Irish Lullaby

"Are we going for the princess look or the modern look?" Elina asked after she glanced at Vanessa's design and raised her eyebrow in wonder, of what that woman was thinking of course.

I did the same.

"Princess," Vanessa and Sanders said, Cyrus shook his head as he and Sanders sat on the couch looking utterly bored, more him than Sanders who was getting a kick out of watching me wallow in misery.

"Poofy or thin?" I asked as I grabbed a pen and paper to write down everything.

"In-between," Vanessa said and Sanders nodded in agreement.

"Sleeves or just corset?" I asked tapping the pen against the yellow pad of paper.

"Sleeves and corset, a unique look?" Cyrus suggested as he looked at Vanessa with a shake of his head, "Not one that looks like it's been chewed in half by a damn shark."

"Listen you little-"

"Chill," I groaned as I laid my head against the drawing table I was leaning against, where I had drew ten designed in three hours and finally gave up, threw my original pad of paper down the steps and just watched Vanessa and Elina.

"Alright."

Sanders stood up and walked to my desk, grabbed a pen and paper from beside me, turned around and walked back to his seat then sat down; I raised my eyebrows in suspicion but glanced back at the papers in front of me, "Veil or no veil?" I asked as I began to sketch on another paper, a white one instead of yellow.

"No veil but like a little something in you're hair," Vanessa said motioning to her hair like something pinned in it, "Like a heart pendent or something."

"Okay, so ruffles or just straight down like silk?" Elina asked as she noted everything that was suggested like I was, but hers was always more detailed than my chicken scratches.

"Straight down," Cyrus said glancing at me, "I seen her in her prom dress and it wasn't fantabulas with the ruffles."

"Thank you Cy," I said shaking my head at his comment, I wasn't good in ruffles I'll admit, I look like a poodle with a perm but he was just that blunt to come out and say it, "That hurts right here," I pointed to my chest. "I thought you loved me?"

"I do, but I didn't love the ruffles babe," he said sadly. "And I had to look at them for five hours straight."

"You are just mean," Elina laughed lightly as she pointed the end of her pencil at Cyrus. "Leave her alone, it's not her fault she wore that hideous thing, it was her moms idea, her moms horrible, horrible idea."

"Yeah," Cyrus said sadly. "Please don't let her make the bridesmaid dresses or the groom's tux, I won't be able to stand there and look at everyone."

"Don't worry," I said waving my hands in front of me to signal I had it all under control, which I was starting to wonder myself, why I needed to be in control, why was I marrying exactly. "Okay train or no train?"

"No train it gets caught up and stained like hell," Elina said making a disgruntled looking face at me. "I've been to quite a few weddings and it's awful, it gets all dirty and stepped on, hell, we know with your luck you'll rip the whole damn thing off."

"Good to know," I said as I turned back to the designs with a sneer, "I don't have that bad of luck thank you very much, I just have bad—" I shrugged. "Whatever."

"What about this?" Sanders said as he looked up from the paper he was writing on or drawing, Cyrus leaned over and his eyes went wide with amazement.

"Dude that's—not to sound gay but that's gorgeous," Cyrus said in shock, I raised my eyebrows and walked over to them both, my heels clicking as I went across the linoleum. I looked over his shoulder and sighed heavily, he was better at drawing designs than me, and I'm a designer.

There is something wrong with that, seriously.

"Wow, Sanders that's beautiful," I said at the dress, it was exactly how I imagined my dream wedding dress, floor length but it had a corset top with what looked like a coat over the shoulder to the midsection where it hang tight against the dress, I just couldn't find a way to put it on paper but it was perfect. "I want to use that one."

"Really?" Sanders smiled at the amazement that I would use the dress he drew.

"Absolutely," I laughed as I held the drawing in my hand, staring at it until the doorbell rang. "Cy will you go get it please?"

"Yes ma'am," he said as he hopped up and ran down the stairs to the door that was still being rung frantically.

"Oh that is pretty," Elina said as I brought it over and laid it on the table under the light. "I'll get to working on making a bigger trace, and then I'll send it to the bridal shop I told you about, that will ship it for free."

"Thank you," I said as Vanessa glanced at it, and nodded her head astounded.

"Nice one Sanders, you should work with Harper on designs," Vanessa said as she stepped back and sat on the stool, I glanced over at Sanders and seen he was blushing at the compliment. "Aw he's blushing! That's so cute!"

"About time he blushed and it wasn't just me doing it," I murmured under my breath with small giggle as he turned even brighter, it contrasted his blond hair making his skin a lighter peach than the light color he was, he was really good.

"Nessa stop torturing the man," Elina laughed as she grabbed some carbon paper and brought it over to the table. "Be nice to the man, he's marrying you're step daughter."

"You didn't even call me Harper!" outraged, I could hear my brother's slightly higher male voice rise through the air, making me stop in my tracks and turn around slowly before I could actually comment back to Elina or Vanessa.

"Oh shit," I said slowly as I seen my brother set his bags down, take his coat and scarf off then walk over to me in a fast pace that matched his anger, oh boy was he mad. "I'm sorry but I kept it under wraps."

"I'm you're brother Harper, you're supposed to tell me these kinds of things, I'm so beyond pissed at you because you kept it from me, marriage Harper, think about it!" he yelled making me flinch, my brother was a good man, never harm a fly but he could be a real dick at times.

Most times actually.

"Hey man, listen you may be angry at her but don't yell at her for marrying someone," Sanders said as he stood up and walked towards me and my brother. "That's not right to do to someone, especially someone you love."

"Who the hell are you?" he asked glancing Sanders up and down, slightly intimidated at his size, but he wouldn't ever show it, he had to much 'manly' pride.

"This is my fiancée Sanders Huckabee, Sanders meet my brother Hayden Phillips," I introduced as I pointed to each one of them, while I stepped back slowly.

"So you’re the guy," Hayden said looking Sanders up and down, I rolled my eyes and looked at Vanessa who mouthed You're mothers spawn.

"I’m the guy," Sanders said as he pointed to himself while he narrowed his eyes at Hayden. "Now can you calm down enough to talk to your sister nicely?"

"I guess," Hayden said scrunching his nose up at Sanders, he turned to me and sighed heavily. "I'm just disappointed you didn't tell me Harp."

"I didn't tell anyone," I said softly as he walked over and hugged me softly, I smiled as I wrapped my arms around his small body frame and hugged him tightly.

"So…" he mumbled in my ear, while he laid his head down on my shoulder. "Mom said that you needed my help."

"With what?"

"The wedding…" he said slowly as if I was mentally insane. "She also said that I was to check out this Sanders guy."

"Well, you checked him out, I saw you looking him up and down so that part is over, let's get on with the wedding stuff," I said happily as I walked away from him, hopefully he would take that as it was, a sign to back off and stay out of it nicely.

I didn't want him to check Sanders out.

"Harper," he chuckled as he walked after me, he grabbed hold of my right wrist, gently not to harm me and spun me around, I glanced out the side of my eye at Cyrus, mentally begging him to help me out a little. "You're not getting off the hook that easily, I know you, I know that you wouldn't rush into marriage."

"You don't know that," I said playfully, my nervousness coming through the tone of my voice, like when you know you're in trouble with you're mother for eating a cookie when you're not allowed, but you have to sway her to believe that you didn't do it, even though you have crumbs on you're shirt?

In the end you always get caught.

"Yes I do, I've know you you're whole life Harper, you're not the rush into marriage type, so is there something you forgot to tell me?" he asked as he peered down at me, his dark brown eyes boring into my guilty ones, telling me to Give the information up or I'll drill it out. Practically.

"She did," Sanders took the time to interrupt, thankfully because no one else was so much as breathing heavily in the whole room, cowards.

"And what did she forget to tell her only brother?"

"That you're the best man."

"I am?" Hayden asked as he turned his glance away from Sanders to me with a surprised smile upon his face, one that stated his happiness in his eyes. "Really Harp?"

"Of course, nobody else could fill that position besides you Den," I grinned as he pulled me in a hug; I looked at Sanders and winked my thank you, which he returned with a kind smile.

"Let's get to working on the…guest list?"

"You're right Vanessa, mother said that she had made the list but you wouldn't allow her to use it, so we must make from our own accord," Hayden stated as he pulled away from the hug that apparently he didn't want to let go from. "Where is the wedding? I need to map out how many chairs can fit and that will allow me to tell how many guest you shall have."

"Well, follow me," Vanessa said with a kind smile gracing her slightly aging face, she stood up and walked over towards Hayden, half way across the room she grabbed a notebook and pen, then proceeded to walk over and grab Hayden's arm, dragged him to the other room. Where my office was stationed, cluttered and messy as always, nothing in order.

"You're brother freaks me out, why does he sound like he's from the eighteenth century, he's twenty three for Christ Sakes and in the twenty first century," Elina stated as she leaned against the table she was sitting at and placed the palm of her right hand to her forehead in frustration. "Can't he say things like, should or make our own instead of those big words?"

"He's in Stanford and he's in the 'geek squad', of course he has too," I remarked as I made my way over to Cyrus, as I stood in front of his spot on the tan leather couch. I kicked his shin, hard enough for him to groan and hold it in pain. "That's for not helping me!"

"You're brother would have been pissed, and I hate when he gets pissed because he yells at me and I can't understand a damn word he says," he mumbled as he looked into my eyes with a deadly glare that would scare even the meanest old bag ladies, but I never backed down. "Don't kick me again or I'll embarrass you at you're wedding."

Sighing I turned from Cyrus with my hands on my hips to Sanders, I grinned and walked over slowly, reason being because if I didn't, I would have fell on my butt from the high heels I wore, I leaned up to Sanders face and kissed his cheek softly. "That's for interrupting him, I'm very glad you did or I would have spilled everything."

"I figured from the look on you're face," he grinned as he ran his hand down my right shoulder, giving my forearm a light squeeze. "You're welcome."

"So…" Elina said leaning her head on the palm of her hand; she looked from Sanders and me to Cyrus slowly. "What now?"

I looked up at Sanders and he shrugged his shoulders, telling me in body language he had no clue. "Flowers?"