Free Fatal Destiny by Marie Force Page B

to him sooner about the wedding, Sam arrived at her HQ office to find Shelby Faircloth waiting for her. “Did we have an appointment, Tinker Bell?”
    “Nope, just a few last-minute details that I need to pin you down on, and since I can’t get Mohammad to come to the mountain…”
    Sam grinned at her. She’d been fully prepared to hate whatever wedding planner they hired, but Shelby was damned hard to hate. “Mohammad is at your service. Fire away.”
    Shelby withdrew a pink portfolio from a pink briefcase.
    “Don’t you ever get sick of all the pink?” Sam asked.
    Shelby recoiled. “Sick of pink? Never! It’s my signature color.”
    “No! Really? ”
    Grinning at Sam’s sarcasm, Shelby withdrew a three-panel brochure containing the groupings of flowers she’d given Sam to choose from. “This is it. You have to decide. What’s it going to be? Orchids, calla lilies or tulips?”
    Sam moaned and put her head down on the desk. “I can’t decide! I like them all!”
    “I’ve got the florist and the cake lady so far up my kazoo I can’t take a deep breath without hearing from one of them. You can’t put it off any longer.”
    “Which one would you pick?”
    “It’s not my wedding.”
    “ Shelby! ”
    “Most brides would’ve made this decision weeks ago. It’s only because all these people are so thrilled to be affiliated with your wedding that they’ve let you slide this long.”
    “Eeny, meany, miney, mo…”
    Shelby dissolved into laughter. “I should’ve gone to Nick with this.”
    “Why didn’t you?”
    “I figured something had to be your choice.”
    Sam scowled at her. “Fine. Go with the orchids. That’s it. A decision. Are you happy?”
    “I’m thrilled!” Shelby fired off a text message from her BlackBerry. “Now, let’s talk about your hair.”
    “What about it?”
    “Up and sleek, down and smooth, up and messy.” Shelby placed photos of each style in front of Sam.
    “What will best hide this?” Sam pointed to the still-healing scar at her hairline from the car accident she and Nick had been in.
    “Don’t worry about that. My makeup girl will make it disappear.”
    “What makeup girl?”
    “The one I hired to do your makeup.”
    “I’ll do my own.”
    “Can you make that scar disappear? How about those bags under your eyes?”
    “Now you’re just being mean.”
    “I’m keeping it real, sister. You need her.”
    “I want Nick to recognize me when I walk in there.”
    Shelby rolled her eyes. “Puleeze. Would I hire someone who’d make you look freakish?”
    “To pay me back for being a pain in your ass? Yes.”
    Snorting with laughter, Shelby said, “Then stop being a pain in my ass and decide .” She tapped on the photos to refocus Sam’s attention. Even Shelby’s fingernails were painted pink.
    “That one.” Sam pointed to the sleek up do with the flower tucked in. “Nick prefers it long, but he can take it down afterward.”
    “There’s the spirit. Now, about favors. What’d you decide?”
    “Instead of favors, we’re doing a donation in the name of each guest to the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation for spinal cord research.”
    “I love that idea.”
    “I’m glad you approve.”
    “We’ll have something printed up and placed on the tables.” Shelby withdrew a velvet pouch from her bag. “One more thing.” Tugging open the pouch, she dropped three platinum rings on the desk.
    “Don’t you have enough work to do, Lieutenant?”
    The voice coming from the doorway turned her stomach. “Get out of here,” she said, refusing to even look at her nemesis Lieutenant Stahl.
    “I’ll have to talk to your captain about how you’re spending your work time.”
    Sam still didn’t look at him as she got up and shut the door in his face. “Now,” she said to Shelby, “you were saying?”
    Shelby cleared her throat. “We can do this after work if that would be better for you.”
    “Now is fine.” Looking at the rings for Nick, Sam’s