Pretty in Ink (Voretti Family Book 3) by Ava Blackstone

Author:Ava Blackstone [Blackstone, Ava]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Break of Dawn Press
Published: 2016-07-06T21:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 14

THE ORGANIST LAUNCHED into the first chord of Wagner’s Bridal Chorus, and Liv straightened, trying to shake off her nerves. It was the moment of truth.

She shrugged off the shawl she’d been huddled under all morning as she and the other bridesmaids had their hair and makeup done, took the limo to church, and gathered in the vestibule they were using as a staging area.

Heather saw it first. Her eyes widened, and she looked from the tattoo to Ella, then back again.

Ella took a break from adjusting her tiara, following Heather’s gaze toward Liv. She sucked in a breath. “What on earth is that?” She wet a finger in her mouth and scrubbed at the tattoo.

“Ow!” Liv pulled away. “It’s real, okay? It’s not going to come off.”

“You got a tattoo?” Ella stared at the ink, eyes wide, like it was her first glimpse of the new David Lance collection at Fashion Week. “Wow. When you finally commit, you do it for real.”

“I—”

“Girls?” The high, nervous voice of the wedding coordinator saved Liv from replying. “It’s time to begin the processional. You first, Olivia.”

“Don’t walk too fast,” Ella hissed. “And for the love of Godiva chocolate, don’t slouch. Remember what we practiced.”

“Got it.” For once, Ella’s micromanagement didn’t give Liv the urge to throw down. Ella had already forgotten about the tattoo. With any luck, the rest of the family would find it similarly unimportant.

Liv held her head high as she entered the nave. Caleb was waiting for her at the end of the peach silk runner, and damn. He was wearing the hell out of that tuxedo.

He took her arm, and the remaining vestiges of her nerves vanished, even as the inevitable whispers started. Claire let out a surprised laugh that she quickly cut off. Nonna Hazel stood to get a better view.

Liv didn’t falter. She let Caleb lead her, strong and smooth and full of purpose, to their places on either side of the altar.

The whispers were almost as loud as the organ, but there were only two people whose reaction Liv cared about. She held her breath as she scanned the peach-silk-covered pews, finding her parents at the far end of the front row. Her dad shook his head as he surveyed the ink, but he looked affectionately exasperated rather than truly angry. Her mom caught her eye and winked.

And then Uncle Alberto was escorting Ella down the aisle, and no one was even looking at Liv anymore.

Four months of worry, and the big reveal had gone without a hitch.

*

“There you are. I must talk to you.” Nonna Hazel grabbed Liv’s arm, pulling her away from the waiter before Liv could grab a goat cheese tartlet from his tray.

Liv’s stomach growled in protest. She hadn’t eaten breakfast or lunch, too nervous about her parents’ reaction to the tattoo. Now that she no longer had to worry, she was ravenous. “One second, Nonna. I really need to eat something.”

“Not one second! Now!” Nonna clamped down tighter on Liv’s arm.

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