The Bridesmaid & the Jerk Read online

  The Bridesmaid and the Jerk

  Wedding Games: Book One

  Kayla Tirrell

  Daphne James Huff

  Copyright © 2019 by Kayla Tirrell and Daphne James Huff

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Cover Design © Designed with Grace

  Image © DepositPhotos – Igor Vetushko

  Proofreading: EditElle

  Contents

  1. 10 Days Until Dream Wedding

  2. 10 Days Until Dream Wedding

  3. 10 Days Until Dream Wedding

  4. 10 Days Until Dream Wedding

  5. 10 Days Until Dream Wedding

  6. 9 Days Until Dream Wedding

  7. 8 Days Until Dream Wedding

  8. 8 Days Until Dream Wedding

  9. 8 Days Until Dream Wedding

  10. 8 Days Until Dream Wedding

  11. 7 Days Until Dream Wedding

  12. 7 Days Until Dream Wedding

  13. 7 Days Until Dream Wedding

  14. 7 Days Until Dream Wedding

  15. 7 Days Until Dream Wedding

  16. 7 Days Until Dream Wedding

  17. 7 Days Until Dream Wedding

  18. 6 Days Until Dream Wedding

  19. 6 Days Until Dream Wedding

  20. 6 Days Until Dream Wedding

  21. 6 Days Until Dream Wedding

  22. 6 Days Until Dream Wedding

  23. 5 Days Until Dream Wedding

  What will happen next?

  Acknowledgments

  About the Authors

  Free book from Daphne

  Free book from Kayla

  One

  10 Days Until Dream Wedding

  Sienna was late.

  Her t-shirt was inside out.

  And she had to pee.

  This whole crazy trip was not off to a good start.

  She still couldn’t believe Audrey had agreed to be a participant in the show, Wedding Games. Or that it was filming near their hometown.

  Sure, the idea of spending ten days in a gorgeous mountain inn with all expenses paid was tempting. And knowing it would all end in an over-the-top wedding—that was guaranteed to be the topic of Thanksgiving dinners for years to come—also sounded amazing.

  But couldn’t Audrey see that, for every reason to agree to be a participant in the show, there were a million other reasons to say no?

  This was reality TV, after all. People weren’t looking for a smooth, problem-free event. That was too boring—too easy. Viewers wanted drama. They wanted meltdowns.

  And the producers of the show were going to make sure their audience got what they wanted by any means necessary. At least, that was the argument Sienna had made when Audrey first called her with the news—an argument she’d voiced even louder once she’d seen the contract she was required to sign.

  A film-crew would be allowed all access to the wedding preparations, and everyone in the wedding party needed to sign it if they wanted to be invited to the intimate ceremony. It was frustrating to be forced into a reality TV show, but Audrey was Sienna’s sister, for goodness sake. She wouldn't dream of missing this wedding, so she signed the stupid thing, even though it was filled with so much legal jargon it made her head spin.

  Everyone knew drama was what made people keep watching those shows. Viewers hoped the bride would go full-blown crazy. Or that one of the bridesmaids would get jealous of the way everyone fussed over the bride. It was a perfect storm, and Audrey couldn’t see it.

  But why would she listen to her little sister? It’s not like Sienna had first-hand experience in the entertainment business—oh wait, yes, she did. Sure, it was only a few years, and mostly stage and commercial work, but she knew the industry better than the rest of her family. Maybe Audrey was too blinded by the idea of her happily ever after with Eli, so she didn’t consider how difficult this might be for everyone else involved. Sienna had never been in love like that but had heard it made you do all sorts of crazy things.

  Regardless, Sienna loved her sister and was going to support her. She’d packed her suitcase, booked a last-minute red-eye flight from New York to Asheville, and had just finished driving an hour to get to the secluded inn the producers chose for the filming site.

  Growing up in the area, she’d never even known it was tucked away in the mountains. But someone from up north had bought it last year, and it was all her family could talk about. As the destination came into view, Sienna thought it looked more like a mansion that wanted to pretend it was something cozier.

  It was a two-story building with large windows on every side that were sure to give the place the perfect amount of natural light any time of day. One side of the inn had an impressive stone chimney that took up the entire wall. And way in the distance, Sienna could see the corner of what looked to be an old barn, set against the backdrop of acres and acres of gorgeous trees and mountains.

  With the sun still rising in the distance, the scene was magnificent.

  Sienna drove up the gravel path and crossed her fingers that the rental car she’d gotten had enough power to make it up the steep incline to the front of the building. The bumpy road was not helping her bladder situation, which had reached critical levels about ten minutes ago.

  She was the last to show up—as usual—and saw a small crowd that consisted of the wedding party gathered out front. The camera crew was still off to the side and mercifully hadn’t begun filming yet, as far as she could tell. That meant she had time to take care of her pressing business.

  She parked her car beside her mother’s familiar and practical beige sedan.

  With a deep sigh, and a mumbled, “you can do this,” Sienna looked in the rearview mirror. She plastered a fake smile on her face and stepped out of her vehicle.

  Her mother came rushing over immediately, a look of panic across her face. “Oh, Sienna, there you are,” she shrieked. “We’ve all been wondering if you would ever show up.”

  “And hello to you too, Mother,” Sienna answered, the smile still affixed to her face. “Glad to see you made it here safe.”

  Her mother huffed as she planted both of her hands on her hips. “Where have you been? It’s nearly nine.”

  A jolt of panic shot through her. “Isn’t that what time the contract said to be here?” She could have gotten an earlier flight, but it would have made her miss two shifts at work and cost her two-hundred dollars more. Two-hundred dollars she most certainly did not have.

  Her mother shook her head and let out another loud puff of air. “Well, just because they say nine, it doesn’t mean that you have to cut it so close.” She leaned in and lowered her voice. “You and I both know how much is at stake.”

  “I know.”

  The contract was so full of ways things could go badly, so it was hard for Sienna to know what exactly her mother was referring to. The right to defamation, the hold clause, the lack of privacy for them but confidentiality for the show. It was all to keep the power in the hands of the producers.

  But failing to show up, well, that would potentially pull the plug on the whole thing. Sienna might be notorious for being late, but she wasn’t going to risk putting her sister’s wedding in jeopardy. Sienna had been so concerned with making it on time, she’d packed everything in a carry-on bag to avoid getting stuck at baggage claim and hadn’t even stopped in the airport bathroom to pee before racing out the doors toward the rental car kiosks. The pressure on her bladder was downright unbearable a
t this point, and she had one mission: Find the little girls' room—STAT.

  “Well, then let’s go.” Her mother put her hand on Sienna’s shoulder and started to lead her to the rest of the group.

  “Actually,” Sienna pulled her phone from her back pocket, “I still have fifteen minutes, which means I have just enough time to go to the bathroom.”

  She pushed past her mother who was mumbling about her disorganized daughter and walked up to the front door of the inn. Nearby, everyone talked excitedly. In her rush, Sienna barely gave anyone more than a passing glance. She did, however, catch Audrey’s raised eyebrows and subtle tap of her watch.

  Sienna would have plenty of time to catch up, but for right now, she had one thing on her mind. It was like her body sensed a bathroom was close and had given up all hope of holding it in. If she didn’t get to the toilet soon, she was going to give the camera crew a great opening shot.

  It was exactly the kind of thing that would happen to her, and she doubted she’d be able to convince the producer not to air something that would provide so much comedy to the high-drama show. Not to mention it was just the kind of thing a casting director might hold against her in a future audition.

  No one would hire her as a leading lady in a serious role if ten million viewers had watched her wet her pants. The only thing to do after that would be—shudder—more reality TV. Sienna groaned at the thought as she picked up the pace with a renewed fervor.

  After the receptionist at the front desk pointed to where the bathroom was, Sienna practically sprinted down the hall.

  Man, I really shouldn’t have had so much coffee on the plane.

  When she rounded the corner, she bumped into a man, but she couldn’t stop to apologize. She needed to pee right this second. He started to say something to her, but she couldn’t stop to listen, not with her destination in sight. Sienna whipped the door open and locked herself in the bathroom, relieved to…well, relieve herself.

  A moan escaped her mouth just as a light knock came at the door.

  “Wait just a hot second!” she called.

  A deep, male voice carried through the door. “I was just going to say—”

  “Occupied!”

  “—that it’s out of toilet paper.”

  Sienna’s eyes snapped to the toilet paper dispenser, and her heart sank as she saw that the man on the other side of the door was right. And, of course, the bathroom was one of those eco-friendly ones that used air-dryers instead of having a paper towel dispenser.

  She sighed. Not only was she going to have to come up with some creative solutions, now there was someone else who was going to be privy to it. In her rush, she hadn’t noticed much about the person, but he sounded like a cranky old man.

  She sent up a silent prayer. Please don’t let them be part of the Wedding Games crew.

  That would be a sure-fire way to put a target on her head for the entire week.

  After figuring out the not-so-convenient logistics of cleaning up without toilet paper, Sienna washed her hands and wiped them on her jeans, too impatient to wait for the weak trickle of hot air to dry them. She ran her fingers through her blonde hair and gave herself a quick once-over before she left the small bathroom. Tilting her head to the side, she pulled her compact out of her purse. It wasn’t clear if there would be makeup artists. Reality show or not, there was no way she could be filmed with those bags under her eyes.

  Another knock interrupted her concealer application. “Are you okay? Didn’t fall in or anything, did you?”

  What was this guy’s problem?

  She put her makeup back in her purse, and opened the bathroom door, ready to give him a piece of her mind. But when she stepped into the hall, she pulled up short. The cranky old man was, in fact, a gorgeous young man. His dark hair barely brushed the tops of the light blue eyes that were looking directly at her. He was dressed in a simple plaid shirt and jeans that gave away his position as property maintenance—possibly a handyman.

  He grinned as he pushed himself off the wall and held out two rolls of toilet paper. “I thought you might need these.”

  It was too bad those ridiculously good looks didn’t come with any sense. It was common courtesy not to interrupt someone while they were going to the bathroom—or wait outside until they were done.

  Sienna looked down at the two rolls with a sneer. “And what? You thought you were just going to bring them in while I was going to the bathroom?”

  The guy’s smile evaporated. “Sorry for trying to be helpful. I’d hoped to get them to you in time.”

  Sienna rolled her eyes. “Well, you did a terrible job.”

  “I did the best I could considering you ran past me and ignored me as I tried to explain.”

  “And then you thought it would be a good idea to hang out on the other side of the door? You do know that’s, like, creep level ten, right?”

  Hurt flashed across his face for the briefest moment before he shook his head. “You know what? I’m not going to stand here and be berated for wanting to help.”

  With one last pointed look in her direction, the guy stormed off. Sienna stayed glued in her spot and gave him a head start. With any luck, she wouldn’t see him again. She’d simply avoid the places where custodians usually hung out and hope he didn’t blab about the rude girl to the rest of the staff. She crossed her fingers she wouldn’t find any surprises in her clean sheets tonight.

  After waiting in the hall for what she felt was an appropriate amount of time, Sienna joined everyone outside. She ignored the questioning look her mother gave her as she walked over to where Audrey and their middle sister, Harper, were chatting.

  Humor danced in Audrey’s deep, brown eyes. “You drank too much coffee, didn’t you?”

  Sienna smiled back at her sister. She knew her addictions well. “Obviously.”

  “Well, I’m just glad you’re here,” Audrey said with a quick hug. “I know you weren't too happy about the contract.”

  “Of course I’m here.” At least all her comments over the past few weeks hadn't been totally ignored. “I wouldn’t miss your wedding for anything.”

  “Mother was about to have a coronary,” Harper added. “I swear she checked the time every minute until you got here. I was afraid she was going to call the police to start a search party for you.”

  Sienna snorted. “It’s a wedding. It’s not like it’s a hair appointment. Even I know how important…”

  Her words died off as she spotted a familiar face in the crowd. True, there were a lot of familiar faces here. The group consisted of family and close friends, along with the production crew. There were her sisters and Audrey’s best friend, and maid of honor, Reagan. Reagan’s fiancé Harry was talking on his phone off to the side.

  But this face was familiar because Sienna had seen it outside the bathroom only moments earlier.

  “Audrey, what’s the custodian doing next to Eli?” she asked.

  Audrey craned her neck to look around at Eli’s parents. “What are you talking about?”

  Sienna let out an impatient huff. “The guy with the dark hair who is literally standing next to Eli. Plaid shirt, blue eyes. Why is he out here?”

  “Uh, Sienna.” Audrey furrowed her brow. “The only person I see over there is Fox. He’s Eli’s best friend from college.”

  Eli’s best friend? No, that couldn’t be right. Even though Sienna lived in New York, she’d met Eli plenty of times. Plus, she followed him on social media like a good future sister-in-law, and not once had she ever seen this Fox guy. She’d remember someone like that. Those eyes weren’t exactly something you forget.

  Her heart quickened beneath her ribs. “Are you sure?” Sienna asked, her eyes still trained on the guy she’d just argued with as he stood next to Eli.

  The two men both wore easy smiles as they talked.

  “Are you seriously asking me if I know who my husband-to-be’s best man is?”

  Best man? Sienna’s stomach plummeted. This wa
s so not good.

  “Why are you so concerned about the”—Harper lifted her hands and made air quotes—“custodian anyway?”

  Sienna felt her cheeks warm. “He was standing outside the bathroom with toilet paper, and I thought he worked here.” She cleared her throat. “I may have been rude to him.”

  Audrey frowned at her. “Oh, Sienna, you didn’t.”

  She explained what had happened inside, only realizing how quick she’d been to make judgements and serve out punishments once she said it all out loud. A pang of remorse ran through her. She’d acted like a jerk.

  Audrey’s face was stern, but Harper laughed and waggled her brows. “Looks like the producers won’t have to work too hard to get must-see TV from you.”

  “Shut up.” Sienna pushed her sister. “I’m sure I can make it through ten days. This is Audrey’s special moment.”

  She needed to remain in control of her emotions whenever a camera was in view. This was her chance to get noticed, but given the expectations of reality shows, it had to be for all the right reasons. There’d be chances to sing and dance, and opportunities to show off her emotional range. One hint of drama and she could kiss any chance at a real career goodbye.

  And time was running out on a real career. Sienna and her roommate were skating on thin ice—one more late rent payment and goodbye New York. This reality show was the last thing Sienna wanted to do but was her only chance to hold on to her dreams.

  She could make it through ten days without any drama, right?

  Two

  10 Days Until Dream Wedding