The Nanny

Chapter 28

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Boom, updated!

I know I said this a while ago, but this time I definitely mean it: by my calculations, there are only three to four chapters left of this book, including the Epilogue (yes, you get a glimpse of their future, you're welcome :D).

In other words, enjoy!

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Chapter 28

"I don't know. I'm not really sure it's my style," I wondered aloud, looking over my shoulder and examining how I looked from the back. After all, that's all most people would see as I walked down the aisle.

Angie tilted her head and Brittany pursed her lips. Haley, on the other hand, was standing next to me, fluffing the train so it was neatly flowing behind me.

L'Fay Bridal was full of exquisite dresses, each made by top-notch designers in France. In other words, no matter what dress I chose, it would make my previous paychecks from Andrew appear like I hadn't been paid at all.

"Are you sure I should even be picking out my dress here?" I asked them. "This place is so expensive and I can't afford it—"

"Natalie, you are picking a dress out here," assured Brittany. "This place is great. It's where I got my dress."

Haley had been strangely quiet the entire night, so I turned to her. "What do you think, Hales? Does this place have the perfect dress?"

Her eyes widened with excitement. "Let me look on the shelves again! Maybe I missed one..."

Brittany was amused at Haley's constant participation in the wedding. I thought it was sweet. The only wedding experience she had had was Brittany's, and she nearly fell as she walked down the aisle. Haley was determined to redeem herself by helping me pick out the perfect dress. It was the most important accessory to the audience, at least; for me, I didn't care if I was wearing a pair of sweats when I married Andrew. All I wanted was him standing next to me.

Angie and Brittany were my two bridesmaids attending the dress appointment with me. The other two—Desiree and Mikayla, who both worked with Angie at Callaway Publishing—weren't able to make it due to a last minute conference in Chicago. Angie somehow bullshitted her way out of going.

While I tugged at the tail of my dress, Angie decided to start a conversation that wasn't a disastrous wedding dress story. "So, Nattie, how are things with you and Mark?"

They were great. We'd gone out to dinner three times in the two weeks that passed since Mom's funeral. I'd gotten to know him much better. For instance, he eventually moved on from the situation with Mom and his brother and married a woman named Grace, who I had yet to meet. Together they had two kids, a seventeen-year-old, Carla, and a ten-year-old, Justin. Although I had only one interaction with his kids, I was working on ways for both of them to somehow be in the wedding. It only seemed fair; I was their "long lost" sister.

"He's really excited that his family is supportive of me," I continued, sipping from the complimentary white wine L'Fay offered. "It's a little weird to be meeting my real father, though. He's been out of my life for so long that it's hard to come to terms with it."

"Well, our parents are conceited and Amber's are shit so I'm glad Haley will finally have a set of grandparents that don't forget her birthdays," added Brittany. "Angie, do you want my wine?"

Angie, who was already on her third glass, was strangely more sober than drunk, so she accepted. "Why don't you want it? It's really tasty."

While Brittany was completely normal in the sense that she constantly voiced her opinion, her upbeat personality seemed to waver throughout the night. "Oh, I'm just...not feeling my best and I think wine would only make it worse."