Welcome to the Queendom

Chapter Forty-Five

I came back down the stairs in a strappy floral printed crop, black skirt and Aqua colored peep-toe wedges with a matching colored stoned ring. I made sure my bun was in place and that my bangs were where they were supposed to be before stepping back into the dining room.
Dean's eggs dropped from his fork and he stared at me a little longer than necessary.
"You okay?" I asked him.
He snapped back into reality. "Uh-huh."
Madison turned and glared at me. I grinned back.
"Alright, girls, let's head out. We have a lot to do today," Mrs. Good said.
I gave Dean a kiss on the forehead before following the others out the door.
"So, girls, how have you been since the party?" Mrs. Good asked, trying to strike up a conversation.
We had been driving in silence for five minutes and I guess the quiet was making her uneasy.
"I've been awesome," Madison gloated. "I was at a photo shoot just last week for a fashion magazine. They wanted me on the cover."
"Who would want you on the cover of anything?" I mumbled.
She turned around from the passenger seat and glared at me.
"What did you say?" she asked.
I smirked. She wasn't gonna scare me. "I said, who would want you on the cover of anything?"
"Girls, girls," Mrs. Good scolded. "Let's be nice now, okay?"
Madison turned around and narrowed her eyes at the road. I folded my arms across my chest satisfied with myself.
"Now," Mrs. Good began, steering to another topic, "I already visited the wedding venue and reception place yesterday so all we have to do is get ready."
She whipped out her phone from the center console and dialed someone's number. "Tyler," she said as soon as her future husband answered the phone, "make sure you and the boys are at the wedding venue on time." Mr. Good said something on the other end. "Well you have bad timing on things," Mrs. Good explained. "David and Henry are gonna be at the venue in two hours, be there."
She stabbed the end button and put her phone back where it was.
"So where are we going first?" Madison asked.
"We're meeting my Maid of Honor, Linda, and my other bridesmaid, Marion, at a spa," Mrs. Good answered. "We should be there any minute."
My phone bleated beside me.
Have you and Madison turned the car upside down yet?-Dean
I rolled my eyes. No, I texted back. And besides, you shouldn't worry about me and Madison. What about you and your dad?

You had to go there, he replied.

Of course. Talk to you later.

We pulled into the parking lot of Enlighten Spa.
"I guess I can do another facial," Madison said nonchalantly as she got out of the car.
"I guess I can do another facial," I mimicked quietly with an eye roll. So prissy.
"Hi," Mrs. Good greeted the clerk at the counter. "I have an appointment under the name Good."
The clerk typed something into the computer before tapping the bell beside her.
"Someone will be right with you," she told us before gesturing behind us to a row of chairs.
We turned around and Mrs. Good squealed.
"Linda! Marion!"
She gave her friends a hug. They were at the party, I remembered. Linda was a blonde who looked like she got a blowout twice a week with gray-green eyes and a button nose.
Marion was her identical twin except her eyes were straight gray and her tips were dipped bronze.
"It's so good to see you guys again," Mrs. Good said.
"You too. How's the pregnancy going?" Marion asked.
"Pretty good, but it's just the beginning. 8 more months." Mrs. Good wiped imaginary sweat from her brow. "These are my other bridesmaids, Chelsea and Madison."
Madison cut in front of me and stuck her hand out. "Nice to meet you," she said.
They gave her kind smiles and shook her hand.
"Mrs. Good," the clerk called out.
Everyone turned. A woman in white was standing in front of the counter. "This is Glenda."
"At your service," Glenda said, sticking her hand out. Mrs. Good shook it. "Right this way."
"So you're with our God son Dean, right?" Linda asked me as we followed the Glenda lady down the hall.
"Yeah," I answered.
"Child I don't know you do it," Marion said. "That boy is so headstrong. It's almost impossible to talk to him sometimes."
I laughed in agreement. We emerged into a gray marble room with florescent lights above. There was a jacuzzi dead center, blue bubbles rippling the surface.
"You all will spend 15 minutes in here to soften your skin," Glenda explained. "Then I and a few of my colleagues will take each of you to a separate room and make you over. Sound good?"
Everyone nodded and Glenda closed the door on her way out. There was a bench on the opposite wall from the door with 5 white, fluffy towels and an equal amount of bathing suits.
Mrs. Good was the only one that had a one-piece. After changing in them, everyone dipped themselves into the boiling tub.
Mrs. Good sighed and rubbed her belly before completely submerging into the water with only her head visible. I laid my head back on the water-proof pillow.
"I can't wait to see our dresses, Mrs. Good," Madison said.
"They're beautiful," Mrs. Good said. "They're lilac."
"We love that color," Linda and Marion said at the same time.
Mrs. Good grinned at them.

"You're very tense right here," Katherine, Glenda's colleague, told me as she dug the knuckle of her thumbs into my lower back. "I hear you're on the road a lot."
"Yeah, for work," I explained. "It can be stressful at times."
"Do you have a boyfriend?" she asked.
"Yeah," I answered.
"You should have him give you massages sometimes. It undoes the muscles knots better."
Yet all the workers here were female, except for the janitor. I brought that to Katherine's attention.
"We had to let all our male staff go," Katherine explained. "A lot of complaints from boyfriends and husbands."
"Oh," I drew out the word, completely understanding. Good thing too, Dean would be right with them.

Even though it was riding up to 90 degrees and there was a warm breeze blowing, my face chilled every time it kicked up. Everyone's eyes were wide when we left the spa, our faces soft and glowing.
"That facial was just what I needed," Mrs. Good said when we loaded into the car.
I mutely agreed, touching my face. I quickly put my arms by my sides. The next stop was Incredible Creations Beauty & Barber.
"You're toes are in great condition," the lady doing my pedicure told me, as she examined my toenails. I had just painted them, along with my fingernails, a hot pink last night.
"Uh, thanks," I replied as she dipped my feet into a mini tub attached to the bottom of a beige leather massage chair.
My phone rang. I pulled it out of the chair's cup holder and checked the Caller ID: Dean.
Madison, who was sitting next to me, peeked over and scowled. I gave her an unapologetic smile and jabbed the answer button.
"Dad's freaking out," was the first thing Dean said.
I laughed. "Well hello to you to and why?"
"Cold feet. He's definitely going through with it, even if Jackson and I have to tie him down to a chair and roll him down the aisle, he just has big butterflies."
"Are you good with all of this?" I questioned.
"I guess," he answered. "If this is really what my mom wants, then it's whatever."
"You're not even a little happy?" I asked quietly, so that Mrs. Good-who was sitting on the other side of me-wouldn't overhear.
It was quiet on Dean's end for a moment before he sighed. "No," he stated simply. "I really don't trust him, Chels. Am I wrong for feeling that way?"
"No," I said with a head shake. "But you should give him a tiny chance. He is your dad after all and he wants to patch things up. Can't you give him credit for trying?"
"I'll think about it and get back to you," he admitted. "I'll see you in a few."
"Okay, love you," I said with a smile. "And Dean?"
"Yeah?"
"Be patient."
"Can't make any promises," he confessed. "I love you."
The call ended. When I looked over at Madison, she was staring at me intently.
"Did you lose something over here?" I asked harshly.
She narrowed her eyes at me and faced forward.
I looked down and saw that the lady was staring at Madison, shaking her head. But she quickly went back to her work.