Page 107 of Her Hidden Smile

Lisa guided me into the kitchen.

“Are you okay?” she asked me.

“No,” I answered honestly. “I ordered five dresses online. There have to be at least thirty dresses out there. I only know you, Trenda, and Jenny. Who are the other three women?”

Lisa grabbed two glasses out of the cupboard and got us water out of the fridge dispenser. “Here, take a sip and I’ll give you the low-down.”

I took a sip.

“Apparently, this is a thing the Avery sisters do. They dress one another. Maddie, who you’ll meet, is epic at finding the right clothes for someone. She⁠—”

“Has never seen me or met me,” I interrupted Lisa.

“Yeah, but Trenda sent her a lot of pictures of you.”

I tilted my head for her to continue.

“I’m the one who invited Jenny. We ran into each other at the mall in Knoxville. I told her I was looking for a dress for you to wear to Renzo’s brother’s wedding and I was heading to Macy’s. She took me to this really cool retro shop. Oh my God, Millie. She has an eye for some of the cutest stuff. She can do the rockabilly style but really classy.”

“Lisa, this just seems too overwhelming. I think I need to just take my five dresses and go home.”

“Just give us ten minutes, okay?” she begged.

“I don’t know. I’m not sure that I can.”

“Sure you can. You handled Rod. You can handle some flipping dresses.”

I choked out a laugh. “Okay.”

When we went back out into the living room, there were only two dresses to be seen, and only Trenda and Jenny were there.

“Where is everybody?” I asked.

“I asked my sisters to go get some refreshments from the store. My cupboards are bare.”

I scowled at her. “You told them to leave because I was having a panic attack.”

“No. I told them we needed refreshments. I gave them money and everything. But the reason why I wanted them out of here was to give you a chance to regroup, because I was an idiot and ambushed you.”

Jenny and Lisa laughed.

“You were kind of an idiot,” Lisa said.

“Yes, Lisa, I’ve admitted that,” Trenda scowled. Then she turned to me. “Do you really want to go to this wedding? Renzo has nine brothers and seven sisters. God knows how many nieces and nephews. You’re going to be ambushed a hundred times worse than this.”

“If I have Renzo beside me, and I know to expect it, yes, I’m positive I can handle it,” I told her.

“Well okay then. Let’s get you dolled up.” She grinned.

“You know I only need one dress,” I pointed out.

“Millie,” Jenny smiled at me. “You’re going to need more. There is the bachelorette party, the rehearsal dinner, the wedding, and then whatever festivities the day after the wedding. How long did Renzo say he was going to Springfield for?”

“A week,” I whispered in horror.

“Yeah,” Lisa nodded. “You need a lot of outfits. We didn’t just bring dresses, we brought picnic outfits, boating outfits, and cocktail dresses. You’ll be covered.”

I gulped. “I didn’t know about all of this. I’ve never been to a wedding before,” I admitted.