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  As my dad jogs over I realize how happy I am to see my parents. However, I am a little worried about how Mason and I will be around them. They can’t find out that we hate each other. Eventually, they will know once Mason and I officially split up but I know it will break my mom’s heart. “Sweetie, how are you?” my Dad asks, embracing me in a big bear hug.

  “I’m good, Dad. You look like you’re having fun.” His cheeks are red, a dead giveaway that he has had more to drink than just the Corona in his hand. He steps towards my mom, gives her a hug and kisses the top of her head.

  “This is great here, Lucy; just like last time. Your mother always looks so beautiful on the beach,” he says looking at my mom like he is seeing her for the first time. My mom reaches up and kisses him on the cheek. I always wished Mason and I would be like my parents. “How’s Mason? Does he remember anything yet?”

  “No, not yet. I’m hoping that something at the wedding tomorrow will be familiar to him.”

  “Oh, Lucy I’m sorry this happened to him but he will recover,” my mom says.

  Not soon enough . I am just about to change the subject when I am swept off my feet and held closely by a firm body. Everything is happening so fast that I can’t tell what is going on. Whoever this is, he smells good. Wait, I recognize this cologne…oh no…it’s Mason! I try to focus my eyes as he tips me back into a dramatic kiss, his lips pressed tightly against mine. Uh-oh, my stomach gurgles and clenches. My eyes widen and I try to pull away but he has a tight hold on my head. He has his eyes scrunched shut. What is he playing at? He finally stands me on my feet and releases me. My mom is staring at us with tears in her eyes at such affection. Believe me lady, there was no affection from either of us.

  “Hi,” Mason smiles at me. I am so flustered from what just happened that all I can do is glare at him. “You must be my in-laws.” He winks at me and then shakes my dad’s hand and kisses my mom on the cheek. As I straighten my dress, I stumble on my heels and I regret wearing these shoes in the sand.

  “We need to start soon,” I say still reeling and angry. Why am I so mad? Maybe it’s because Mason is acting like everything is fine between us and it’s not. But he doesn’t remember that I guess and I did tell him to pretend to get along. But my goodness, was that show necessary? It makes me mad that he used to be playful like this with me and then it all stopped because we got busy in our own worlds. Now that I think about it, he has picked me up and kissed me like that before. Does he remember that? Is his memory back? Surely not.

  My mom and dad walk in front of us, holding hands and Mason starts talking. “So, how was your afternoon? Did you get the drink I sent you?”

  “Yes,” I say a little snappy trying to make it sound like I didn’t crap my brains out all afternoon. I don’t want to give him the satisfaction of knowing he got to me.

  “Was it good?” he snorts and I turn and glare at him. “I heard your stomach growl when I kissed you,” he says now laughing uncontrollably.

  “What did you do to my drink?” I snap, my face heating. I have to stop for a second and take a breath to calm my stomach.

  “You have to be careful that you don’t drink the tap water here. I hear it just rips your body apart,” he continues through his fit of laughter. That bastard put tap water in my margarita! “You had it coming, baby. After all you have put me through on this trip.”

  I have put him through hell, or at least I have tried to but he always manages to charm his way out of his unfortunate situations. I am so furious with him right now though I could combust. I grunt and storm off as fast as I can in my skyscraper heels. I make it about two feet and fall right on my hands and knees in the sand giving Mason a brilliant view I’m sure. I roll on my back and rustle around in the sand trying to peel my shoes off my feet.

  “Stupid things,” I yell as I try to relieve my heel from the shoe. I’m sure I’m a site to see cursing the sand, my shoes, and whatever else is in my way.

  As I peel off my second shoe I see Mason approach me with an outstretched hand. I can tell he is amused. I reluctantly reach for him and he pulls me to my feet. All of a sudden, he is inches from my face staring at me with his beautiful blue eyes alight with humor. Man, he really is sexy.

  “How could I forget how beautiful and clumsy you are?” he says gazing into my eyes. His words hit me right in the stomach. I swallow trying to gain my equilibrium. “Oh yeah,” he says taking a step back and releasing me. “My crazy wife hit me with a wine bottle that’s how I forgot!” He smiles and walks away leaving me frustrated, flushed, and confused.

  I walk behind him carrying my shoes slipping a little in the sand. Like mother, like daughter. How dare he try to seduce me? Is that what he was doing? I am so confused and my emotions are all over the place. I need a drink. My stomach gurgles reminding me of my horrendous afternoon. Perhaps I will skip the drink for now.

  The rehearsal and dinner take way too long but are finally over and I am exhausted. I spent the night drinking ginger ale trying to calm my stomach and making small talk with our families. We ate under the tent on the beach that will be used for tomorrow’s festivities. Everyone said the coconut shrimp was to die for but I stuck to a liquid diet for the evening. Hopefully tomorrow I will feel better.

  Mason’s parents were pleasant until Martin started in on Mason about how much catching up he will have to do at work once his memory is back. Mason visibly shrinks as his dad hounds him. Even in his state of forgetfulness he remembers the affect his dad has on him. It’s something that is engrained into his psyche forever. Just like his charming ways, I think to myself. Just when I start to feel bad for him I remember his flirtatious personality that gets him out of everything in life.

  My aunt Kathy, who only came to Mexico for the vacation, chatted animatedly all night with the rest of the family. She asked me three times if there was going to be alcohol at the reception. I assured her there would be plenty but she didn’t seem satisfied until the third time she asked. She is kind of an alcoholic. And she thinks she’s still twenty. She refuses to let us call her Aunt Kathy because someone might overhear and make the assumption that she is old enough to have kids of her own. She is fifty so she is definitely old enough but we don’t argue with her anymore.

  Uncle Jerry, Kathy and Mom’s brother also came for the vacation. He is retired and spends most of his time traveling so he stopped here on his way to Brazil. He is a sweet guy but he’s sort of strange. After dinner, he walked down the beach a ways and had a conversation with a bird. He has never been married and has always been a loner. He seems happy so no one bothers him about it.

  Another point during the evening, he took his shoes off, filled them with sand and threw them in the ocean while everyone watched. He said it was an ancient ritual that meant good luck. He picked that one up in Africa last year. About five minutes after the ritual ceremony, he sprinted into the dark waters searching for his shoes again. I guess he forgot to pack other ones for the rest of the vacation. He mumbled something about TSA not being very happy with him last time he tried to board the plane bare footed.

  My sister and brother-in-law couldn’t make it because they just had their third baby a few months ago. My sister and I are really close so I wish she could have made it. She wasn’t my maid of honor at my first wedding because she was pregnant with her second kid. She didn’t want to stand up with me and look like a tent so she decided she would participate from the sidelines. She thought she would ruin the wedding pictures but I assured her that wasn’t the case. She doesn’t like being in the spotlight so I assumed that was the main reason for her weird request.

  Pastor Davies is the only other person who flew in from out of town. He is the pastor at our church back home and I have known him since I was born. It’s comforting to see him here.

  The sky is now dark purple with a faint orange glow where the sun has dipped below the horizon. My eyes begin to droop as I think about the busy day I have tomorrow. It’s amazing how much energy it takes to
be sick. I can barely move my body out of the chair. That might be partially due to my acrobatic stunt in the lobby. I’m still pretty stiff.

  “I’m going to bed. I have a big day tomorrow,” I say to my parents as I gather my things.

  “Sleep tight, sweetheart! Don’t let the bed bugs bite!” my mom exclaims as she gives me a hug. I can’t help but chuckle. This is another one of the things my mom has said since I was little.

  “I love you both.” I wave and grab my shoes. Kara gives Scott a big kiss and then she and Drey join me. Kara decided to stay with us in the suite tonight so we can get up early to get ready. As I leave the tent, I glance back and Mason is staring at me. He winks at me and starts to laugh. He is infuriating. I know he is thinking about my poisoned margarita. I smile sweetly back at him and turn to leave with the girls. I can’t believe I am marrying him again. The first time wasn’t even a good idea so the second time surely isn’t. I just have to make it through tomorrow and then we will be heading back home. Just one more day.

  “Rise and shine beautiful bride,” Kara coos as she shakes me awake. I barely slept last night because I was in and out of the bathroom. As I wake, I notice that my stomach feels much better but still not one hundred percent.

  “Good morning, Kara,” I yawn rubbing my eyes. “Where is Drey?”

  “Um, she didn’t sleep here last night.”

  “What? We all came home together and she went out after that?”

  “Yeah, she made friends with a guy jogging on the beach last night,” Kara says emphasizing the word friends.

  “Why am I not surprised?” I climb out of bed and put my robe on. I bought Kara, Drey and I matching blue silk robes for today. I thought it would be a cute bridesmaid gift and we don’t have to mess up our hair and makeup when we get undressed.

  “You look like you feel better today.”

  “I had a rough night but this morning I feel much better. I don’t think I can show my face at the spa again so I am going to call down and have the girls come up here instead of us going down there. And we should just skip the massages I had planned.” I shudder at the thought of the scene I made yesterday. I’m sure everyone at the spa heard what happened including the hair and makeup girls.

  “I’ll call. You need to relax so you can look your best for your big day. Well, your second big day,” Kara says as she reaches for the hotel phone. Which reminds me. I need to get my phone so I can check in at work but Drey isn’t here to get in the safe. As if on cue, she saunters through the door in an oversized shirt, no pants, messy hair, and her dress and shoes from last night in her hands. Her expression tells me that she had a good time. She can’t stop smiling.

  “Hi,” I chuckle.

  “Hi,” Drey smiles back and I know my assumptions are true.

  “How was he?” I ask as Kara turns to look at the two of us and rolls her eyes.

  “He was huge!” she says her eyes growing larger. “And he moved in a way that made me-“

  “Ok, ok, I’ve heard enough for today. My stomach isn’t back to normal yet so spare me the details for now,” I say playfully. “Can you get me my phone? I need to check my email.”

  “Are you kidding? It’s your wedding day. No work for you!”

  “It’s not my real wedding day so it doesn’t matter. I will only be a few minutes. Please?” I plead out of desperation.

  “No, no and no. Not gonna happen Harper,” Drey says as she strips down nude in the middle of the room and walks into her bedroom to grab her robe. I throw a pillow at her as before she is out of sight. We have been friends for so long and know so much about each other that it is not unusual for us to be completely naked around each other. Drey does it more for dramatic affect and because she doesn’t care about what anyone thinks of her. She has a great body and likes to show it off. I sigh accepting my defeat.

  “Ok, the girls from the salon will be up here in about an hour,” Kara says. “I also ordered us room service for breakfast.”

  “That sounds great. I am starving,” I say as I realize my last meal was yesterday at lunch. My insides grumble at the memory.

  I brush my teeth, shower and before I know it our breakfast has arrived. A man in a white suit pushes a cart into the room and starts setting up the linens on the table by the window. After about five minutes, our food is set out. Kara ordered an assortment of fresh fruit, a few muffins, an order of French toast, which is clearly for me since it’s my favorite, and orange juice. It smells like heaven. The plates are gorgeous and garnished with huge purple hibiscus flowers. The three of us sit down to discuss the day’s events.

  “We only have two hours to get ready and then the ceremony will start. For the ceremony, we have to wear the clothes we wore the first time I got married. I am hoping it will bring back memories for Mason. At the reception we can change into whatever we want,” I say stuffing my face with French toast. The maple syrup is warmed just the way I like it. I take a couple of bites of my pineapple and think how amazing it is that something produced naturally tastes so flavorful.

  “I seriously can’t believe you are making us wear those hideous dresses, Lucy,” Drey scoffs and shudders if I’m not mistaken.

  “I’m sorry but that’s just the way it has to happen. It’s only for like an hour or so. And besides, my wedding was only six years ago so the dresses aren’t too terribly out of style. They are just very pink.” Pink was the popular color to have your wedding in 2006.

  As we finish our breakfast, the girls from the spa show up to get us ready. Before we know it we are done up with pale pink eye shadow, rosy pink cheeks and deep pink lips. Our hair is up in big curly buns on top of our heads. Kara and Drey are wearing pale pink, floor length, flowy dresses and I am wearing a chiffon strapless dress with a pale pink sash under the bust. My bouquet is full of pink roses and the girls are holding pink lilies.

  “Wow!” Drey says as we stare at ourselves in the mirror. We all start laughing hysterically. Pink on top of pink on top of pink. What was I thinking?

  “It’s hard to believe that only six years ago this looked so elegant and now we look like clowns,” Kara says smelling her lilies. “My wedding was just like this only my color was red.”

  We rush down to the beach brushing off the weird looks we get along the way. We are late just like last time and I want to get this over with as soon as possible. As we approach the sand I hear the music start and I see Mason standing at the end of the aisle made by the few rows of chairs set up. My dad and Scott meet us at the end of the aisle and pair up with Drey and Kara. Since Mason’s other groomsman from last time is out of the country for business for a few months, we had my dad walk Drey down the aisle instead. Kara smiles at me and Drey winks as they make their way through the sand.

  I can’t believe I am doing this again. I feel butterflies in my stomach as I watch Mason, dressed in a white tux with a pink tie and vest stand a few yards away from me looking his normal stunning self. He gives me a small smile and I can tell he is nervous. Good! At least I’m not the only one. My palms sweat when I am nervous and I can feel them clamming up.

  Finally, it’s my turn to trudge through the sand while our families stand and watch. I can see my mom tearing up in the front row. Mason’s mom is smiling at me and I can see Martin shove his phone back in his pocket. His mind is obviously at the office. I would be angry with him but I can’t say I wouldn’t do the same thing. Uncle Jerry is fanning himself with Aunt Kathy’s hat and I see her rip it out of his hand and put it back on her head.

  As I reach Mason and the pastor at the end of the aisle, I can see Mason smirking at me.

  “What?” I whisper immediately irritated.

  “Oh nothing. You just look very beautiful.” I glare at him. What isn’t he telling me? “And you must really like the color pink,” he says very casually.

  I decide not to make a scene at the moment because our parents are too close but man, do I want to find a wine bottle and knock him out again. He is beyond infuria
ting.

  “Hola, and welcome to the Harper wedding round two,” Pastor Davies laughs as he starts the ceremony. I refrain from rolling my eyes at his attempt at humor. Nothing about this is funny to me. I just want to take all this pink shit off and drink.

  6. Dum Dum Da Dum

  The ceremony is short, just like the first time. We exchange rings, light the unity candle and say the traditional vows. I stumble a little over the “for better or for worse” part and I can hear Drey snicker at me. I might have to hit her with the wine bottle too. Finally, we arrive at the part that I have been dreading the most. The kiss.

  “You may now kiss the bride,” Pastor Davies says as he gives us a big smile. I take a deep breath and turn and look at Mason. He is smiling from ear to ear like this is the first time he has ever gotten married. Well, I guess in his current state, this is his first time.

  I move closer and close my eyes praying it will be over soon. I feel his lips on mine and after a couple of beats I start to pull away. Mason has his hands on both sides of my head and he stops me, holding our faces together. My eyes spring open in panic and I can see his are still closed. He looks so serene and I surrender to the pull of his hands and our kiss deepens. For a moment, all the stress from the last few days dissipates and it feels like it’s just Mason and me again. It feels…like it used to feel between us. My stomach flutters and my knees feel weak. Our kiss continues for a while until I hear Drey gasp next to me and I am brought back to reality.

  I pull away my face still inches away from his and I stare at him. He drops his hands and beams at me and my face is plastered with what I’m sure is a shocked expression. I smile nervously at him and turn to grab my bouquet from Drey who is mirroring my shocked look. I give her my “don’t say a word” look and she turns to look at Kara who has tears in her eyes but also looks a little surprised. Join the club lady, I think as I try to gather my frazzled thoughts.