Page 58 of D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding

Days later, I was still thinking about Cinta’s words when me, Mama, and D’Niesha walked into a bridal shop in search of the perfect gown. Before the seamstress could create something from scratch, she wanted me to try on different silhouettes to see what looked best on my body. Although it would take longer, I didn’t mind and hoped the longer appointment would give me the opportunity to run into Kris. We hadn’t spoken since Sunday, and that was only a brief conversation to discuss the week’s task.

As with much of everything the past few weeks, the shop had been pre-selected for us. It was owned by Dory and Francisco, a husband-and-wife team, and on the other side of the bank of dressing rooms was a tuxedo shop where Kris was scheduled to have a fitting for her suit. She said everyone but her mother and Kiana would be with her, and from the sounds of things, it was bound to be an eventful appointment.

My own appointment left much to be desired. Dory was impersonal and didn’t speak much, only humming every so often when I would emerge from behind the velvet curtain. I went through three different dresses before she actually formed a whole word with at least four letters. Mama and Niesha commented after every style, but there was something different when I pushed back the curtain and stepped out onto the raised platform for the ninth time. The energy in the room felt different but I didn’t get a chance to examine why before I was being poked and prodded.

“Lovely,” Dory murmured, shocking me into really taking a good look at the dress in the mirrors before me.

It was a nice dress. Beautiful even. The front plunged down halfway to my belly button, with the top holding my boobs like the hands on the infamous Janet Jackson Rolling Stone cover. The mermaid silhouette didn’t just hug my curves, it made love to them; kissing, and licking, and caressing before flaring out at my calves as it fell to the ground. The dress was sexy with a capital S-E-X, but it was too much. I felt too exposed with far too much of me on display. It wasn’t my style at all.

When Dory finished settling the veil over my face, I lifted my head and opened my eyes. I expected to see my mama standing behind me but instead my gaze landed on someone I’d only met once, and hadn’t seen in weeks. Gasping, I whipped around to face her. She looked good. Really good. She wore a sleeveless top that plunged almost as low as the dress I wore, with a pair of vintage-inspired, denim bell-bottoms with several rips across her thighs. Her microbraids were gone and in their place were thick Havana twists that hung down to her waist.

“Tanisha?!” I exclaimed, half-surprised to see her, and half-confused by her presence.

She released a husky giggle and spread her hands on either side of her. “That’s my name, don’t wear it out.” Trailing her eyes from the top of the veil on my head, to the bottom of the floor-length gown, she lifted an eyebrow. “Well, in this dress, I just might let you.”

My face heated from the unbridled suggestiveness to her tone, and I swept my gaze around the room in search of my mother and sister. I didn’t have to search too far. As soon as Dory stepped away to jot down notes onto a little book, Mama was at my side, straightening the gown at my feet, and D’Niesha was behind me, smoothing the veil around my shoulders. My heart pounded. Had they heard the suggestive way that Tanisha had spoken to me?

“Mama. Niesha.” I gestured toward Tanisha. “This is Tanisha. A...” I paused, searching for the right word to use, and when I could think of nothing fitting, settled on, “friend,” I finished lamely.

I didn’t really know how to describe her—never considered that it would ever be necessary. Honestly, I didn’t think I’d ever see her again, except for when the season finale aired and all of the contestants were contractually obligated to be present. We’d only met once, and I hadn’t seen her since. But there was nothing else that really would fit, and I couldn’t very well tell them that I know her from the show because I’d signed a contract that spelled out in legal and layman’s terms that I wasn’t allowed to mention it to them.

Niesha peeked around me, a smirk on her lips. “A friend,” she teased. “Right.” She dragged the last word, letting me know that she didn’t believe that descriptor for a second.

Tanisha laughed, and I brought my hands up to my heated face. “Niesha!”

Why did she have to say it like that? Oh my gosh. How embarrassing. Mama didn’t say a word, just kept her head bowed while she worked at my dress.

Tanisha didn’t seem to mind. “Nice to meet you both.”

Finally, Mama hummed in response, but it was so dry and unlike her that I was startled. It was almost rude, and Mama was never rude. I looked down at her curiously, but she still wasn’t facing me. Raising my eyes from her, I met Tanisha’s golden-brown eyes.

“What are you doing here?”

She grinned widely. “I heard you were getting married and had to come see it for myself. I see they weren’t lying, because you look amazing.” She gave me another once-over, appreciation for what she saw shining clearly in her eyes.

There was something about the way she was looking at me that made me feel guilty. There was too much interest in her eyes. She was too open with it, and with the way my feelings were increasingly growing for Kris with every day that passed, it felt wrong. It didn’t matter that this was all fake; that’s not how my heart felt, and because of that, I wasn’t happy to see Tanisha give me the same looks she’d given me at the party weeks ago. I wasn’t in the same place that I was in then.

“Shouldn’t you be planning for your own wedding?” I asked pointedly, ignoring the way D’Niesha yanked on my gown in surprise.

Tanisha fluttered her eyelashes, and I didn’t like the look of the secret smile she wore. She shook her head. “No. It didn’t work out. We broke up.”

My eyes widened in shock. We were only in the third week. The middle of the third week at that. How could they have broken up already? What the hell happened?

“I’m sorry to hear that.” And I meant it. Even if I knew the relationship itself wasn’t real, I knew that everyone who’d been at that party wanted to make it to the final stage of Instant I Do. Hearing that Tanisha and Margo weren’t going to make it to the altar was more than a little sad.

Tanisha shrugged, seemingly unaffected. “It is what it is. We weren’t compatible anyway.”

I kissed my teeth. “Don’t say that.”

She quirked an eyebrow at me. “Why not? I know exactly who I should’ve been with, and it wasn’t her.”

No longer able to pretend that Tanisha wasn’t there, Mama’s head snapped up as she gave me a sharp look. I bit my lip, hoping that Tanisha didn’t say more than she should. After passing her gaze from me to Tanisha, Mama tapped D’Niesha on the arm.

“I’m going to go find the seamstress to see if she can take in the dress a little bit. Come with me.”

My sister’s narrowed eyes bounced from me to Tanisha and then back to me. I could see that she wanted to protest; she definitely wanted to say something to—or about—Tanisha, but Mama grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the dressing area. As soon as they disappeared through the curtain, I slapped my hands on my hips.

“Okay, seriously. What are you doing here?”