An uncomfortable silence fills the limo as we cross the river to the city. In a few minutes, we’ll reach the church, where I’ll be repeatedly asked if I've seen the article and told how the resemblance between my mother and I is absolutely uncanny—spooky even. They’ll stare at me, leaning in with wide eyes and shaking their heads in disbelief. “I’ve never noticed.” “Oh, I have. I’ve always thought she looks exactly like her mother.” Perhaps I should get my own booth at a freak show.
“Arthur's man crush is going to be at the wedding today,” Tessa says suddenly. She’s clearly trying to brighten the mood in the car by embarrassing my brother. I love her for it, but I’m not up for making fun of him today.
“I don't have a crush on him,” he says. “I merely enjoy watching his show.”
“It's a man crush, dear. Deal with it.” Turning to me, she says, “Have you seenThe Wild Worldwith Will Banks?”
I shake my head.
“Oh, you’d love it. Will is like David Attenborough meets Chris Pratt fromJurassic World,except picture him with his body fromGuardians of the Galaxy.”
Arthur scoffs. “If anyone in this limo has a crush on Will Banks, I'd say it's my wife.”
“I’m just painting an accurate picture for Arabella. Besides,I'mnot the one who is going to make a beeline for him the moment the ceremony ends—unlike you,” Tessa says, giving Arthur a teasing smile. She snaps her fingers together suddenly and says, “Oh! You should take Arabella with you so she can meet him.”
Turning to me, she whispers, “He's a total hottie.”
“Yes, well, as much of a hottie as he is, I don't see a future between someone like him and my sister, thank you very much,” Arthur says.
“Who said anything about a future?” Tessa asks. “I just think she could use a good shag to cheer her up.”
Arthur stiffens visibly. “Perhaps I should ride up front so as to skip out on the horrifying girl talk.”
“Oh, suck it up, Princess,” Gran says to him. “Your sister is an adult who can shag whomever she wants.”
“I doubt he'd want to shag someone as unremarkable as me,” I grumble, giving Gran a glare.
“Oh, Christ, you're not going to pout all day, are you?” she asks. “Because if so, I really will call one of my many man friends and offer him the position of my date.”
“Go ahead. I'd rather be alone than stuck with someone who feels the need to pile on when I'm already having a shit day.”
We pull up in front of the church, and a moment later, the back door opens. Tessa gives Arthur the ‘they need to talk’ face and gestures toward the door with her head.
Clearing his throat, Arthur says, “We’ll see you inside.”
When they get out, I hear Arthur tell his driver, Ben, to close the door and that we'll need a minute.
When Gran and I are alone, she scooches closer to me on the cream-colored leather bench. Taking my hand in hers, she says, “You are Arabella Florence…a bunch of names I can’t remember, Duchess of Bainbridge, Princess of Avonia. You are a sensitive, kind, beautiful, and intelligent young woman. But you're also a total pussy—”
My mouth drops open and she holds up one hand to stop me from interrupting. “—which is not entirely your fault. It's a bit of a vicious circle because people have always treated you like you’re made of porcelain, so that is how you act. Yes, half of your genes are from your mother who was as weak as a kitten, but half are from your father. And that means you have more than a little bit ofmein you. And I’m tough as balls.”
I chuckle in spite of myself.
“And I know that deep, deep, deep,deepdown inside of you is a very strong woman just dying to come out.”
“I don't know if that's true,” I say, shaking my head.
“You won't know until you test it out. So, my advice is for you to take a risk. Anything at all. The next big thing that comes your way. Don’t think about it. Just do it. Give them something more to write about than your good looks.”
“Like what?”
“Doesn’t matter, really. Just pick something wild and go for it.”
“I can’t… what if I'm a disaster?”
“Then you'll be Arabella the disaster, which in my books is far better than Arabella the clone. Be bold, child.” She stares deep into my eyes, then shrugs. “Or continue to be a timid, cowardly girl. Just pick one and stick with it. And whatever you do, stop complaining, because if there's one thing that can't be tolerated in this world, it's a princess who feels sorry for herself.”
With that, she knocks on the window. The door opens and Ben helps her out, leaving me there to marinate in her bitter medicine.
