The Bridal Squad Read online

  They were her friends.

  Her family.

  Her squad.

  Yeah, they all made fun of her for calling them that, but if it was okay for the likes of Taylor Swift and Jennifer Lawrence, then Julianne saw no harm in using it for them. They were a squad, a group of friends who did everything together. And so what if she used the hashtag on all of her social media posts about them? What was wrong with #squadgoals? She thought it was cute!

  Either way, she loved them - no matter what they called themselves. And there definitely been some name-calling lately. It would have been nice if they could have outgrown that particular childish behavior but unfortunately, this wedding brought that out in everyone.

  Including herself.

  Over the last several weeks she’d called Harper a brat, Kayla a bitch and Natalie a bat-shit-crazy-wedding-ruiner.

  Yeah, not her finest hour there. But in her own defense, Natalie was making this whole process a lot more about herself than about Julianne. And it wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate the advice, but the wedding Natalie and Jayce had was not the kind of wedding she and Gavin wanted. And how did she know this? Because she and Gavin talked about it. A lot. Not that they were obsessed with their own wedding, but when they first started planning, they talked about other weddings they’d gone to - like Natalie and Jayce’s - and knew what they wanted and didn’t want. It was just one of the many reasons she loved Gavin so much - they took the time to talk to each other to make sure they were on the same page with major decisions.

  The music began to fade and she took a steadying breath, then thanked everyone for a great class. People started picking up their things from the perimeter of the room and waving to her, promising to come back next week. That made Julianne smile.

  “We’ll meet you in the locker room,” Harper called out as she, Kayla and Natalie began to head toward the door.

  Julianne picked up her bottle of water and waved to them. “I’ll be there in a few minutes!”

  When everyone was gone, she picked up her belongings and said a quick hello to Brady Bennett who was coming in to teach the next class - it was kickboxing or something like that. Hmm…

  “Hey, Brady, can I ask you something?”

  He was a former Marine and six foot plus of solid muscle. Nice enough guy but she didn’t spend a whole lot of time hanging out with him. “Sure. What’s up?”

  “Kickboxing,” she began. “Is it just good for cardio or do you think it could be good for letting out some aggression?”

  He laughed as he set down a towel and a couple of bottles of water. “It’s definitely good for both, but if you’re looking to just get out some anger issues, you might want to go at one of the bags.”

  “Bags?”

  He nodded. “Kickboxing is a great workout, but you’re essentially kicking and punching at air. Sometimes letting your fist and foot connect with something really takes the edge off, you know?”

  She didn’t, but it made total sense. And it was something she was going to think about in the coming week.

  “If you’re interested, I’ve got some time free time Tuesday night to walk you through some moves,” he suggested. “You’ve got a class at six, right?”

  She nodded.

  “I’m training a boxer upstairs in the ring at the same time. Meet me up there after class and I’ll help you out.”

  The thought of hitting something - even if it was four days from now - had her feeling better. If anything, she’d probably need to hit it even more then than she did now. “Thanks, Brady. I appreciate it!” With a wave, she did a final check of the studio to make sure none of her students left anything behind before heading toward the door. “Have a good class!”

  “Thanks,” he called out, but his back was to her and he was already setting up his music selection.

  Walking through the lobby, she waved to her boss Debbie and continued on to the locker room. praying everyone was playing nice. Thinking again about the upcoming shopping trip, she wondered if she should find a minute or two to herself so she could call Gavin and talk to him for a little encouragement.

  And maybe, just maybe see how he felt about the possibility of eloping.

  Two

  Julianne wasn’t sure what she expected when they arrived at Enchanted Bridal, but it wasn’t the massive greeting that was standing before her.

  A banner.

  Balloons.

  Mimosas.

  And muffins.

  Was this the norm for all bridal parties, she wondered?

  Hailey James stepped forward with a big smile on her face. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a sleek chignon and she was wearing a gray pencil skirt, white blouse and heels. She looked completely stylish and professional and Julianne couldn’t help but wonder how she became involved with the wedding business.

  Standing beside her was a woman Julianne didn’t recognize–she looked younger and had long, fiery red hair and huge blue eyes. Dressed in a similar style to Hailey, the only thing Julianne could think of was how this had to be Hailey’s assistant. She was smiling broadly and you could almost feel the enthusiasm vibrating off of her.

  “Good morning, Julianne, and welcome!” Hailey and her assistant waved to the banner behind her and Julianne did a double-take as she read it.

  Welcome Saturday Morning Squad.

  “Um…”

  Hailey’s smile never faltered. “I hope you don’t mind, but the girls and I decided that was going to be your nickname–well, the group’s nickname. We remembered you referring to the girls as your squad last week and the talk about only being able to come in on Saturday mornings and it just stuck.”

  “So…you made a banner?”

  This time Hailey’s smile fell just a little. “Well…um…we thought it would a fun way to kick off the festivities.” Then she looked behind Julianne to where Harper, Natalie and Kayla were standing. “Is it just the four of you today?”

  Julianne nodded as she continued to look at the banner. “Last-minute decision. We thought it would be easier with just us. My mom wanted to come but Harper and I convinced her to sit this one out. She’ll come in a few weeks to start looking for her own gown, but for now I wanted the bridal party dresses to be chosen by the girls – just the girls.”

  “Smart choice,” Hailey agreed. “Sometimes it gets to be too chaotic when there are so many opinions being thrown into the pot.”

  All Julianne could do was nod.

  Were those rhinestones on the banner?

  “Good morning, ladies,” Hailey said as she stepped to the side. “Come on in and relax for a few minutes. I’d love to talk to all of you over some mimosas and muffins and get your input on the style of dress you’re all thinking of.”

  “Hi, Hailey,” Natalie began as she stepped forward. “I don’t know if you remember me but…”

  “Natalie Walsh-hyphen-Michaels!” Hailey said enthusiastically. “How could I forget?”

  Julianne had to stifle a snicker because she had a feeling Hailey didn’t mean that as a compliment. Either way, it pleased Natalie that the owner of the business remembered her.

  “I have several ideas for our gowns. As a matter of fact, I saved them all here on my phone but I did email them to you. Did you get them? Maybe they went to your spam folder…hmm…there were about fifteen different pictures. Do you remember seeing them?”

  Hailey’s eyes went a little wide as she listened to Natalie’s questions. “As a matter of fact, I did and I have them in Julianne’s file, but I prefer to talk to the group as a whole before we start pulling dresses down to try on.”

  “Oh,” Natalie said, her disappointment obvious. “Okay.” Then she turned to Kayla and Harper. “But you guys got the email, right? Did you love the dresses? The style was perfect, right?”

  “To be honest,” Harper began, “I really didn’t like them. I’m not a fan of lace and you had a lot of gowns with lace.” She turned her attention to Hailey. “And I would love a mimosa!”r />
  “There’s some fresh fruit here too,” Hailey said as she motioned for them to follow her to the main seating area. It was set up like a formal living room with enough comfortable seating for at least a dozen people. “This is our new assistant, Penny. She’ll be observing everything today and helping out when it’s time to start pulling gowns out for all of you. In the meantime, please make yourselves comfortable while I go and get the rest of the girls.”

  As Hailey walked away, Penny stepped forward. “Would anyone prefer some coffee or something else to eat?”

  “This all looks wonderful, Penny,” Julianne said as she reached for a mimosa. “Thank you.”

  Penny took a step back before walking over to stand beside the coffee cart. Julianne looked at her sister and her friends and raised her glass. “Here’s to some successful dress shopping today. I hope we find something that everybody likes and that we’re done in time to go and grab some lunch before I have to be back at the gym.”

  The girls raised their glasses with her and everyone was quiet as they sipped their drinks.

  “Why did you schedule a class for this afternoon?” Kayla asked. “I mean, you knew we’d be shopping so why add that pressure on yourself to have to rush through this?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t think we’re going to have to rush and the class isn’t until four. Gavin’s going to help his father paint their house, so I figured I’d do an extra class. Besides, weddings aren’t cheap. I can use all the extra income I can get.”

  “Oh, stop,” Harper said as she reached for a strawberry. “You know Mom and Dad have a hefty wedding savings put aside for you.”

  “It’s not just for me, Harps. It’s for us. That money is to be split down the middle. You know that.”

  Harper rolled her eyes. “Please. I think we proved that I’m not walking down the aisle any time soon. And as the older sister, I’m telling you that if you need help with the wedding, feel free to dip into my share of the funds.”

  Julianne sighed as she leaned back against the seat cushions. “Why do you do that?”

  “Do what?”

  “Put yourself down like that.”

  Harper gave her a disbelieving look. “Jules, I’ve been engaged three times before the age of thirty. That does not make me look good in any way, shape or form. You know it, I know it and mom makes sure everyone knows it.”

  “I knew that was bothering you. I’ll talk to her and get her to back off. She shouldn’t keep bringing it up.”

  “It’s like she can’t even help it,” Harper said casually, but Julianne knew this was definitely something that was hurting her. “I don’t know what she’s hoping to accomplish by continually bringing it up. And, if we’re being honest, my engagement to Johnny shouldn’t even count. We were eighteen which is way too young to think about getting married!”

  It wasn’t a new argument, Julianne thought. Yes, her sister had been engaged multiple times, but calling each of them off had been the right decision. Besides being too young with Johnny, there was cheating Dominic and lastly, snooze-fest Steve. Honestly, she had no idea what her sister saw in him. Johnny and Dom were at least attractive and nice guys – aside from the cheating part. Steve was just…boring.

  “Can I ask you something and then promise never to bring it up again?” Julianne asked.

  Harper narrowed her eyes at her. “Is it about my failed relationships?”

  “Just one of them.” Thankfully, her sister smiled at her honesty.

  “Fine. Go ahead.”

  “Why Steve? I mean, I never understood what you saw in him.”

  “Yeah, me either,” Kayla commented as she broke off a piece of a muffin. “What made you even date him?”

  With a helpless shrug, Harper simply replied, “I thought he was the kind of guy I should be with.”

  “You thought you should be bored for the rest of your life?” Kayla asked. “That’s just wrong.”

  Harper laughed. “I thought he was stable,” she explained. “After two failed engagements, I thought it was because both Johnny and Dom weren’t stable enough – they didn’t have careers or real ambition. Steve worked as a bank manager and I thought, if nothing else, we’d have a decent life.”

  “Oh, Harper…sweetie,” Julianne said as she reached for her sister’s hand. “That’s just wrong. You can’t go into a relationship looking at it like that or with that kind of expectation.”

  “Well, physical attraction wasn’t doing it for me either,” she argued lightly. “So now I don’t know what I’m supposed to be looking for.”

  “What do you want in a man?” Natalie asked and when everyone just stared at her for a minute, she clarified her question. “I mean, if you could find your ideal man, what kind of qualities would he have?”

  “I just said that I tried going for stable, which is something that I want and it didn’t work,” Harper reminded her.

  But Natalie wouldn’t be deterred. “You should make a list of all the things you want - everything. Nothing is off limits - looks, money, stability, whatever - and when you meet a guy, you can refer to your list to see if he meets any of the criteria. Do the same thing with a list of things that are deal-breakers for you. After a while you’ll see what you can and can’t live with.”

  Harper blinked at her and didn’t speak right away and Julianne was afraid she was going to blast Natalie for her ridiculous suggestion.

  “Am I crazy or does that make sense?” Harper asked them as a group. “I tend to jump right into a relationship - usually based on physical attraction - and I don’t really think about what I like or don’t like in a guy. I should probably think about that a little more, shouldn’t I?”

  “What traits are a definite no-no for you?” Natalie asked as she whipped out her tablet and began to make a list for Harper.

  “Seriously? We’re doing this now?” Julianne asked. “Hailey’s going to be back any minute to start talking about dresses.”

  “And I’ll put this away when she does,” Natalie said and then looked at Harper. “So? Give me five things off the top of your head that you don’t want in a guy.”

  “He can’t be a sports fanatic,” Harper began. “I’m really not into watching any sports and I certainly don’t want to date a guy who spends all his time doing that.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with sports,” Kayla started but Natalie held up a hand and shushed her.

  “And not too…muscly,” Harper added. “I don’t find that attractive at all.”

  “Really?” Julianne asked. “Since when?”

  “Since always,” Harper said with a laugh. “I hate those body-builder guys. I think they look ridiculous. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I like a guy who’s in good shape, just not overly built.”

  “Got it,” Natalie said as she tapped away. “What else?”

  “Hmm…he can’t still live at home. Total deal-breaker there. If he’s still living with mommy and daddy, then we can never, ever go out.”

  “Like…ever,” Kayla said and then cracked herself up. When no one else laughed, her eyes went wide. “Oh come on! Classic Taylor Swift line!”

  “Next!” Julianne called out.

  “How many is that?” Harper asked.

  “We’re up to number four,” Natalie said.

  “No rap music,” Harper said with a laugh. “I don’t mind doing hip-hop in Zumba, but I can’t date a guy who listens to that on a usual basis. I just can’t.”

  “You’re not going to get an argument from me,” Natalie said as she typed. “Okay, one more!”

  “Make it a good one, Harps,” Julianne said before finishing her mimosa.

  Harper was quiet for a moment and then said, “And he can’t call me babe.”

  “What?” all three of them cried.

  “What? I hate that! It’s right up there with dude. Ugh. It’s like surfer-boy language. It’s awful and no grown man should say it – either of those things! So no babe or dude or surfer talk,” Harper said with fi
nality.

  “I hate to say this,” Kayla said as she stood. “But that is the lamest list ever.”

  “What?! Why?!” Harper cried. “What’s so lame about it?”

  “Because those were all very superficial things, Harper! How about no unemployed deadbeats? Or no former criminals? Or no bankers? Or drug addicts? Those are serious deal-breakers!”

  “I was put on the spot!” Harper said defensively. “Obviously if I had more time to think about it, I would have added your things to the list!”

  Julianne was about to speak up but Hailey was coming their way along with her own squad – Angie, Ella and Becca. She really liked them because they reminded Julianne of her and her friends in about five to ten years from now.

  “Okay, ladies!” Hailey said as she took a seat with them. “Let’s talk dresses!”

  ****

  Was that it?

  Was that her problem?

  Was she totally superficial?

  If her mother were here right now, she’d probably tell Harper yes. And she wouldn’t totally be wrong. Still, she didn’t see how there was anything particularly wrong with her starter list. Those were things that she didn’t like in a man, so why not own it? And on top of that, it didn’t matter what kind of guy she found because he was never going to be as perfect and wonderful as Gavin St. Claire.

  Ugh, that just sounded wrong even in her own mind.

  Harper did not have those kinds of feelings toward Gavin. At all. He was a great guy and she really did love him like a brother. But honestly, the man had no faults! None! He treated Julianne like a princess. He had a great job working as a financial advisor at his father’s firm, and he was a perfect gentleman, kind, considerate…

  Yeah, she totally sounded like she was crushing on him, but she wasn’t!