The Bastard Takes a Wife Read Free Page A

Sam’s deck chair, hands on hips.
I know I’d agreed to let him off most of the wedding preparations
because ‘girlie flowers and stuff’ wasn’t his thing but if he’d
been interfering from the sidelines he could suffer the
consequences. So much for only wanting to ‘rock up on the day’ and
have a great time.
    “Did you tell Angus you were having three
attendants?”
    Sam frowned as if digging through the mud in
his memory. “Don’t think so. Mum was raving on about something the
other day and I told her we wanted a small wedding in King’s Park.”
He beamed up at me; seemingly chuffed that he’d even remembered
that detail.
    “Then why did Angus reel off the names of the
rugby boys? And why’re Simmo and Rambo in our wedding party?
They’re not exactly poster boys for making a relationship
work.”
    Sam looked worried now. “Ah, ‘cause I sort of
asked them.”
    “But we decided.”
    “I know we did but listen, please, before you
fly off the handle…..” He looked up at me and did his best
impersonation of a puppy wanting more dinner. “Mum made the point
that we have a bit of an expectation on us, given who my family
are.”
    There it was again. That word.
Expectation.
    “But we agreed. Together.”
    “I know and I didn’t mean to ask the boys. It
sort of popped out after I’d had a couple. Simmo was the first
person I met when I came to Perth. And Rambo’s saved me on the
pitch more times than I can count. I feel indebted to him. Anyway,
they looked so upset when they heard Johnny talking about planning
the Buck’s night, I didn’t have a choice.”
    I didn’t know whether to be annoyed or happy
that Sam appeared to have developed an empathy gene. But after all
the ‘little talks’ we’d had, why did he have to choose this moment
to use it?
    I groaned. “So you were drunk?”
    “Not exactly.”
    “But you decided to increase the size of the
wedding party without talking to me first?”
    “I can un-invite them if that’s what you
want.”
    Now he was taking the piss. As if you could
un-invite someone from your wedding party. It was very bad
manners.
    “I guess it’ll be okay,” I sighed. “I’ll have
to ask the girls to stand up too. And you’ll have to choose someone
else to be a groomsman because if I ask them we’ll have an uneven
number with Alex already in.”
    I didn’t care what that fool Angus Adams
said. If I had to ask Kirby, Sasha and Mel to be my bridesmaids I
was having Alex as the Maid of Honour.
    Sam gave a small grin and reached up to
squeeze my hand. I couldn’t help wondering if he’d wanted this all
along. “Don’t stress about it, Mill’. In the scheme of things a few
more sitting at the table is no big deal. It’s not like we’re
paying for it.”
    Well, that was a relief.
     
     
     
     

Chapter 4
     
    “Can you believe the cheek of him?” I said to
Kirby as we reached the door of Mode For Brides a couple of days
later. “He wanted me to dump Alex from the bridal party because
she’s a bit tubby.”
    Kirby’s head shook in disbelief. Her golden
highlights sparkled in the afternoon sun. “Like, what a dick! I
hope you, totally, told him to stick his head up his bony little
bottom.”
    “I told him to get out.”
    “O.M.G! You, like, sacked the wedding
planner?”
    “Well, yeah, but then I had to reinstate him.
I’ve got no idea how to organise a wedding.” The whole thing was a
nightmare and we hadn’t even begun. I was going to be grey before
the day arrived at this rate.
    I held the door open for Kirby and followed
her inside. “Angus wants me to employ a stylist.”
    “What? For Alex?”
    Oh God.
    “No. For me.”
    “But there’s nothing wrong with you. I mean,
I know the Boho look isn’t for everybody but that ‘just got back
from a love-in’ thing, like totally, suits you. If you dropped a
few kilos you could, totally, be Mary-Kate or maybe even Nicole
Richie. Like, take your pick.”
    “Um. Yeah. I don’t think I’d