The Alpha's Bride

Chapter 731 The missing groomsman

　　Cornelia was among the women who wore fluffy bathrobes. They were all sitting patiently while Mario and a small army of hairdressers and makeup artists were fussing around them.

　　How much Cornelia understood, Mario was the main stylist and everyone (except Tatiana) listened to him.

　　When Cornelia accepted to be a bridesmaid, she was happy that she got not one, but two dresses; one for the ceremony, and another for the after-party. Cornelia had no idea that the bridesmaid business included a whole afternoon of dolling up and staying inside with all these people. This was a completely new human experience that baffled her.

　　Was there a need for facials, manicures, pedicures, and massages? But it felt good, her skin was never so soft, it was relaxing, and she smelled great, so she didn't object.

　　Tatiana was going for the element of surprise when she and her twelve bridesmaids walk outside, so her female entourage was locked into that room with only a few Omegas allowed to get in and out of that room in order to replenish drinks and snacks. 

　　After Daria bailed (because she met her mate, aka Pierce), Tatiana was upset, but then Cornelia stepped in to maintain the magical number thirteen.

　　Unfortunately, then Lidia met Jordan, so Tatiana was (again!) one bridesmaid short. Since the time was running short and everything had to be perfect, Tatiana picked one of her designers to step in, so they were back to thirteen females total.

　　The afternoon was trickling away, and Tatiana was back to nervously looking at the time.

　　Talia had big rollers in her hair, and she wanted to ask if Tatiana was having second thoughts about this ceremony, but then she counted the bridesmaids. There were eleven. One was missing.

　　"Who is the twelfth bridesmaid?", Talia asked Kalina in a whisper.

　　"I'm not sure", Kalina responded honestly. "It's someone that Max invited, and it seems they are running late."

　　"They?"

　　Kalina nodded. "That woman was supposed to come with two other guys. They are big business partners to the River Construction. The last thing I heard was that their flight was delayed. That was at lunchtime. They thought that everyone will be here in time, but it seems that won't happen."

　　Kalina looked at Tatiana with concern. Tatiana was a perfectionist which helped launch the "Dama T" brand into the world of elite fashion, but in day-to-day life, being a perfectionist usually meant a lot of stress, and Tatiana was visibly anxious.

　　At this point, it was obvious that Tatiana heard Talia and Kalina whispering because her Alpha aura was leaking. Humans broke into a cold sweat while most of the she-wolves in the room bowed in submission.

　　"Tanya!", Talia called. She was not affected, but others were. "You need to calm down."

　　Tatiana looked at Talia with an expression of a furious toddler who was wronged. "Calm down? How can I calm down? I planned for this, I was looking forward to this… everything is falling apart right in front of my eyes and there is nothing I can do about it."

　　"Don't panic!" Mario said while making his way behind Tatiana and he started massaging her shoulders. "Relax. Breathe, my dear. Breathe. We faced bigger crises than this one. Do you remember when due to traffic we didn't get any matching shoes for the show? And then there was the case of mismatched fabric. No matter what came at us, we came on top. You can't think straight because this is your event, and you want it to be perfect. And it will be perfect, but first, you need to calm down. Breathe. Breathe… that's it. In and out… Happy thoughts…"

　　Talia had to acknowledge that Mario had a strange calming effect on Tatiana. It was a combination of words and tone and that massage, and Talia wondered if Mario would be able to keep his hands if Maddox saw him kneading Tatiana's shoulders like that.

　　Everyone in the room thought that Tatiana's furry sizzled away, but then she snapped. "How can I have happy thoughts when I'm missing bridesmaids?"

　　"Does it need to be those exact people?", Varya asked.

　　"It should be someone important", Tatiana said. Seeing strange looks directed her way, Tatiana realized that it sounded shallow, so she explained, "This is a high-profile event not only for me but for Maddox and our extended family as well." The she-wolves in the room knew that 'extended family' was a codeword for the 'pack'. "By having high-profile people in my wedding entourage, it also lifts the status of our family."

　　"What about Michelle?", Talia asked, reminding them of the Luna of the Spring Leaf pack.

　　Kalina thought that was a great idea. "Alpha Cristian is on good terms with Max, and I'm sure they will agree to be part of this ceremony. He can fill in for one of the missing groomsmen."

　　"We can also invite Yasmin", Meg suggested. "She has a way to come here… quickly. And I know she would be over the moon if she could participate."

　　Maya disapproved. "But she is pregnant. Can she travel in her state?"

　　Talia also got an idea. "If you lower your requirements on status of people, guards that came from the Dark Howlers pack are available. Keith, Caleb, and Lulu. That's two males and one female."

　　Tatiana nodded in acknowledgment of this information and waved her hand impatiently. She needed more candidates! "Who else?"

　　Ten minutes later…

　　They had twelve solid bridesmaids and two as backups, but they were still lacking one groomsman that would be important enough.

　　Talia looked at the list of twelve females and eleven males, each with a line indicating who will be whose walking couple during the ceremony. Talia was pleased to see that she will be paired up with Damon, and Kalina with Tony… and Talia's eyes widened when an invisible lightbulb went on above her head.

　　"Wait! I need to make a call. I think I know the perfect candidate!", Talia exclaimed.

　　The moment Tatiana nodded, Talia grabbed her phone and went to the bathroom.

　　A minute later, Talia exited the bathroom with a victorious smile on her face. "Twelfth groomsman is secured, and you will be pleased that he has a high status. Damon and Tony agreed to teach him the procedure for the ceremony."

　　"We are back on!", Mario exclaimed, and Tatiana relaxed visibly.

　　Tatiana's phone beeped and she checked to see that it was a message from Talia:

　　[Set the last groomsman as Cornelia's walking partner. Put his name as X.]

　　Tatiana had no objections and she called Mario to handle the matchings.

　　Talia couldn't suppress her smile. She was eager to see how tonight's ceremony will unfold.

　　…

　　In the garden, Alpha Edward was mingling with Luna Layla attached to his arm.

　　With the main ceremony getting closer, guests were coming to join the party, and the garden was getting crowded.

　　Without any warning, Alpha Edward's mood worsened visibly.

　　'Did something happen?', Luna Layla asked through her mind-link.

　　'James is not coming.'

　　Luna Layla didn't understand. 'Why? Is he unwell?' She wanted to ask if he got himself into any trouble, but James was not a boy who gets in trouble, and no one would dare to provoke him, considering his status. 

　　'He said that he will participate in the ceremony', Alpha Edward responded.

　　'Isn't that a good thing?'

　　Alpha Edward was irritated. He liked when things went his way, and James was supposed to obediently come down and represent their pack and also… 'What kind of a role could he have?' For a normal Luna ceremony, the only people important were Alpha, Luna, and the Shaman. Others either served or were guests. Did James accept to serve drinks and food, as an Omega?

　　Ever since James returned from the Dark Howlers pack, Alpha Edward noticed changes in James' behavior. Alpha Edward couldn't put his finger on it, but something was different, and he didn't like it.

　　Luna Layla was not so skeptical. 'Didn't you send James to the Dark Howlers pack to establish connections? Alpha Maddox was there as well, and they trained together. Is it unusual to think that our James made an impression? Besides, even the Dark Howlers pack needs to curry favors with us, and how does the Blue River pack compare to them? They will definitely want to include James as a way to get closer to our pack. In any case, they won't dare to embarrass us.'

　　At the mention of their status, Alpha Edward relaxed. It was natural for the lowly ones to suck up to them.

　　---

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