Prologue
“You realize that’s overfive thousand dollars, right?” Jessa’s voice pulls me back from the trance-like state I’ve been in, staring at the crystal-encrusted stilettos in the boutique window.
“The perfect Vegas souvenir.” I grin, mentally calculating if I should add them to my growing collection.
“Absolutely not,” Jessa says, tugging my arm. “We still have a dinner reservation at—”
“Oh, come on, just for a minute!” I pull free and dash into the boutique before she can protest further. The salesperson looks up as the bell chimes.
“Those Louboutins in the window. Do you have them in a seven?”
My stepmother, Carmen, would approve. She’s the one who taught me that quality purchases are investments, not splurges. I smile thinking about how she’d want photos immediately.
Carmen and her son Antonio had been in our lives for nearly fifteen years now. My father married Carmen a year afterdivorcing Mama. Antonio, two years my senior, had become the protective older brother, constantly checking if my fiancé Connor was “still treating my sister right.”
Ten minutes later, I’m strutting out with the stilettos on my feet. Jessa and Jasmine share identical expressions of disbelief.
“I can’t believe you just dropped five grand on shoes,” Jasmine mutters.
“Life’s too short for boring footwear,” I announce, twirling to show them off. “Besides, these babies will pay for themselves.” I link arms with my besties, pulling them close. “Now let’s go find trouble!”
Unlike my friends, I love to treat myself. I work hard for my money, so best believe I’ll spend it.
We pass a craps table where a crowd has gathered, their energy electric with anticipation. I slow, watching as a man in a sharp suit tosses the dice.
“No.” Jessa recognizes my expression. “Meesha, we have reservations.”
“Fine.”
We’re in Vegas for my bachelorette, though, my wedding is two months away. Jessa, an elementary school teacher, could only get Spring Break off. The the timing couldn’t have been better for escaping my pre-wedding jitters.
Vegas in March provided the perfect backdrop for my last hurrah as asingle woman, even if my wedding to Connor wasn’t until May.
We settle at our table in the restaurant and the lights paint shadows across our faces. I order another martini, though I’m already feeling the effects of our day-drinking.
“So, I’m thinking we should do a Vegas-themed brunch when we get back,” I suggest, looking over the menu. “Recreate the amazing crepes from this morning.”
Jasmine nods enthusiastically while Jessa barely looks up from her phone.
As our appetizers arrive—crispy calamari and bruschetta that look too pretty to eat—I vent about the wedding prep swirling through my life lately.
“Vivienne texted me again about changing the flowers from hibiscus to roses because ‘they’re more traditional.’ As if I haven’t spent hours with the florist already! Connor says to just ignore her, but she’s his mother and I’m trying so hard to be respectful.” And I’d rather face a dragon than a displeased Vivienne. My peace, always my priority.
“I swear, planning this wedding is becoming a full-time job on top of my actual job, even while Asia is doing so much. And don’t even get me started on the bridesmaids’ dresses. The sample color looked completely different in person than it did online, and now I’m wondering if we should start over with a new palette entirely. What do you think about seafoam instead of teal?”
I pause, noticing Jessa’s eyes still fixed on her phone screen, thumbs typing rapidly.
“Jessa! You’re not even listening.”
“Fine, you caught me.” She smiles, the same smile I’ve known since we were sharing crayons and juice boxes. “What about the wedding?”
I roll my eyes dramatically, and she meets my look with one of her own. Twenty-one years of friendship means Jessa has learned to deal with my moods.
“What? I multitask,” she says unapologetically, straightening the cocktail napkin under her glass.
I let out an exaggerated sigh. “You are so lucky I love you.”
The weight of Connor’s grandmother’s ring feels suddenly heavy on my finger. I twist it absently, remembering the look inhis eyes when he proposed at Christmas while visiting Mama in Ruby Coast.
