"I love you." Daniel's words are heartfelt over our FaceTime conversation while he sits in his trailer on the film set. His departure way before five o'clock this morning does nothing to dampen the excitement on his face. I, on the other hand just grunted at him as he left, much to his amusement.

"I love you too. I hope you're enjoying being back on set." I lean in close so I can see his longer hair one final time before it's cut off later today in readiness for him to return to his favourite role as Detective Walker.

Daniel must know what I am doing because he runs his hands through his waves. "It'll grow back in no time if you prefer it longer."

I feel my cheeks redden a little. "I'm just so used to it longer now, it'll be strange seeing it short. I'm sure I'll get used to it short again in no time." I bite my lip at the thought of Daniel dressed in Detective Walker's iconic leather jacket... looking all rough, bruised and ragged.

"Still want me to bring the jacket home?" He asks mischievously while wiggling his eyebrows.

Licking my lips to compose myself, I nod. "Yes please." I say quietly before Daniel chuckles in response.

"Who am I to deny a pregnant woman!" Daniel exclaims with a loud laugh.

The security screens installed in every room of our London home chime to indicate someone is at the gates. "I think Caroline and Sarah are here." Standing up, I look at the screen to see Sarah and Caroline pulling faces at the camera. I giggle while I turn my phone to show Daniel my best friends silly faces, making him bellow with laughter. Buzzing them in, I watch on the camera as the gates swing open. Caroline drives through before they close behind her.

"You excited about choosing your dress this afternoon?" Daniel asks, suddenly serious.

"Yeah, I am." Answering honestly, a smile spreads across my face. "I cannot wait to see what Robin has in mind for everything, she's so gifted."

"Robin will definitely be able to handle my Mom too." Daniel returns my smile, but it quickly falters. "You sure us getting married at the hotel Mom found is definitely what you want? It's just you've shown more excitement over Robin's potential ideas than the venue?"

In the second I pause to respond, my mind whirls at a thousand miles an hour. Sitting up straight in the chair, I know this is my chance to find out whether a big wedding is really what Daniel wants. "Look, it's beautiful... I mean anyone would be lucky to get married there-"

"I sense there is a but coming." His jaw sets into a firm line in readiness for what I have to say.

"However-"

"That's just a fancy but." He teases playfully.

Come on Lizzie, I silently chant to myself. "However-" I repeat. "I feel like-" a loud knock sounds on Daniel's trailer door, cutting off my words.

I watch on the screen as Daniel's attention is drawn to the door. I can't quite hear what is being said to him, but he nods in understanding. "Will be right there." He smiles warmly to whoever has entered the trailer. "Lizzie... can you hold that thought and we will talk properly later, OK? I won't be late home as there is no actual filming today. It's just the director is waiting to speak to me."

Keeping the disappointment from my face, I quickly realise that the conversation we were about to have is one that should be in person when there are no distractions, not over FaceTime. "Of course, we will talk it through this evening. I hope you have a wonderful afternoon. I love you."

"I hope you have a lovely afternoon too, and I know whatever dress you choose, you will look perfect. I love you. See you later." He ends the call, and the screen returns to normal.

Letting out a huge sigh, I descend the stairs to open the door for my best friends. We great each other warmly before I put the kettle on.

"I'm going to talk to Daniel about the venue." I say simply while I place their cups of tea before them. "We're going to talk it through this evening."

Caroline beams up at me. "I'm so happy to hear that!"

"About bloody time." Sarah holds her hand up for me to high five, which I do without much enthusiasm.

"I know I should have said something at the time, but I honestly felt like it was his perfect venue! When we talk tonight, if he wants it there then I'm fine with that... honestly, I know he would go along with wherever I really wanted, so I need to do the same. But, if we are both being manipulated by Madison's grand plans, then maybe we need to take a step back... and think about what we want!" I nod while I speak as though I'm trying to convince myself with my strong words.

"Speak of the devil and he shall appear!" Caroline groans while pointing at the screen in the kitchen showing the chauffeur driven car that will contain both my Mom and Madison.

I swiftly buzz them in, knowing that today is going to be a long day. My stomach swirls with a nervous energy that I just cannot shake.

When they enter, as usual, their greetings could not be more different. My Mom is warm and affectionate, while Madison is stiff and cold. We all sit around the kitchen table with cups of tea while Madison presents her ideas for my wedding day.

"Now, knowing my son, I've left Chris to sort his suit as she will be aware which designer is the best for him to use." Madison begins. I fight the urge to role my eyes at Madison's choice of words, but fail miserably. God, I wish I could drink today, at least it would numb some of the pain! "Chris will be informed of the colour scheme, so everything will be coordinated." She smooths down her fitted lemon shift dress that perfectly showcases her tanned skin. "Lizzie on the other hand will be a little more difficult to style."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Sarah asks aggressively.

"Well, Julie and I spoke about this in the car and Lizzie will be six months pregnant when the wedding occurs. Therefore, there are only certain style of dress that will accentuate her current... beautiful figure." Madison is clearly trying to be positive about my pregnancy, and I can see that her words are practically making her choke.

"Don't worry, Madison. Robin will have some wonderful ideas, I have the upmost faith in her." I speak confidently to try and end this awkward conversation. "She will be here soon, and she will be able to put everyone's minds at rest."

"But, there is also your choice of bridesmaid and her expanding figure to consider." Madison looks at Caroline with thinly veiled criticism.

"Her name is Caroline." Sarah practically snarls.

Madison simpers towards Sarah with a fake smile. "Of course." She sips her tea. "I've been wracking my brains trying to think of styles and colours that will compliment a heavily pregnant women and then a woman who is much taller and fairly skinny."

"Like I said, you don't need to worry about this. I trust Robin to find the right styles for both of them." I speak quickly, seeing that Caroline is about to lose her temper. We make eye contact and Caroline smiles tightly.

"I remember Robin when she went to school with my son, she is only successful because my son has put work her way-"

"That's not true, Madison. I was the first person that Daniel had sent to her and she already had her own boutique at that point." My voice is calm, but my blood pressure feels like it is rising by the second.

Madison waves her hand dismissively. "She is not a bridal stylist, she only designs normal dresses."

"She may not have done a wedding dress for anyone else before, but I only want something simple. Like I said, I trust her completely. As for Caroline and Sarah's dresses, they're exactly what Robin does... and she does it bloody well." I can hear the tension rising in my own voice and hate that Madison is able to have such an immediate effect on me.

"Well, I don't agree. What you need to grasp Lizzie is that by marrying my son there will be certain expectations on how you look on your wedding day, and which designer you are wearing." Madison holds her cup of tea before her lips and blows gently. Her tone is clearly intended to be condescending, and it makes my palms itch.

"Madison, we have spoken about this. I think you're trying to put too much pressure on Lizzie. If she wants something simple, then that is what she will have!" My Mom interjects with authority. "You have chosen the venue, the cake and the florist. However, I believe the dress needs to be a personal choice, it's not a decision to be made by others."

"Lizzie will be able to choose her dress, but it just won't be Robin designing it." Madison smiles towards my Mom, and it reminds me of a hyena about to attack.

"What?" I practically shout.

"I've cancelled the appointment with Robin. I explained the situation to her and she said she completely understood. Please understand that I have been inundated with offers to design your dress, and the bridesmaid dresses by big fashion designers like Vera Wang, Valentino, Armani... the list is endless! They have sent across their ideas for us to review today. I think you would be a fool to refuse such an opportunity, especially on such short notice! Let's face it, photographs of the wedding are going to fall into the hand of the media, unfortunately that is inevitable. So, you need to make sure you look like Hollywood royalty, because like it or not you are about to become part of it!" Madison reaches into her bag abruptly and without missing a beat begins to fan out sketches of bridal dresses that the world's top designers have created... just for me.

The support I was banking on from my friends soon dissipates when they begin to look through the sketches. My ears are filled with the sounds of everyone's 'oohs' and 'aahs' and whispers of which world renowned artist has designed each one.

I'm not sure how much time has passed of being handed different sketches, but I don't really look at any of them. All I notice is how each dress seems to get bigger, or more elaborate, or more detailed with every page. How did the wedding turn into such a nightmare? I wish we had just eloped.

"You're so lucky, Lizzie. There are some stunning dresses here!" Sarah giggles giddily. "This one is my favourite." She puts a Vera Wang sketch to the top of the pile.

"No, this one is mine!" My Mom replaces it with a Christian Dior sketch as she grins proudly. "I can just see you in that dress. Oh Lizzie, you will look like a princess."

"Hmmm, this one is mine." Caroline chuckles before replacing it with an Armani sketch. "This is amazing!"

Suddenly the room begins to spin, but when I look up I see Madison smirking at me. "Did you really think marrying my boy was going to be easy?" She whispers across the table while my Mom and friends debate their favourite dresses. "This is just the tip of the iceberg!"

Madison then proceeds to present swatches of colours and fabrics for the bridesmaid dresses, along with numerous sketches for their outfits. Caroline and Sarah squeal in unison, unable to contain their excitement that the world's finest designers have created ideas just for them.

For the next two hours I fade in and out of the conversation while the women in my life seem to get more and more excited. I realise that most women would be thrilled to have the world's elite battling for them to be chosen, but instead I simply feel overwhelmed.

There must be something wrong with me, I decide with a sigh. But even if there is, Daniel wants to marry me! He doesn't want to marry Hollywood royalty else he wouldn't have chosen a market executive living in a tiny flat in London! As the woman around me talk excitedly, everything suddenly becomes crystal clear.

In a trance, I get up and switch the kettle back on before returning to the table and standing up straight. I take a few deep breaths to compose my rapid heartbeat. "These are all very beautiful and I know I'm very lucky to have this kind of choice on such short notice. I'm also aware that Daniel is Hollywood royalty, but I'm not! We both agreed that we would like to keep our wedding simple, and that we didn't want it to be a public spectacle. Now, I'm only going to say this once... I want Robin to design the dresses."

Madison jumps up out of her seat. "But-"

"There are no buts, Madison. We have allowed you to make the majority of decisions for the wedding, practically given you free reign. You see, I'm a very reasonable and easy going person. However, this is one decision that I am going to make. Robin is going to design the dresses like Daniel and I agreed." I speak calmly because I feel the babies kicking away, sensing my increasing anxiety. "I trust her to design the perfect dresses."

She holds her hands up in defeat. "Of course. Whatever you want, you are the bride after all!" She immediately begins to sweep all of the sketches and swatches from the table back into her bag. Her expression is clearly one of fury by the scowl on her face.

My friends and Mom all stare at me wide eyed, but I don't give them chance to respond. Instead, I walk into the living room and sit heavily down onto the sofa. Madison soon follows me into the room with an envelope in her hand. "I understand your opinion Lizzie and I completely respect it."

"Thank you. What's that?" I ask when she places it down on the table in front of me.

"There is no sugar coating this... It's a prenuptial agreement that my solicitor has prepared for you to sign. Don't worry, it only kicks in if you leave Daniel. It ensures that your children are well provided for and also that you will receive ten percent of whatever Daniel is worth at the time of your divorce. That should be enough to set you up for the rest of your life, don't you agree?" She turns her head to the side in some attempt to be sympathetic, or to gage my reaction.

I pick up the envelope. "Madison, I will never betray your son, so I will sign whatever I need to as long as our children are provided for. I just have one question?"

"What's that?" Madison turns to face me.

"Does Daniel know you're asking me to sign this?"

The door to the living room abruptly swings open. "Do I know what?" Daniel strides into the room with his newly cropped hair to take the envelope from my hand with a deep frown across his handsome face. "Well, Mom. Do I know what?"

- hey guys!

Eeeekkkk - what do you think of this chapter?

You pleased Lizzie finally put her foot down, or should she have gone along with having a designer wedding dress?

What do you think is going to happen next????????

Thank you for still reading, it literally makes my day when I read your comments. Please tick the little star too! Love T x -