They say a successful marriage requires falling in love more than once, always with the same person.
Nadia has witnessed pain in various ways, even having her own share in the past. During a night where she thought she and the love of her life woul...
I figured we all needed a little happy and heart-stopping (the good kind) stuff with today's race. Man, the Monaco curse is working really hard this weekend.
Enjoy!
*****
August 08, 2026 - France
I'm not perfect. I drink coffee like it's water. I have a temper and I'm not one who's known for keeping my mouth shut. I am obsessed with working, so obsessed it has become a coping mechanism for when I want to distract myself from any complicated thing happening in my life.
Charles isn't perfect either. Just like me, he's obsessed with getting good outcomes from his races. He has such a strong sweet tooth to the point where we always have a stock of dark chocolate in the fridge since it's the only type of sugar Andrea would let him eat all the time. His temper is as bad as mine, but he gets this cold and dark look instead of my stoic facial expression.
Neither of us is perfect.
But today? I'm tempted to think otherwise.
I could see almost everyone out there as I peeked through one of the windows of the chateau. Most of the guests were seated under the shade of trees that acted like a big umbrella for everyone. I couldn't see Charles though, which was probably for the best since I feel like I'll bawl my eyes out as soon as my eyes land on him. We slept in separate rooms last night per Pascale and Mrs. Yilmaz's orders and the lack of his warm body sleeping next to mine felt different. It wasn't like when he went off to races where I knew sleeping beside him was impossible. It was the fact that we were on opposite sides of the chateau, only a few footsteps away from one another.
"Alright, it's almost time!" Gabby cheered as she entered the room, holding a bouquet that was a smaller version of mine. She was dressed in a dusty blue fabric that was cinched at the waist and flowed until her ankles. She looked like a mermaid because of how the dress fell onto her body and how her light blonde hair was curled behind her shoulders. "You'll walk the first half alone before you meet Mrs. Yilmaz who'd be standing by the last row. From there, she'll walk you to Charles. Sounds good?"
I shook my head and a frown appeared on Gabby's face. "I need you there."
"What do you mean?"
"I need you to walk with me and Mrs. Yilmaz." I said and Gabby's lips parted as I noticed her eyes begin to water. "I need the two people who were with me that day because if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be where I am right now."
"I hate you, Nadia Kaplan. Only you would make me cry right when we're about to face those people." Gabby sniffed as she dabbed a tissue under her eyes, checking if her makeup got messed up. "I thought we were already done with the waterworks when you were getting ready."
It's a miracle that Gabby managed to lose the puffiness in her eyes from earlier. When the hair and makeup artist finished their job, Gabby helped me get into the dress. The two of us were careful, holding the fabric with care even though I was stepping into it instead of letting it go over my head.
The white off-shoulder dress fit me perfectly as the fabric clung to my upper body. The slight on my left leg allowed me to move freely which was one of my wishes so that I wouldn't be uncomfortable during the ceremony. We decided it was best to put my hair up and then get rid of the bobby pins later on for the reception.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
