“Are you sure they don’t need us?”
“Positive,” Cami turns me toward my room. “Now, get your ass in the shower so we can get this show on the road.”
* * *
“Where are you taking me?” They put me in the backseat, as if that will keep me from seeing out of the windows. There are days I wonder about Cami’s thought process, and today is one of them.
“Don’t you worry your pretty little head,” she calls back. “Just sit back and enjoy the ride.”
“I guess I should be happy you didn’t blindfold me.” There’s no way I would have been able to hand that. I squirm even thinking about it.
Darcy snaps her fingers from the seat beside me. “I knew I was forgetting something.”
“That’s not even funny,” I retort. “It would have been a good way to piss me off.”
Caroline snorts from the front passenger seat. “Like I was going to let them do it. You’ve been so full of tension lately that any crazy antics would have made you snap.”
She’s not wrong. I’ve been trying so hard to make everything perfect that I haven’t taken the time to enjoy the actual planning. Instead, I’ve been griping at the people I care about and making life harder than it should be. “Guys, I’m sorry if I’ve been a pain in the ass.”
“It’s definitely been more thanif,” Cami points out. “You’ve been a freaking nightmare. But,” she sighs. “That’s okay because you are the bride.” She glances at her side mirror before merging into the next lane. “Honestly, I’d be worried if you didn’t go all bridezilla at least once.”
“That doesn’t really make me feel any better,” I mutter.
Cami hears me anyway. “When have I ever said anything to make you feel better?” Shrugging, she adds, “I’ve always been brutally honest. It’s one of the things you love about me.”
She’s right, of course. My best friend has no problem setting me straight when I need it. I only wish I could think of a way to show her how much I truly appreciate her. She’s always been my constant, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about how this change in my life is going to affect our relationship.
We ride in silence until Cami turns on her blinker to take an exit I immediately recognize. “Why are we going to the mall?”
“Because,” Caroline says. “You can’t get married without getting pampered, first. We’re getting manicures and pedicures before we do anything else.”
“As long as we also get one of those cinnamon pretzels, I don’t care what we do.” Knowing these girls have put a lot of thought into whatever else they have planned for me, warms my heart. I feel the first twinge of excitement in my chest.
“Whatever the bride wants, the bride gets.” Cami says as we pull into a parking spot.
“Well, let’s do this thing.” We exit the car and the light Spring breeze lifts the ends of my long hair. Oh shit. In all the madness of the past two weeks, I completely forgot to set up a hair appointment. Dang it, how am I going to get into a salon on such short notice.
The girls stop when they notice I’m no longer following them. “What’s wrong?” Darcy asks. She’s always the concerned one, and I love her for it.
“My hair looks like hell, and I’m not going to be able to get it done before the wedding.” I stomp. Yeah, I stomped, so what if I’m having a tantrum. I think it’s completely called for. I can’t seem to win for losing.
“Oh,” she waves her hand at me like it’s a nonissue. “We already took care of that. Cami told me who your stylist was weeks ago, and scheduled it for you.”
I run and throw my arms around the both of them so hard I almost knock them down. Waving Caroline over to join in our impromptu group hug, I squeeze her just as hard. “What would I do without y’all?”
“Have shitty hair?” Cami mumbles. “Ow.”
Darcy poked her in the side for her comment, and I can’t stop the laugh from bubbling up. “Seriously, thank all of you for helping me so much the past two weeks. I would have called it all off if I didn’t have you three on my side.” A tear escapes my eye. “See, y’all made me cry.” I quickly wipe it away, not wanting them to think I’m upset. “Now, let’s go get our nails done and grab some pretzels.”
* * *
You wouldn’t think cutting off three inches of hair would make a difference in the weight, but it feels so much lighter, and looks healthier. We also added in a few highlights to naturally dark hair. I don’t even remember the last time I’ve gotten them done. Since before I was pregnant with Layla, at least. I can’t stop running my fingers through it.
“Girl, you look like you’re in one of those shampoo commercials.” Cami grabs my hand before it makes another pass through my locks. “And, it’s weird. You should probably stop.”
“Leave her alone,” Darcy butts in. “She doesn’t pamper herself often, let her enjoy it.”
“I’ve never heard a truer statement,” Caroline adds. “I have to make sure I schedule in time for myself, otherwise I’ll forget. I devote so much of my time to David that I sometimes forget who I am.”