We had to reorganize the place after the Elle fiasco. I had to speak to the hotel management with Simone while Marcus, Parker, and Shawn talked to the police and calmed everyone down. The whole ordeal had shaken Mida up so much that she couldn't do any work, and she was hell-bent on making today a success. So two seconds after she'd watched them put Elle into a police car, she returned to her bridal shower, taking her bridal train along with her.

The bachelorette party was going to happen after the bridal shower, according to Mida's plan. So, I was supposed to prepare the ground floor for that. Considering I had Simone and the rest of the decorations team with me, that went splendidly. I finished working before the evening.

"How was your date?" Simone asked. Beside me, she had a lollipop in one hand and a clipboard in the other.

We were seated at the bottom of the stairs, looking at the place we had decorated. A large chocolate fountain stood tall at one corner as the highlight of the equipment.

"It was fine." I shrugged. "We grabbed coffee, argued about nothing, and almost kissed."

Simone pulled her lollipop out of her mouth with a pop sound. "How? I thought you said that didn't happen?"

"It didn't. We were interrupted by an old man across the road."

"Damn." She groaned.

"Then by you the second time."

"Nuh-uh, you mean you were interrupted by Elle," she corrected.

"Yeah, sure," I replied mindlessly.

"I can't believe the two of you almost kissed!" Simone squealed, eyebrows meeting her hairline. "This means progress!"

I bit my lip and stared at the chocolate fountain, thinking about her words.

This was progress. I mean, Parker was ready to take things further. It was all I ever wanted. But there was still uncertainty; the always present "what if."

"I think you should talk to Garth-" she paused, "or Parker-whatever you prefer to call him."

"He's busy."

"Shut up."

I ran a hand through my black hair and exhaled.

The thing was, I had no clue where Parker was. And I didn't want to come off as desperate to him. We all saw what Elle did. I didn't want to be like her.

"What do you want me to do?" I inquired, facing her squarely.

She took her lollipop out of her mouth and smirked. "I want you to find him, talk to him, and probably throw in a make-out session or two." Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I want you to get married and have childr-"

I leaned away sharply; hands held out in front of me.

"Slow down, Simone."

She gave me a stupid look. "What? Isn't that what people in love do?"

"We're not in love, Simone."

Yes, I felt something for Parker. And maybe he felt something for me too. But tagging it "love" now was going too far. We hadn't even become official yet. We were just... Testing the grounds for now.

"Right. But you will be. Mark my words." She smirked.

I raised a brow, getting up. "Sure."

Simone got up too. "I gotta go check on Marcus. I'll see you later?"

"Yeah, see you." I smiled at her as she walked away.

Then she stopped, turned around, and grinned. "After the make-out sessions."

"My goodness, Simone," I groaned. "Get out of here!"

Simone laughed but went ahead to leave. I shook my head at her retreating figure, then turned towards the stairs. One step later, I froze in my tracks, squinting at the person at the top of the stairs.

Mrs. Wellington had her hair made into an elaborate style consisting of braids here and there, all held together at the middle of her head. At the side of her head, a single pink rose sat.

I couldn't say she wasn't beautiful because she was. She was, after all, the mother of Parker. They had identical eyes. The only difference was that Parker's were more welcoming. Mrs. Wellington screamed wealth, power, and stay the hell away from my son!

Her aura intimidated me.

Yet, standing at the base of the stairs, watching her descend from the top with a smirk gracing her lipstick-coated lips, I wasn't scared of her. Intimidated, sure, but scared? Not one bit.

When she reached me, standing two steps above the ground, she opened her mouth. And boy, were the words she said very expected.

"Camsy! What a pleasant surprise."

With a small smile, I replied, "always, Mrs. Wellington." I stepped forward, walking past her before she could say anything else. But her hand shot out and grabbed the railing, blocking my path.

She stared down at me with a sickeningly sweet smile that I could tell was fake.

"Did you hear about the scene earlier today? You're the wedding planner. Of course, you should know-"

I cut her off. "I was there, Mrs. Wellington." Her smile twitched for the briefest of seconds. "I watched it happen."

She fixed her smile and stood straighter. "That means you've seen proof; Elle was just another huge fan of my son."

"Yes, I know. Your son is beautiful." This talk was surely going to get too far if I didn't do something soon. Mrs. Wellington was certainly going to make sure I left her presence with tears in my eyes. So the sooner I ended this, the better. "You and Mr. Wellington did a great job."

She laughed, tossing her head back and letting it come from her stomach. Then she stood straighter with a grin, flashing blinding white-not to mention straight teeth. Mrs. Wellington, when she was still young, had been a model. One of the best of her time. No doubt, she was expected to be perfect.

"Oh, Camsy, you don't get it, do you? Being with you will only tie my son down, and I only want what's best for him. You're not what's best for him, Camsy." Her smile dropped into a smile. She clasped her hands together.

"Think about it. It's no news that you carry bad luck when it comes to love. I mean, thirteen boyfriends?" She laughed. "You've been through a lot."

My throat thickened. I will not cry.

"You're only going to break Parker and leave him, just like Clare did."

"Who's Clare?" I asked in a croaky voice.

"An ex," she vaguely replied. "She was just like you, you know. Seemingly welcoming, rich, beautiful. She didn't have freckles, though. Her face was clear as day."

Get to the point.

"Parker was going to propose, bought an expensive ring because he thought she was the one."

This story suddenly sounded familiar. It was the same one Parker told me. Clare was the almost finance!

My eyes widened as the realization dawned on me.

Mrs. Wellington continued. "Then he walked into the lounge and saw his soulmate screwing the manager." I watched her face contort with hatred as she said, "soulmate."

"Parker has told me about this," I informed her.

"Of course he has. Stay away from my son, Camsy. You're a risk to his heart, and I don't like taking risks. Unless, of course, you want to end up like Clare."

What was that supposed to mean? I wondered but didn't dare ask out loud.

Finally, I understood Mrs. Wellington's increased hatred for me. She was just protecting her child as any mother would.

"I'm not a risk to Parker, Mrs. Wellington," I said to her instead. "What Clare did, it was wrong and stupid."

"It was."

"But I won't do that. I can't. Not to Parker."

She lifted her nose in the air and huffed. "What? The both of you have already sealed it?"

I couldn't help but chuckle. "Not yet. I'm the one holding us back." My gaze fell to my shoes, more realization dawning on me. "I am the one holding us back. I'm the one stopping myself from being happy because I'm scared he'll break my heart again!"

"He'll break your heart? Garth is as loyal as they come," Mrs. Wellington scoffed.

"You're right!" I lifted my eyes to meet hers, bubbling inside. Elle was ready to sacrifice her life and reputation just to get Parker to propose to her-no matter how stupid it was. Yet, here I was, throwing a chance at love away.

"I'm so stupid." I facepalmed.

"No, you're not."

It wasn't Mrs. Wellington that had spoken, and neither was it me. Our attention snapped towards the main doors opposite the stairs.

"Garth."

"Parker."

We both gasped, then turned to give each other a look.

"I think you've spoken your mind, Mother. You should go find Dad."

"But she-"

"Go find your husband, Mom," Parker groaned.

Mrs. Wellington huffed, then shot me a withering look that sent shivers up my spine before walking away with her head held up, hips slightly swaying. I let out a breath I knew very well I was holding.

"Are you okay?"

When I turned to Parker, who had spoken, he had taken steps towards me and was now a few inches from my figure. I let myself smile as I nodded.

"I'm great," I replied.

Parker lifted a brow at me, proceeding to close the distance between us. I was quite startled when his hand wrapped around my waist and pulled my figure into his. Not wanting to stare up into his eyes for fear of drowning in them, I focused on his chest, which was eye level with me. My hand lifted on its own accord and placed itself gingerly there, feeling the best of his heart.

I exhaled. We could work.

"You're not coming to the bachelorette party, are you?" His chest rumbled as he spoke, causing me to look up at him.

I shook my head. "No, I'm not." It wasn't like I didn't want to come because I was eager to tell Parker what I'd just convicted of myself. That we could work, I was ready to let go. My heart felt ready.

But I had to make preparations for the wedding tomorrow. And the last time I'd paid a visit to the church was a few days ago. I had to call in and ask if everything was ready. Don't even get me started on the after-party.

So yeah, tonight was a no.

The shadow of a frown crossed Parker's lips, but it left just as soon as it came, replaced by a smile.

"In that case, may I have this dance?"

My reply was almost instant, "yes."

I had no idea what he was cooking up in that smiling head of his, but I was ready for this.