I always enjoy reading stories about wedding planning, so I thought I'd take a crack at one of my own. If you like my Lee/Emily stories, you might like this one too. It is also going to feature Jane Nichols (Doyle) from 27 Dresses because I love her character and wanted to have her interacting with DWP characters, especially since they're doing what Jane is very good at: wedding planning lol.
This story will contain some triggering events and scenes of violence later on. Nothing crazy and graphic (T Rating as usual), but you've been warned.
Happy reading!
Full Summary:
When a wedding planner who doesn't believe in love meets a soon-to-be groom who isn't sure he should be marrying his fiance, anything can happen. Emily Charlton does very well at keeping people at arm's length and for a very good reason, but the Hendricks wedding has thrown her off her game when the groom is the one planning everything due to his fiance working crazy hours for the one and only Miranda Priestly. Lee Christmas (Hendricks) doesn't know if he's doing the right thing since everyone is telling him he's marrying Lacy because he's running from pain. The worst part of it is: they might be right. When he spends a lot of time with his wedding planner, he soon discovers that there might just be someone else out there who would actually love him for who he is.
September 2012
A splitting headache, that's what Emily Charlton had right now. Her fingers were pressed against her temples as she stared at the computer screen in front of her. It really shouldn't be this hard to find the perfect dress.
And yet it was.
"Uuuuuggggghhhhh," she growled, squeezing her eyes shut.
"Problem?" Nigel asked, popping his head through the door of her office.
"No, no problem," she answered, giving him a smile. It was incredibly fake, and it made her face hurt along with her forehead.
"My dear Emily," Nigel said, furrowing his brow in that way of his. "I know that sound. That sound equates to something eluding you. What is it?"
"I can't find the dress," Emily muttered.
"I'm sorry, what's that?" Nigel asked, putting a hand to his ear.
"I can't find the dress!" she said louder. Nigel's eyebrows flew up. He came into the office now, hands folded in front of him as he stood in front of her desk.
"Emily," he said sternly. "You have to find the dress. Without the dress, there is no big day, and without the big day, there's no happy bride, and if there's no happy bride, there's no paycheck for us, not to mention bad press of our business."
"I know, I know!" Emily exclaimed, slapping the palm of her hand on the desk and then flinching and wincing when the sound exacerbated her headache.
"Why don't you go home and sleep on it?" Nigel suggested. "It is almost midnight, after all."
"She's already been breathing down my neck," Emily said irritably.
"She can wait eight hours," Nigel assured her, gesturing with his waggling fingers. "Up, up, come on."
Emily turned off her computer reluctantly and got to her feet. She grabbed her purse and slung it over her shoulder before stepping around her desk and joining him as he walked out. He put an arm around her shoulders as they neared the exit.
"It'll all be better in the morning," he promised.
"How do you know?"
"I just do. Now, cheerio," he said with a bright smile.
"Aren't you going home?" she asked. "I can't let you be the only workaholic here."
"Pfft," Nigel dismissed. "Workaholic. Please. I'm wrapping up what I'm doing and then leaving. Good night, Emily." He gave her a strong push towards the door, and she yawned widely in response, not fighting him. She really was exhausted.
"Goodnight, Nigel," she said, going out the door. The night air slapped her in the face. It was a bit chillier than she expected. She pulled her sweater around her tighter as she hailed a cab.
She got lost in her thoughts on the ride home. She and Nigel had left Runway three years ago to start their own wedding planning business. Both of them had realized they were never going to excel under Miranda, and Nigel had pointed out that they made a good team since they started working together (he'd poached her from Miranda to be his assistant, which hadn't helped things...it really had been his revenge for Miranda giving his dream job away), so they decided to go out on their own. At first, they were going to do a bridal magazine, but then they decided wedding planning was better. It was working so far.
She got to her apartment and kicked off her shoes, padding to the bathroom to find her painkillers. She popped one easily and then made her way to her bedroom where she changed out of her stiff dress and into her comfy pajamas. She continued on her routine until she was under the covers and reflecting on the day's events. Sometimes she got lonely. Sometimes she wished she had a cat or a small dog to keep her company. She chose this life, though, the lonely one. Once hurt, never hurt again.
She rolled over and fell asleep within moments.
The Next Day
"Yes, Miss Holmes, I know," Emily was saying as she pushed open the door to their building. She was balancing a tray of coffee in one hand. The phone was crammed in the crook of her neck. It wasn't even eight thirty in the morning.
Nigel held out his hand as she walked past, and she placed his coffee into it without missing a beat. She handed the other to their receptionist, Alison. Then she went into her office. The whole time, Bella Holmes had talked nonstop about needing her dress. Emily wished they hadn't agreed to take on that part of the job. It was very time consuming and taxing. Nigel insisted it made them better competition, though. Very few wedding planners went dress hunting for/with the bride. They weren't going into places to try on the dress for the bride (although some have asked). They simply got the details of what kind of dress the bride was looking for, located one, and told the bride about it. Sometimes the bride wanted them to come along when they tried it on. Depending on the bride, this could be fun or a nightmare. Some brides were fine with picking out their own dress and doing it alone. In this case, Bella wanted everything done for her. Nigel had dubbed her The Lazy Bride.
"Miss Holmes, I promise you, promise you, that I'll call you before the end of today with where to get your dress," Emily said confidently. Bella hung up with the promise she'd leave their company if she didn't, and Emily sighed. The day had already turned sour.
"Oh, Em," Nigel said, coming in then. "New clients today."
"Another one?" she asked, feeling annoyed.
"Yes. I'd take them, but I'm pretty full."
"So am I..."
"I'm looking into hiring a helper," Nigel promised. "I have some candidates in mind."
"Make it two," Emily ordered.
"You read my mind."
"Please do it soon," Emily said to him, a hint of begging in her tone. He nodded and tapped his fingers on the trim of her door.
"The future Mr. and Mrs. Hendricks will be here for nine thirty," he added before walking away. Emily sighed again. She turned on her computer and started hunting for that dress again. Before she knew it, nine thirty had arrived, and her coffee was cold. She chucked it just as she heard Alison greeting the new clients.
"Right this way," Alison said chirpily (Emily had no idea how that woman could always be just so chipper...it was annoying), and then she was standing in Emily's doorway. "Ms. Charlton, your nine thirty is here."
"Thank you, Alison," Emily said a little wearily. It didn't matter how many times Emily told her not to call her that because it made her feel like an old biddy, Alison refused to call her Emily. She quickly put her business smile on right before the couple walked in.
"Hello," she said, standing up and extending her hand for them to shake. "I'm Emily. Welcome, and thank you for coming." The woman had a soft grip. The man had a very tight grip. Emily refrained from wincing. She surveyed them as they sat down. The man started to look around the office. Emily put him in his early 40s. He had a bit of scruff, a closely shaved head, hazel eyes, and a slight scar on his left cheek, so faint you'd miss it if you weren't looking for it (Emily noticed these things). The woman was late 30s with dark brown hair, bright white teeth, and hazel eyes. She had a fresh tan too.
"Hi," she said now. "I'm Lacy. This is Lee."
"Nice to meet you," Emily said politely. Lee did not say anything. Emily had a feeling he had been brought here against his will. Most grooms were. They didn't actually want to be involved in planning the wedding. They just wanted to be told where to stand, what to wear (even that they sometimes fought about), and have the ring. The brides always have this misconception that the grooms secretly want to help plan their magical day. It was comical sometimes. Emily had yet to meet a groom who actually wanted to be a part of the planning. In fact, she and Nigel had a bet on who would get an eager groom first. Alison had even gotten in on that bet.
"I've heard so much about you from my friend," Lacy went on. "Nancy Grooms?"
"Oh, yes!" Emily said, smiling widely. "She was such a wonderful lady." The Grooms groom had almost bailed. Nancy had been a version of bridezilla that had required delicate handling. She'd threatened to sue every five minutes over nothing. In the end, they rode off into the sunset and out of their lives. Thank God.
"Well, she had great things to say about you, so I thought I'd come see for myself," Lacy continued. This was very surprising to hear. Emily filed that away for gossip with Nigel later. She bet he'd laugh.
"Great! If you decide to go with us, I'll do everything to make your day special and exactly the way you want it."
Lee snorted, and both Lacy and Emily turned their heads to look at him. He seemed to notice that he had made the sound out loud and cleared his throat.
"Sorry," he said. "Dust." His British accent startled Emily slightly. She didn't come across folks from her neck of the woods often.
"Anyway," Lacy said slowly, looking back at Emily. "I have some ideas I'd like to run by you, and maybe we could go from there?"
"Sounds great," Emily answered with another smile. Her face was already hurting.
"Do you want to add anything, baby?" Lacy asked Lee.
"I'm good," he answered. His phone went off, and Emily noticed the death glare Lacy gave him when he moved his hand to pull it out from his pocket. He faltered, noticing as well, and rested his hand on his knee instead.
"We're thinking a spring wedding," Lacy said to Emily. "May 18th."
"Lovely," Emily said, pulling out her pad of paper and beginning to take notes.
"We're hoping for Blue Hill at Stone Barns," Lacy added.
"Hmm, that might be tough with such short notice, but I can try," Emily said. She felt irritated that Lee looked bored out of his mind. It made her want to know what he was planning in his life (aside from his wedding) so that she could act bored and disinterested with it while he talked about it.
"This is just so great," Lacy gushed when the fees had been discussed and settled and they'd been officially picked up as clients of Forever Loved Wedding Planning Co., which Emily struggled with saying because sometimes love didn't last forever (she would know).
"I'll call you soon," Lacy promised. "I'm starting a new job today, so things are going to be a bit hectic."
"Oh, that's exciting," Emily said, bored with this conversation.
"It is! I've always wanted to work in fashion, and now I'll be working for Miranda Priestly herself. It's just so amazing!" Lacy finished with a huge smile. Emily felt a jolt at the name and blinked a few times, looking at Lacy.
"Wow. That's great," she said, trying not to sound forced. What the hell was Miranda doing hiring someone older than 23? Had she officially lost her mind? Then again, maybe the woman was tired of the young girls using the job as a stepping stone and leaving her high and dry all the time. Still...
"Thank you!"
Lee was already standing outside the office door, making a clear statement that he was finished.
"I'm sorry for him," Lacy said to Emily, gesturing with her thumb. "He gets moody sometimes."
"I'm not moody, and I can hear you," Lee retorted.
Moody, Lacy mouthed to Emily, who nodded in understanding.
"I look forward to connecting with you soon," Emily said, needing to get back to her dress hunt.
"Yes! Me too!"
Lacy bounced out, linking her arm through Lee's and pulling him away. Emily looked up to see Lee staring right at her before he was yanked out of sight. Emily felt the tiniest of flutters inside of her, and it made her grip her desk hard. Where had that come from? She hadn't felt anything like that for a very long time. Why she'd even feel that for him was a mystery. He had been a bit rude and basically mocked her commitment to making their day special.
"Stupid," she muttered, giving herself a shake and sitting back down. It was nothing. The yogurt she had eaten earlier that day had smelled a little off. It was making her stomach all weird. She started scrolling through hundreds of dresses, feeling a bit mindless as she did so.
It was going to be a very long day.
...
Lee resisted looking at his phone until Lacy had found a place for lunch and had gone inside to use the washroom after ordering for them. Then he pulled it out to read the text from his friend, Barney Ross.
How's city life?
Lee sighed. He missed his team. Barney, Tool, Toll Road, Hale Caesar...even Gunner Jensen. Yin Yang had disappeared after a mission not long ago, but he missed him too. They had Billy for a while, which had been great. His heart lurched. Billy.
Terrible, Lee answered.
Did you see that wedding planner today?
Yea. FLOP or something.
FLOP?
Forever something. I don't remember the name of it.
Not too late to avoid forever...
I'm getting married, Barney.
Fine. I'm not the only one who thinks it's a terrible idea.
Yea, you are. Lee snorted. He knew nobody else gave a damn.
Not.
Are.
Not! Lee's thumb hurt slightly as he pressed hard on the exclamation point.
Quit running. We're all hurting from Billy, but that doesn't give you a license to be stupid and make the wrong choice.
It's not the wrong choice. Even as he typed it, he doubted the words. It couldn't be the wrong choice. They cared about each other. They could do this. Right?
She has cheated on you twice before. You really want to add marriage into the mix? It won't keep her from doing it again. Don't be an idiot.
"So, what did you think?" Lacy asked, returning and sitting down across from him at the small table. Lee wondered why most tables in this city were so small. Did they think people liked eating while touching elbows with the other person?
"Of what?" he countered, snapping his phone shut and putting it away again without responding to Barney's last message. Lacy had made it very clear she didn't like when he texted in front of her. It didn't stop Barney's words from repeating in his mind, though. He clenched his jaw briefly. They had sorted out the cheating thing. They were past it. They were moving forward.
"The wedding planner!" Lacy exclaimed now.
"Oh, right. She was nice," he answered. He didn't know if he was supposed to notice these things. Lacy got mad if he looked at another woman for too long. He didn't have to look at Emily for very long to see that she was bored with her job, tired, lost, and bitter about love. He was very good at reading faces. It had been surprising to hear her British accent, though. It made him want to know where she had come from.
"I think it's great," Lacy said strongly, taking his hand in hers. "We're finally doing this!"
"Yes, we are," he agreed. She smiled and leaned in for a kiss before their brunch arrived. Lee watched her eat and knew he loved her. He was sure he did. He just kept having an uneasy feeling about everything, and he didn't know why.
...
Barney thumped his phone on the table hard, making Tool jump slightly from the noise. Even Toll looked up from his book in the corner.
"What's up, Doc?" Tool asked casually.
"Lee's being an idiot."
"Is that new?"
"No, but he's being more of an idiot than usual," Barney sighed, rubbing his face.
"Like you have never been an idiot," Tool snorted, tapping his pipe against his leg.
"I didn't run away from my problems to marry a two-timing airhead," Barney pointed out.
"No, you just work yourself to death and have a black heart," Tool retorted. Toll snorted at this, hiding behind his book when he caught Barney glaring at him.
"At least my heart isn't about to be shattered into a million pieces," Barney shot back.
"No, but has it ever loved someone?" Tool challenged. Barney opened and shut his mouth, feeling angry suddenly. How dare Tool suggest that he hadn't loved someone!
"And you wonder where Christmas gets that scowl from," Tool chuckled, patting the table and getting to his feet. He moved his pipe to his mouth, letting it dangle from his lips. "Like adopted father, like adopted son."
"He's not my adopted son," Barney said, annoyed.
"All the boys are, aren't they?" Tool asked. "That's what you do, Barns. You take in these guys who lack a father figure, and you bring them under your wing. You look out for them; you take care of them. When you lose one, you punish yourself to the point of almost no return, and then you go hunting for another lost soul to give you a purpose again." Toll was nodding along while Tool spoke until Barney looked at him. Then he started shaking his head.
"Has he been going to your shrink?" Barney asked Toll, who shook his head again.
"Not that I'm aware of, Pops," Toll answered. Barney rolled his eyes at the joke while Toll smirked.
"Face it, Barney, you see Christmas as your kid, and you want to protect him from getting hurt. It's all right. You're all my adopted sons too," Tool reasoned.
"I'm older than you!" Barney exclaimed.
"Okay...adopted sons and one adopted brother," Tool corrected. "Well, two adopted brothers. Gunner is closer to my age after all."
"Make that four," Toll said. "I'm only ten years younger than you. So is Yang."
"Right. Barns could still be your dad, though, with the 16 year difference. Ah, so that technically could make me your adopted uncle."
"Oh, yea," Toll said, figuring it out in his head.
"Now you're just making it weird," Barney scoffed. "Knock it off."
"Whatever. You know what I'm trying to say," Tool said dismissively. "Ya'll are my damn family, and I love y'all and would take a bullet for any one of you. Got it?"
Barney didn't say anything else, and Tool gave a satisfied nod before walking away. Barney did not have to look at Toll to know he was watching him. He sighed roughly and pushed himself away from the table, scraping the chair back loudly. Then he stood and left as well. He needed some air.
...
"Yes, Miss Holmes," Emily said, "I found it." She pulled the receiver away from her ear when Bella shrieked loudly with joy. She was pretty sure everyone in the office heard it. This was proven by Nigel starting to clap his hands from down the hall in his office.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Bella was shouting now.
"You're welcome," Emily said back. "Get there as soon as you can."
"I'm going right now!"
Emily gave her the information and hung up the phone. She massaged her temple lightly as she reached to pull her pad of paper over and scratched off the task "find dress" written in bold letters. Success.
"Ms. Charlton?" Alison asked.
"Emily. It's Emily," Emily replied, disgruntled. "For the love of God, call me Emily!" She glared at Alison, who suddenly looked like she was going to cry. Good Lord.
"Mr. Hendricks is here," Alison said meekly, bobbing her head and hurrying away. Emily's mouth was still open when Lee sauntered into her office.
"Yes?" she asked, feeling confused. Why was he back there?
"Lacy was adamant that we pay you as soon as possible," Lee answered, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a folded cheque. He handed it to Emily, who took it from him. Their fingers brushed, and she felt a jolt. Not again. This was getting ridiculous.
"Thank you," she said professionally. After all, she was a professional. She planned weddings for crying out loud. You never fall for the damn groom. That was rule number one!
"You're welcome," Lee said, leaning back slightly on his heels, hands in his pockets.
"I'll call Lacy as soon as I have some time to start planning things," Emily promised.
"Actually," Lee said slowly, "you'll be dealing mostly with me."
"Um...what?" Emily asked, giving her head a slight shake. This was almost unheard of. Even if the groom did help, it was the bride who ran the show.
"What? You think a guy can't plan a wedding?" Lee challenged.
"I'm sure they could..."
"With her new job, Lacy knows things are going to be tight for timelines. She has been planning this wedding for the last two years. There's a manual that's almost three inches thick. I'm not going rogue," Lee assured her. "I'm only following instructions."
"Now that makes more sense," Emily said. "Bring me that manual then."
"I will."
"And no going rogue," Emily warned, pointing a finger at him. "Do you know what happens to almost all couples when the man goes rogue with the wedding planning?"
"She cuts off his balls?" Lee asked.
"They get divorced," Emily answered.
"Are you telling me the success rate of marriage is very poor?" he questioned, tilting his head. "Kind of bleak for a wedding planner."
"I'm just telling you what I know," she said with a shrug.
"I see."
"If you'll excuse me," Emily said when her phone started to ring, "I'm very busy. I'll be in touch."
"Aye, aye," Lee said, mimicking a sailor and saluting her curtly before leaving her office. Emily sank back into her chair. She was going to be working with Lee on this wedding. She had not expected that. It almost felt like it was a very bad idea.
But it also meant she just won 100 bucks. She tapped her desk before smiling slightly, looking at the empty doorway.
"Nigel!"