Page 2 of Marrying the Silver Fox

She shakes her head, crossing her arms at once. “I can’t do that,” she replies, and I part my lips to protest, but she continues before I can. “And besides—the rooms on the third floor are all closed for refurbishment. Nobody’s in there, I can promise you that.”

I squeeze my eyes shut, gritting my teeth. Fuck. Fuck. She is really gone.

But she can’t have gotten far, right? I mean, not wearing that dress, surely. She must have screwed up in some way, left behind some small detail of where she fled to that I could use to bring her back. I don’t know where the hell she might be, who she would have turned to in order to get out of this mess, but honestly, it doesn’t matter. I need to find her and get her down that fucking aisle now.

I turn away from reception, casting my gaze across the entrance lobby—and my eyes fall on Luna, one of the bridesmaids. She’s fiddling with her flowers as she waits for some direction on what to do. I race to her side, grabbing her arm, and she turns to me, looking surprised.

“What is it⁠—”

“Where’s Natalie?” I demand, and she wrinkles her nose at me in confusion.

“Natalie? What are you talking about?”

“Where is she?” I press as best I can. I can’t let this shit get away from me. I need to figure out where she is, and fast. Time is counting down. I can already picture the guests in the main hall starting to get antsy, glancing at their watches, leaning over to one another and exchanging pointed whispers about where the bride has managed to get herself off to.

“I have no idea,” Luna replies. “I thought she was getting ready. Is she⁠—”

“Where are the rest of the bridesmaids? The rest of the bridal party?” I demand. I know I’m being rude, but I don’t have a second to spare right now, and I’m not about to play nice when I know that everything is on the brink of falling apart.

Luna shrugs. “I thought you were supposed to know,” she replies, her voice laced with a dismissiveness that I try not to let get to me.

I know that she’s right. I am supposed to be the person keeping this all under control, making certain that everything runs exactly as it’s supposed to, and I’m rapidly losing control in a way I don’t know I will be able to make right.

I head off to find the other bridesmaids, and soon discover them hanging outside the main hall, waiting for their cue to go in. I interrogate them hurriedly about where Natalie has gotten to, but none of them seem to know a thing.

To be honest, it doesn’t come as that much of a surprise. These people might make up her bridal party, but I don’t think any of them truly know her. When it comes to choosing bridesmaids, it’s practically like a political party nomination, and they all seem more focused on what they can get out of the event rather than being there for a beloved friend getting married.

I scour the hotel one last time, and then, finally, I come to a halt at the top of the stairs, right next to the spot I left my clipboard. I look down at it, at every item I neatly ticked off before the event actually started. I didn’t even think to make a note of sending Natalie down the aisle—I mean, I felt like that part went without saying, right? But now, here I am, standing around with the harsh realization that I’m not going to be able to pull of the most important part of this event.

Clouds swim at the corners of my vision, and I take a deep breath, trying to gather myself.

I need to speak to the groom.

Hey, maybe they ran off together to elope or something, and all of this isn’t a total mess—I mean, sure, they’ll have let down their guests, but at least I won’t have to explain the truth of what’s happening to him.

It’s that hope I cling to as I make my way toward the groom’s hotel room, and prepare to deliver the news that no man wants to hear.

2

ANDIE

I knock on the door. “Hi, Nikolai?”

I realize that my voice must already give away what a mess we’re in right now. I am nervous, terrified of how he’s going to react to what I’m about to tell him, and I can only imagine the level of freak-out I’m about to be hit with when he discovers that the woman he was meant to marry today has taken off with no explanation.

“Come in,” he calls back, his voice unreadable.

Does he already know? I don’t have a clue. I don’t know if I want to find out. My heart feels as though it’s going to beat right out of my chest at any moment, and I will myself to hold it together, rolling my shoulders back and running a hand through my hair before I walk in so I look at least a little put together.

I open the door, and there he is, the man who is meant to be getting married today.

I’ve hardly spent any time with him, not that it’s unusual for grooms of his money or status. I don’t know exactly what it is he does, but I’ve visited his house a couple of times, and I can tell at a glance that he wants to keep his control over every little detail of his life. There are guards on his door, and the place is more a mansion than a normal home, towering walls and art decorating the corridors that probably cost as much as this entire wedding.

He cuts an imposing figure all on his own. He’s tall, a little over six foot according to the measurements I got for his suit, with broad shoulders and thick, muscular arms. His silver hair is swept back from his face, and his sharp blue eyes cut straight through me, for a moment making me forget what it was I came here for in the first place.

“What is it?” he barks, lifting his chin and casting an expectant gaze up and down my body.

I shift where I stand, suddenly feeling as though I’m under interrogation and not entirely sure what to expect. “I…I need to tell you something.”