The Absolutely True Story of Us by Melanie Marchande Read Free Book Online

probably don't even know where to start. But that's okay. I'm going to help you. We'll plan something amazing that she's never going to forget."
    That's for damn sure.
    "Uh," I stall, still trying to wrap my head around what's happening. "I don't know if..."
    "Well, are you planning to marry her or not?" Bea's voice has gone sharp. "If you're not in this for the long haul, I don't think you should be playing games with her."
    "That's not the point," I insist, wanting desperately to just tell her to butt out. But I know I can't. At minimum, I have to keep things civil to avoid any drama, and it's starting to seem like I'll have to do a lot more than that. "It's something very personal, and very -"
    "No." Bea shakes her head. "It's not personal, because you don't just marry a person . You marry a family. It would've been more ideal to do this during one of the holidays when everybody's already together, but we missed our chance. The good news is, I've talked to some of the kids. Most of them will be able to make it down here within the next few weeks. I'll just tell Felicity we're doing an impromptu family reunion of sorts, because there was a sale on airfare or something. Meanwhile, you and I can plan the big moment." Her eyes are shining as she practically bounces out of her seat with excitement. "Oh, this is going to be so beautiful. She'll be thrilled."
    Fuck.
    "Uh, I guess I could start looking at rings," I say, slowly. I have a bad feeling I'm going to regret this, but what the hell else can I do?  
    "Excellent!" she beams. "Get the ring, plan the speech. Just leave the rest up to me. When the time is right, I'll let you know."
    Lissy is definitely going to murder me.
    ***
    "Do you know something about this?"
    Lissy is waving her phone in my face accusatorially. What the fuck, did she already find out? Is she just toying with me? I blink a few times and try to focus on the screen, like I don't already know what she's talking about.
    "Know something about what ?" I think I sound suitably irritated, and therefore innocent.
    She sighs sharply. "Mom is bringing the whole fam-damily into town. I am so not equipped to deal with this right now. My brothers are going to be here on the same weekend we're supposed to go to that writers and readers fetish ball. How am I supposed to explain that?"
    I shrug. "Just tell them you've got a prior work commitment. You're not obligated to show them your corset and heels."
    Lissy rolls her eyes, and I hope it's not because she'd never dream of wearing a corset and heels. Because I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to see that.
    "Relax. It'll be fine," I tell her. "By the way, what am I supposed to wear to that thing?"
    "Same thing all guys wear to these parties. Leather pants, leather gloves, leather everything." She's got her head buried in the fridge as she searches for something, so I can't read her expression to see if she's fantasizing about anything in particular.
    "Sounds sticky," I observe.
    "You'll want some baby powder," she agrees. "Leather pants at minimum. The kind with the lace-up fly."
    " That sounds like a pain in the ass." I shake my head. "I'm going with a zipper."
    Her head pops up. "Trust me," she says. "Laces. Otherwise you might as well be wearing jeans."
    "Yes ma'am." I grin, getting up from the sofa. "How was the meeting?"
    "Just a lot of contract stuff." She straightens, holding two beers. "These are both for me, by the way."
    "Thanks," I tell her, reaching past her for another one. "Any other fetish ball tips? Is it a faux pas to wear underwear?"
    "You'll probably regret it if you don't," she smirks. "But you won't be able to stuff a pair of boxers under leather pants - not if they fit right. Get some decent briefs."
    "Define decent."
    "Not in a three-pack from a big box store," she says, going to the cupboard.  
    "I'm kind of offended that you feel the need to say that," I inform her. "I'm a boss now. I dress for success."
    "Yeah, well your employees aren't