage of our years together, the photos, the videos, all the ridiculous stuff. It stuck. Now, whenever there’s a big event, someone makes a film. It always gets a laugh.”
On cue, the screen at the front of the tent flickers to life. A collective sigh rises as footage of Elliot and Camile begins to play. It starts with footage from their first ski trip, the pair of them laughing in the snow, then there is a yacht party where they are dancing beneath a fireworks display. Next is a shot of Camile tossing her head back in laughter while Elliot gazes at her like she has hung the stars. It’s romantic and charming, perfectly edited to tug our heartstrings. I smile despite barely knowing them, swept up in their story.
The montage ends to applause, but then the screen brightens again.
“And now,” Elliot’s brother says with a grin. “The bit you’ve all been waiting for - a few highlights from the rest of the gang.”
Laughter ripples as the clips roll. First up is Maria, performing a TikTok dance challenge on a yacht deck, her hair whipping in the wind as she nails the moves with flawless precision. She waves dramatically at the camera at the end, earning a cheer from our table. Next comes Harrison, launching himself off the side of a yacht into the sea, flipping twice before hitting the water with a perfect dive. More laughter, a few impressed whistles. Then Max appears, shirtless and grinning, leaping from a rooftop into a glittering swimming pool below while people cheer around him. The crowd roars.
I grin, glancing at Rhett. “I can’t wait to see yours. What did they dig up?”
“I dread to think,” Rhett says with a laugh.
But the smile freezes on my face as the next clip begins. My own face fills the screen. I am wearing that ridiculous sequined dress – yes, the Jessica Rabbit dress. I look like I am all cleavage. God, there I am, strutting like Jessica Rabbit, my hips swaying in an exaggerated, vulgar manner, as I approach Rhett and ask him out. Someone has put the chorus of Da ya think I’m sexy by Rod Stewart, and it just makes it all so much worse. It echoes in my ears as my stomach drops straight through the floor.
“Oh my God,” I whisper, heat flooding my cheeks.
The laughter around me carries on. Some of it is delighted, some are surprised, and some people just watch in stunned silence. I can barely even look. All I can see is myself on that screen, cartoonish, obscene, in the middle of what is supposed to be the classiest wedding of the year.
I want to crawl under the table. I want to disappear. They all saw it, every guest, every friend, every stranger. Rhett’s parents. Oh God, Lois and Wayne. My skin burns as I imagine them watching this, judging me. They must think I’m trash. A cheap joke among their polished set.
My champagne glass trembles in my hand. Around me, people laugh, whisper, and clap. The screen fades to black, the montage over, but I can’t breathe. I can’t look at anyone. Not Rhett, not Maria, not Max or Harrison. Especially not Rhett’s parents, who are at the table next to ours. My cheeks flame hotter and hotter, the humiliation coursing through me in waves.
In the glow of chandeliers and laughter, surrounded by glittering gowns and tailored tuxedos, I feel like the butt of a cruel joke. Like they’ve been laughing at me all along, waiting for this moment to prove I don’t belong here. They’ve pretended to welcome me, and the whole time they have been planning to do this to me.
I press my clutch bag hard against my lap, praying for the floor to open up beneath me. Because in this glittering world, under all these lights, I’ve never wanted to vanish more than I do right now.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Rhett
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OFnMa84aSk
-something stupid-
The laughter all around me is still echoing in my ears when Pippa bolts. One moment she is there, sitting beside me, the warmth of her hand in mine; the next moment, she is gone, dashing past the tables and out into the cool night air.