nathaliexkirbey-blog - Tumblr blog

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

finnsmythe·:

“I can’t even imagine the amount of stress you’re under right now. Planning a wedding is a lot of work. I think the last big thing I had to prepare for was the Stanley Cup Playoffs. And even then, it didn’t require a lot of me other than being in my best form,” he shrugged. “Anyway, how are you? Other than the wedding stuff?”

"Well, I don’t think planning a wedding and training every single day to stay in shape is exactly the same thing, but I bet that was also stressful,” Nat replied. “I’m doing good, though. Can’t complain. What about you? Last I heard, you were dating Ophelia. Is that still a thing?”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

finnsmythe·:

“Shit, sorry. I didn’t mean to hover. I was just looking down at my phone. I didn’t realize another person was so close,” he admitted, looking down at his best friend’s fiancee. “I’m just waiting for my coffee, Nathalie,” he grinned. “How are you by the way? I know the wedding’s really close now. I’m getting my tux altered this weekend. I told Wren, but I wasn’t sure if he passed that along.”

At the mention of the very event Nathalie was trying her hardest to avoid whenever she could, she tensed up the slightest amount but hoped Finn would either not notice it or brush it off as nerves. “Only a few more weeks,” she said softly, letting a small smile edge on the corners of her lips. “He didn’t mention it, but honestly I think Wren is just letting me be for now. Good of him, too, because I don’t think if I can focus on anything other than my final dress fitting until the actual wedding day.”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

sheridancarrington·:

Maybe Nathalie wasn’t Sheridan’s closest friend in the world, but they were still friends. And Sheridan, well for as sweet as she was, she was still a little shit from time to time and couldn’t help just getting on her nerves a little bit. Blame not having talked to her in awhile, she had a quota to fill and Nat was the unwilling victim. “Sorry, sorry,” she said, with a slight giggle, stepping back to give Nathalie her space. “I wanted to see how long it would take you to notice me. I didn’t think you were that out of it.”

Nathalie gave Sheridan a real smile, pleased to see someone she genuinely liked after having spent the past few weeks as detached from society as possible. “It’s alright,” she said, waving her apology away with a brief flick of her hand. “To be honest, I’ve been so dependent on coffee these days that I’m usually out of it unless I have a cup in my hand.” Hesitating for a second, Nat realized that this was the first time she’d seen her friend in a while and felt a twinge of guilt. “How are you?”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

chessieabernathy‌:

Chessie had done her best to dodge Nathalie,ever since her coke-fueled confession to her former best friend. She turned corners to miss running into her, even going as far as cancelling dinner reservations once she caught sight of the brunette in the restaurant. But, one misstep, and they ended up in the same line at the coffee shop as her. Go figure. Chessie hadn’t realized it was her until Nathalie was turning around, speaking to her. She hadn’t meant to seem like she was hovering, as she let herself get consumed by scrolling through her instagram feed. “I’m not –” She began, happy to give a biting remark to a stranger, before blinking and registering the petite brunette in front of her. “Shit,” Was her immediate reaction, followed by a: “I uh – Sorry.” 

The sight of Chessie did little to alter Nathalie’s mood. She had barely seen her since the day she had appeared on Nathalie’s doorstep and the only thing she’d heard about her was that she had gone to the hospital after New Year’s under the pretense of collapsing from exhaustion. Nat wasn’t sure she quite believed the story but she wasn’t going to say it aloud, especially not to the person it concerned. “It’s alright,” she said, turning back to face forward. “How have you been?”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

benvanderbilt·:

Ben was a coffee guy now. He hadn’t been before Europe, but during that excursion he realized that most Europeans drink coffee religiously and smoke socially. Both habits he had picked up there. Wanting to get his fix, mixed with a lack of understanding personal space, he was fidgeting behind someone as he waited for his coffee. “Shit, sorry,” Of course he made a bad impression on a Kirbey. He was trying so hard for King, but this was hard for him. Immediately, he smiled at her, trying to keep the mood light. “Next time you can just push me back, I wouldn’t mind,” He said with a shrug. “What kind of coffee are you waiting for?”

"Cappuccino,” she answered shortly, shifting her eyes around the shop. Nathalie had managed to avoid any contact with anyone involved in her family outside of a few short phone calls with her mother, but she doubted she would be able to get away from Ben without saying anything even a little rude. She had never spoken to him alone—all she knew was that he had married King sometime after she had left New York and he had been arrested not long after they’d both returned. “Is King with you?”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

With a halfhearted smile at the barista in front of her, Nathalie handed over her money with one hand while the other clenched her phone a bit too tightly. Hanging up from a phone call with her mother where she endured the same questions about her wedding that she’d been answering for months already, all she could look forward to was getting a bit of caffeine in her system so she could keep her eyes open for longer than ten minutes. While she was waiting for her coffee to be handed over to her, she felt like someone was standing close behind her and when she turned her head to ask them to take a step back, recognized them. “Could you move back a bit?” Nat asked. “You’re hovering.”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

kingkirbey·:

@nathaliexkirbey

Christmas with the Kirbey family was never exactly a happy time, at least from what King remembered of it. The holidays were always filled with tense family gatherings and as King grew older and became more prone to dealing with her problems by ignoring them, she realized that alcohol was the perfect substance to help her relax in even the most tense situations. This year’s Christmas day was proving to be no different than the rest, and King was desperate to find anything that would lighten up the dark cloud that covered almost every Kirbey family gathering. She wasn’t even sure she’d been invited to Christmas this year, but she and Ben had shown up at the Kirbey anyway, champagne in hand and ready to mend broken fences. While that hadn’t exactly gone her way, she refused to give up trying. 

In King’s mind, there wasn’t much that a little liquid courage couldn’t fix, which was what brought her to the hotel bar where she was immediately handed a gin and tonic — her old drink of choice. Old habits died hard, she supposed, and she downed the drink in two gulps. Her hand had just gone up to signal the bartender over when she spotted her cousin, and her lips pulled into a hesitant smile. “I’d say I’m surprised to see you here but, with the way our family is, it’s actually not surprising in the slightest.”

Absentmindedly swirling the champagne that filled her glass, Nathalie distantly registered that no one was speaking. Well, her mother was talking on the phone, using that fake voice that she liked to take on when someone wasn’t grasping the point fast enough and Elaine had to keep her voice at a normal level, but no one in the room was talking to each other. It was hard, really, to sit there and know you couldn’t leave even though your absence wouldn’t make much of a difference. Her hands were practically shaking with the effort it took not to jump up and announce that she was retiring to her own room for the remainder of Christmas and everyone else could suffer the awkward silences themselves.

Deciding that she needed something a bit stronger than champagne, Nat excused herself to the bathroom as subtly as she could and walked away towards the hotel bar. She could survive the rest of the night if she had just the smallest break from her family. There weren’t many Kirbeys, it was true. They were a rather small family, but they filled up every inch of Nathalie’s life. Spotting King at the bar only proved her point once more, but Nat returned the smile, however strained it was. “Oh, come on. Aren’t you having fun?” Nat asked sarcastically. “I’m sure you were just dying to come back so you could endure Kirbey family Christmases for years and years to come.”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

quinnxarchibald·:

Unable to stifle a yawn, Quinn covered his mouth with his hand before making eye contact with a person across from him. “I dunno how I’m going to make it to midnight at this rate.” He admitted with a small laugh. He’d hit a wall half an hour ago and suddenly time felt like it was stretching around him. All he wanted, at the moment, was to go back home and crawl into bed.

Meeting Quinn’s eyes even though he was on the bottom of the list of people Nathalie wanted to speak to tonight, she gave him a long look and leaned back against the wall. “Maybe you should go home, then,” she suggested, although there wasn’t much humor in her voice. “People are here to have fun and celebrate the new year. I don’t think there’s much for you to gain by staying, is there?”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

arlovasquez·:

New years was a time to start over, to become someone you weren’t before. So, Arlo had thought to himself, what better way to do that than host a party? Besides, it’d be better for people to go and drink in one place instead of having to worry about being out in the crowds that were pouring out onto the streets. 

The idea for the theme had come from a painting he saw scrolling through instagram and everything fell into place after that. 

And now Arlo found himself standing next to the drinks, organizing them into types while he looked like he belonged at a steampunk themed BDSM convention. Around him, the party was in full swing. He heard someone come near but didn’t look up at them.

“Help yourself to whatever is here. I’m sure I’ll be getting more should anything run out.”

Nathalie only realized that she had never actually met Arlo in person until he was standing right in front of her. All she’d heard about him was that he was an artist and he had dated Wren for a time in college. It was only when someone had actually pointed him out to her through crowds of people that she actually got a look at him. Pouring herself a cup from her own bottle of vodka, Nathalie leaned against the table and raised her eyebrows at him when he spoke to her. “I think I’m good with my own. I don’t trust drinks when they’re all laid out on the table like that, especially not on New Year’s.”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

buffy-seymour·:

Bottle of Malibu in hand, Buffy pushed her way through the crowd. With recent events, she was in desperate need of damage control. Which was why she was wearing white to a party. Luckily this early in the night it was easy enough to duck out of the way of swinging beer cups but the difficulty was only going to increase the more she emptied her own bottle. Her eyes settled on a familiar face and Buffy slid up beside them, a wide smile stretched across her lips. “Happy New Year’s Eve!”

Making her way through the party, Nathalie’s own bottle swinging from her fingers carefully to ensure her own white dress didn’t get stained, she found herself in the company of the best friend she hadn’t seen in too long. With a matching smile, Nat gave Buffy’s outfit a quick up and down and met her eyes. “Happy New Year’s Eve, Buff.”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

wrenabernathy·:

Of course, this wouldn’t be as easy as he had desperately hoped it would be. He wanted for the two of them to be able to talk to each other again, laugh together again - even just because the idea of coming home to a house as cold as this didn’t exactly make things easier. Sometimes, Wren even wondered whether he’d been wrong in telling Nathalie the truth about himself. Had he given up too quickly? What would’ve happened if he’d continued pretending? Would he ever have been able to convince himself that he was in love with Nathalie? Would he ever have been able to bury the fact that he was gay so deep in his mind that there’d be days where he wouldn’t even think about it? Wren wasn’t sure, but sometimes he couldn’t help but wonder if would’ve been better.

He crossed his arms while she talked and simply nodded, knowing that his apology was long overdue and not at all enough to make up for the things he’d said, but he noticed the change in her voice from flat to slightly angry, and he was scared that it would result in a fight again - that it would show him that from now on they would only be able to communicate by fighting. “I’m not expecting you to just pretend everything’s okay,” he said as clarification, shaking his head as he looked down at his arms. He’d asked her to be friends as a kind of peace-offering, a sort of clandestine way of asking if they could somehow move past or forget about the last few weeks, not a way to simply pretend that they were madly in love and loved spending time together. “I’d just like not to fight with you all the time.”

When Nathalie spoke again, Wren furrowed his brows and answered quickly. “No,” he said sincerely, even though it might’ve sounded strange. “I don’t expect anythin’ of the sort from you. I just.. just knew I couldn’t do it anymore.” He couldn’t deal with the self-hatred he felt after spending time with Quinn, the panic-inducing secrecy that took about five years of his life every time he heard a sound nearby when he was with Quinn, couldn’t even think about the fact that in two days, two people had found out. He knew he’d strayed a lot lately - with Quinn, of course, and then Arlo showing up, and it was about time for him to stop living in sin like he had.

“Anyway,” he continued, more than ready to stop talking about Quinn (mostly because it hurt tremendously even just mentioning his name), “For the wedding, I think I’m going to ask Finn to be my best man. I can’t think of anyone better suited.”

“It’s not like fighting with you for the rest of my life is something I’m really looking forward to,” Nathalie snapped, rolling her eyes in exasperation. Trying to take a breath to steady herself, she bit her lip and used a softer, more neutral tone. “I need to know...I don’t want to, but I need to know if there’s anyone else. I know you said last time you were here that there hasn’t been, but if we’re going to do this, then I have a right to know if there’s ever been anyone else you’ve been with that could threaten this marriage. You didn’t tell me about Arlo because you didn’t ever think it would be relevant, and now he’s here and I almost broke this off because of it. You know the only person I’ve ever been with, and Rowan doesn’t care enough about you to ruin your reputation. And even after it was over with him, he still kept it a secret for me. But if there’s someone else you’ve been with, I need to know.”

Nathalie narrowed her eyes at Wren, wondering if it was some kind of guilt trick he was trying to play on her. Convince her that he was no longer going to see anyone else so that she would offer the same to him—but no, that wasn’t Wren. He wasn’t that manipulative. Nathalie knew manipulative and Wren was the exact opposite. He could put on the show of pretending to be the perfect son who had never put a toe out of line but she couldn’t ever imagine him outright manipulating someone in order to gain the upper hand or at least achieve neutral ground. Nat let the silence stretch on as she looked at him, really looked for the first time in months, and didn’t like what she saw. A scared boy too intimidated by his parents to ever come to terms with the person he was. She felt a rush of hatred and anger for Amelia, knowing that it was her fault that Chessie was shipped off without ever saying goodbye and that she was the reason Wren couldn’t ever say the word gay without flinching or stuttering.

“You’re an idiot,” she said finally. The words came out in a sad sigh, shaking her head at him. “We both know you feel more for Quinn than just a fun little fling. You like him, you probably even love him, and you won’t go after him? You refuse to talk about him to me, but even the few times you do, I can see how strong your feelings are. You’re not as good of an actor as you might think you are, Wren. Marry me or not, it really makes me no difference to me at this point. I just don’t get why you won’t But you shouldn’t consider this cheating, if that’s what’s holding you back. I didn’t when I was with Rowan.”

If Nathalie was the type of person to be honest with herself instead of always lying to herself to make herself feel better, she would have admitted to being a hypocrite. She was telling Wren to go after Quinn and take what they both wanted, but she was still sitting in her living room denying any feelings for Rowan. She’d gone back to him so many times even though she would always swear she’d end it, and even after she did end it, she’d just gone right back to his door, and still she couldn’t admit it to herself. What right did she have to tell Wren that he needed to be brave when she couldn’t?

It would be easier for her. Wren had lived with guilt and fear his entire life—she could sympathize with why he didn’t want to come out. She’d seen the anxiety and self-hatred in his eyes anytime they spoke about it, which wasn’t often. She didn’t understand it because she didn’t know what he was going through, nor did she pretend to, but she felt for him. She could at least understand why he didn’t just tell the truth. Even telling her must have taken a lot of bravery, bravery that Nathalie herself didn’t have.

She suddenly felt a wave of affection for Wren, something she hadn’t felt in what felt like years, and looked away so he wouldn’t see. “I won’t see Rowan again,” she promised quietly. It hit her hard, realizing that she still did love Wren in a way. And she loved him enough to give up the same thing he was. “If we’re going to be married, we should do it right. And if you’re not going to have a love affair, then I shouldn’t, either.” Standing up, Nathalie went over to her fridge and took out a half-empty bottle of wine and two glasses, pouring more than she should have, but less than they deserved. “Buffy should be my maid of honor, but I...haven’t seen her in a few weeks. I should talk to her.”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

buffy-seymour·:

“Not long. It’s not like I’ve been lusting over you since high school or anything. I’m not that pathetic.” Buffy sighed and glanced at her nails. Anything to avoid Nat’s gaze. 

"No, you’re not pathetic, don’t say that,” Nat insisted. She found herself wishing for another bottle of wine, but she knew she had to remain clearheaded for the remainder of this conversation. “I just...Buffy, what do you expect me to say to that?”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

She tastes like nectar and salt. Nectar and salt and apples. Pollen and stars and hinges. She tastes like fairy tales. Swan maiden at midnight. Cream on the tip of a fox’s tongue. She tastes like hope.

Laini Taylor

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

no mom I don’t want a boyfriend I want a kingdom

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

Violent Ends Text Posts  → pt. I

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

wrenabernathy·:

On second thought, maybe Wren would’ve preferred a shouting match with her. Or at least have her words be overshadowed by the venom in her voice. But no, her voice, like her expression, was stoic, and it was somehow ten times worse. Wren followed after her to the living room, taking off his scarf and coat and placing them on the large couch before strategically sitting down in the armchair opposite her. She looked like Public Nathalie, not the Nathalie he’d come to know ever since they’d gotten together.

And then she dove into wedding planning, and by the time Wren had caught up she’d nearly finished her speech, but all he could do while she talked was watch and listen in confusion, nodding when appropriate and trying to make mental notes of everything he needed to remember. He understood what she was trying to do - how she was trying to just.. sweep it all under the rug to keep everything from exploding. He understood, because it’s how he was raised, and in many occasions it’s a style of problem-solving he preferred himself. But this was different. It felt like too big a deal to ignore like that, but it was nearly impossible to get a word in between hers. He swallowed hard when she mentioned his vows - yet another thing he hadn’t even considered, and the though of hiring a ghost writer quickly passed through his mind before he’d dismissed it. Probably best if he didn’t, he thought.

She stopped talking, and Wren took the moment of silence to organize his thoughts and try to put into words what he wanted to say. But then, before he could even speak up she dashed out of the room, leaving a dumbfounded Wren alone in the room for a few seconds. He hadn’t expected this to be such a whirlwind, and as she returned he stood up when she asked him if he had any questions. He looked to the thick binder on the couch, then back to Nathalie, and knew that he would absolutely glance over it later (he trusted Nathalie, but he was too neurotic to let go completely), but decided that wasn’t the main issue right now. “I’m sure it all looks good,” he said dismissively, stepping closer to her so that they were only about two feet apart. 

“Nathalie, I..” he started, letting himself take the time to search for the right words. “I know this isn’t .. ideal. And, well. I’m sorry for what I said last time. But I don’t want you to hate me. I want …” he said, furrowing his brows blinking a few times before he looked her straight in her eyes. “I would like to be your friend.” He wasn’t sure how she’d take that statement, but it was the truest thing he could say - despite his recent actions not exactly showing that. “If that’s okay with you,” he ended, unable to read what she was thinking.

“Also, I uhm -,” he added, not sure how to continue. There was something he wanted her to know, but of all things, it was the touchiest subject between them, and he really, really didn’t want to fight with her. “I just want you to know that, uhm. Quinn and I, we’re not. We don’t — anymore. That’s .. That’s over. I’m not gonna do that anymore. So… yeah.”

Folding her arms across her chest, Nathalie bit her lip and stared hard at Wren, wondering what was going through his head when he decided to text her. Was it because he just wanted to make sure they were still engaged or because he genuinely wanted to fix whatever was left of their friendship? She had spent so long trying to convince Wren to talk to her, tell her the truth so they could finally be on the same page and when the time came that she didn’t want to talk, he felt like getting everything out in the open. It was hard for her to stand in front of him and not remember the exact words of their fight. She could close her eyes and hear every word they’d yelled at each other. She could remember throwing him out the door and running to Rowan a few hours later. She remembered it all and she thought she’d been past it but it still hurt.

Nat wasn’t arrogant enough to think that she hadn’t hurt him as well. It didn’t matter that she never involved herself with Rowan to spite Wren—all that mattered was she’d told him the truth to spite him. They’d both walked away from that fight looking at each other in a new light. Nathalie wasn’t sure if she could overlook that but Wren apparently could and that meant that she at least had to try. Realizing that and convincing herself to go through with it were two completely different things, though, and Nathalie didn’t exactly have a good track record of keeping her anger in check when it came to Wren. She’d never been one to deal with her problems—they settled in her throat and threatened to choke her every single day, but she’d grown used to the feeling of being unable to breathe. If that was how she wanted to deal with her wedding, that was what she’d do. She didn’t care if Wren wanted to uncover the problems that had been rooted deep into the foundation of their friendship.

When Wren took a step towards her, Nat automatically turned around and walked back to the couch. “You’re sorry?” she repeated, a small laugh escaping her lips before she could hold it in. “Well, that’s good to hear. Considering you tried to put me down and shame me for doing the exact same thing you did, I’d say I at least deserved an apology for that.” A note of sharpness punctured her voice and Nathalie looked at him with a challenge in her eyes, daring him to disagree with her. “If you think I’m going to apologize for hitting you, it’s not going to happen. I probably shouldn’t have done it, no, but you did deserve it. And as for being friends...” She trailed off, lowering her eyes to the floor and choosing her next words carefully.

After a beat of silence, she shrugged her shoulders. “What do you want me to say, Wren? No?” She scoffed and gave him a small, sardonic smile. “When have I ever been able to tell you no?” The sad truth hit hard, showing just how far Nathalie would have gone to ensure Wren didn’t mess up his pristine image for the benefit of his parents. He would have done the same for her, she thought. If it had been her who needed help, he would have done it no matter what. That had to be something, it had to be enough for her to grab on to to help her move past that wall she’d built up between them over the past two years.

His news about Quinn made Nat’s eyebrows go up in surprise. She was curious, of course, but there was a part of her that wasn’t even surprised. Wren had liked Quinn far too much to ever stay with him. Really, she should have seen it coming, but all it did was remind her that Wren not seeing Quinn anymore was him severing all ties before their wedding. “And I suppose you want me to extend the same courtesy to you,” she assumed, her mind automatically going back to Rowan. There was no way she would be the first one to bring up his name, if it was even brought up. “Why did you end it?”

[nathaliexkirbey-blog]

wrenabernathy·:

“Hey,” Wren breathed in reply as he saw Nathalie appear from behind the corner. He stood with his back to the door and some distance between the two of them as he tried to gauge what the atmosphere of the room was, but it didn’t seem like Nathalie was intent on raging at him. That, at least, was something.

He wasn’t really sure what to say next - when he’d played the situation in his mind, he’d never actually gotten past her letting him step inside. He wasn’t sure if he was supposed to stay in the hallway or not, so he only took one step forward so that at least wouldn’t be in the door frame anymore and then scratched the base of his neck. “How are you?” he asked, realizing it sounded ridiculous the moment he’d asked. They’d have their work cut out for them before they’d be able to step outside as a public couple again. 

“Oh, uhm. Merry Christmas,” he said then, not sure if that was any better than the last statement. But then again, what else could he say? He couldn’t just bombard her with the question he really wanted to ask, now could he?

Of course, that was the most important thing, and everything else kind of hinged on her reply to his question. Looking down to gather his thoughts, he sighed and shook his head before looking back at her. “Listen, about the wedding …” he started, looking at her carefully to analyze her reaction. When she didn’t respond much, he took it as an invitation to continue. “The date is getting really close, and I just .. I need to know if you still. You know, want to do this.” He’d always been sure that no matter what, Nathalie would never call it off. But then they hadn’t talked for weeks, and now even that certainty felt like standing on thin ice. “I need to know if we’re getting married in February.”

How are you? Nathalie almost laughed at the question but she kept her face expressionless, tucking her hair behind her ear as she debated whether or not she should even answer. “I’m great. Why wouldn’t I be?” Without saying anything else, Nat moved towards her living room, taking a seat on the couch and crossing her legs. She didn’t wait for Wren to follow her as she set the planner on the cushion next to her, opening up to a random page. “Merry Christmas,” she replied, not lifting her eyes from the work she’d done. He said he wanted to talk about them but Nat didn’t want to talk. She didn’t want to open any kind of conversation that would eventually spiral into another fight. Worse than that, she didn’t want to end up talking about whatever it was that she’d been feeling for the past few weeks. Whatever it was, she didn’t like it. She knew that if Wren asked her about it or insisted that they talk it out, she’d end up crying. She would end up telling him things she hadn’t told anyone about how lost she’d been and how she’d tried to let go of her anger to call him but she just couldn’t.

Hearing him ask if she still wanted to get married was enough to make Nathalie finally look up at him. Her lips parted, readying herself to say something, anything. She could tell him that she wasn’t mad anymore, but that would be a lie. She could tell him that she was still mad but she’d get over it. Tell him that they would be fine, that they could work towards finding that neutral ground they’d settled on before the last time he’d been in her home. All would be forgiven in time, and she’d even apologize for slapping him, and they could sit and actually talk for the first time in years.

But her throat closed up before she could get a word out. Shaking her head like she forgot what she wanted to say, Nathalie closed her mouth and looked back down at her planner, flipping to her checklist and pulling it out to hold out to him. “I, um...I have the last of my checklist here. There’s two months before the wedding, so everything is almost done, don’t worry. I’ve handled all of it. You have your final fitting for your tux one week before the wedding, and I suggest you pass that information on to your groomsmen. I have my dress fitting the same day so you don’t accidentally see me. You know what they say, it’s bad luck. We should apply for a marriage license and probably order an extra just in case—oh, and I’ve already gone over the final details with the band and the menu. I don’t know if you want the wedding rings to have any engravings on them, but if you do, then you should say so now, and I would start writing my vows if I were you. Turns out, they’re a lot harder to write than you’d think.”

Finally, Nathalie lifted her head and met his eyes. She had been using her most professional, businesslike tone with him, talking to him as if he was a client of hers. It was the only thing she could do to get through it. Suddenly standing up, Nathalie went into her room without warning and slipped the engagement ring back on, immediately moving her other hand down to twist it around her finger like she always did without noticing. A nervous habit she hadn’t ever been able to kick. Walking back into the living room, she raised her eyebrows at Wren. “Any questions? I think I’ve made things pretty clear on the list and you’re more than welcome to look through the planner to see the details for yourself. You’re almost as obsessive with this stuff as I am, so it’s all very neat and organized, I promise.”