Page 17 of Unveiled

Jenn gave a jerky nod, her eyes dropping self-consciously to the floor as a fierce blush stole over her cheeks. “About eight months.”

It was so hard to interpret Jenn. She was barely a year younger than Adalyn, but she seemed so naïve, almost sheltered sometimes. About a year and a half ago, she’d come into the shop asking about employment. With her quiet demeanor, Adalyn knew she wasn’t cut out to be a saleswoman. When Adalyn asked if she had any sewing experience, Jenn had sadly shaken her head and said no. There was something about her that pulled at Adalyn’s heartstrings, and she felt compelled to give her a chance.

Although Jenn was self-taught under only Adalyn’s direction, she’d come a long way in her short time there. She started with small jobs, repairing rips and tears and loose beads on the stock gowns. As her confidence and skills grew, she began to help with custom gowns. It was infinitely easier with her help, and since then, they’d designed nearly two dozen for various brides.

With Adalyn’s designs and Jenn’s attention to detail, everyone loved them. They flocked to them to make their dream gown, and Adalyn and Jenn made a great team. To hear that Jenn was seeing someone was a surprise, but she seemed to hold her cards close to the vest. She was almost painfully shy sometimes, and Adalyn wanted to ask a million questions about the guy who’d apparently won her heart.

The last thing Adalyn wanted to do was embarrass Jenn, though, so she clamped down on her curiosity and returned to the topic at hand. “Really, I can cancel, it’s no big deal.”

Amy propped her hands on her hips. “Don’t you dare stand that poor man up.”

Adalyn rolled her eyes. She was sure, if he kept company like her mother, then he was far from a “poor man.” Still, she let the comment slide. “Fine.” She held her hands up in surrender. “I’m going.”

Amy clapped her hands like a schoolgirl, and Jenn offered Adalyn a smile. “I’m sure you’ll have fun.”

Adalyn wasn’t so sure, but she didn’t have much choice. They were right—she couldn’t back out now. “Maybe,” she conceded. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad. As Jenn said, it was only dinner. But something about this whole situation just felt… off. She couldn’t explain it, but the nervous butterflies in her stomach had kicked into a flurried frenzy.

Adalyn took a deep breath and placed her hand over her middle to calm them. Dating sucked. Besides, she didn’t need a man to make her happy. Her attention was better spent on her daughter. She hadn’t gone on a single date since Jaclyn was born, and her last date—if anyone wanted to call it that—had been with Jaclyn’s father. And look how that had turned out.

Shaking off the thought, Adalyn lifted her chin and steeled her spine. “I promise, I’ll try to relax and enjoy myself.”

A soft smile curved Amy’s face. “You deserve it, dear. You work so hard, and you’re such a good mom. But you deserve to have some time for yourself, too.”

Adalyn looked around at her employees—and friends. They were closer to her than her own family, and she appreciated them more than she would ever be able to tell them. She knew what they said was in her best interest, and despite the tingle of unease in her heart, she knew it was the right thing to do.

“You’re right.” Adalyn smiled at the two of them. “Thank you.”

Pushing away from the counter, she gave a little wave. “I’ll see you on Monday.”

Adalyn headed out in the afternoon, her thoughts clouded and murky as she drove home. She generally tried to avoid talking about her marriage if at all possible, but she’d told friends and family members that Jaxon and she had eloped during a trip to Vegas. The romanticism seemed to appease people without giving away too many details.

Whenever someone asked, she told them that Jaclyn’s father had been a soldier in the Army. And it wasn’t a complete lie. He had been in the Army—at least when she knew him. She didn’t know if he had been discharged since, but the night they shared together, he told her he had to complete one more tour. She didn’t know much about the military, but she assumed that was usually a year or two, depending on the situation.

She’d told her mother the truth out of necessity when she’d broken the news that she was pregnant. After she’d finally filed the paperwork for the annulment, she’d told Amy and Jenn, needing to vent and get it off her chest. It made her feel like a failure that Jaclyn might never know her real father. Now, nearly two years later, part of her wondered what might have happened between Jaxon and her.

For those first few months, she scoured the newspaper and internet for information on what was happening overseas. Even though things hadn’t worked out between them, she still prayed every day that he was safe. There were times when she regretted walking away from him.

The last two years had been incredibly difficult, and on the nights she cried herself to sleep, she wished he was there to hold her. It was crazy and stupid and more than a little selfish of her. She’d been the one to push him away, but part of her was still mad at him for not responding to any of her pleas.

He’d never returned any of the emails, and she couldn’t help but wonder if he’d given her false information so he wouldn’t have to see or hear from her again. She knew the address that he gave her was correct at least, because he’d signed the papers. But when she checked the White Pages, the phone number was listed under Abel and Emily Keller. The knowledge was like a knife to the heart. She had absolutely no way to contact him.

The packet from their lawyer was in her bedroom at home, tucked away in her underwear drawer. She’d cried herself to sleep the day she received it two months ago, so much so that she hadn’t been able to bring herself to open it. She’d just stashed it away like the dirty little secret it was. She knew it was her fault, but it seemed like one more failure to add to a lifetime of mistakes.

CHAPTER

TEN

Jaxon glanced up at the small shop front on Belleview Avenue. It was cute in a quaint sort of way. Not that he knew anything about bridal salons, but it was blue—just like the name—and it looked homey. In fact, it looked very much like an old house. Situated only a block down from the park, he had a feeling most of these businesses had been homes decades ago before commerce came in and swallowed them up.

Mounting the wide concrete steps two at a time, he threw the door open. The bell above the door jangled crazily, and several sets of eyes turned in his direction. He closed the door much more softly than he’d entered the place so the women wouldn’t think he was a complete madman.

Glancing around, he made for the first saleswoman he saw. Dressed in a suit, she appraised him carefully. “Can I help you?”

“I’m looking for Adalyn...” he paused, and the girl tipped her head in silent question. “Um, yeah,” he finished lamely.

Did she still go by her maiden name, or did she use her married name? It was something he probably should have figured out before now. But that letter he’d opened an hour ago had propelled him from the chair without a second thought. He still couldn’t believe it.

According to the letter dated just a couple months ago, they hadn’t signed the necessary papers. He’d forgotten a signature on one, while she’d missed signing another. Evidently, the documents had then been misplaced internally by a new paralegal, and the lawyer apologized for the delay, saying that he’d returned one copy to him to sign while the other had been sent to Adalyn. It was almost completely unheard of, and he marveled once again at the coincidence.