AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“She was,” Fancy said in a wistful voice. How she wished Miss Hattie was still alive to join in on the revelry. If she closed her eyes she could picture her unforgettable friend kicking up her heels and celebrating more joyfully than anyone else. “Her legacy inspires me each and every day.”
“Well, let’s look at some gowns. All of you ladies need to look breathtaking at the reception.” Lily beckoned her into the next room where countless dresses were hanging from a rack. “We can start here. These are new deliveries. Straight from Milan and Paris and New York.”
Fancy began combing the racks. The dresses were stunning. Crimson. Pink. Blush. Ivory. The colors were magnificent. All of sudden she spotted a flash of gold and ice blue. She pulled the dress from the rack, letting out a gasp as the utter radiance of the gown washed over her. It was spectacular!
“Fancy, you have to try that one on,” Lily instructed her. “It has the wow factor.”
“I’m not even going to argue with you,” Fancy said as she took the dress and rushed into the dressing room.
“Let me know when you’re ready for a second opinion,” Lily called after her.
Fancy stripped off her clothes and gently stepped into the dress. The fabric was so delicate she felt nervous about messing it up. “Lily, can you come zip me up?” she called out.
Within seconds Lily had entered the room and quickly went about the business of zipping her up. “Come look in the mirror,” Lily said, her eyes twinkling with appreciation.
Fancy moved toward the three-way mirror and let out a huge sigh as her reflection looked back at her from the mirror. The dress skimmed over her hips and cinched in at the waist. It fit her figure to perfection. The colors were perfect against her skin and hair. Even though she was used to wearing designer dresses for photo shoots, there had never been a gown like this one. It felt as if she was meant to wear this dress.
“It’s glorious,” Fancy gushed. “I can’t believe how perfect it is.”
“Wow. You look like a princess,” Lily said. “It’s almost as if that dress was made for you.”
Fancy twirled around in front of the mirror. She threw her head back and laughed. She really did feel like a princess. It had been ages since she’d felt this way. The last time had been at her engagement party when all of Savannah had feted her and Case. She had felt like she was the luckiest woman on the face of the earth. Being loved and cherished by Case had been God’s gift to her, and through immaturity and foolishness she’d allowed it all to slip through her fingers.
“So, shall I wrap the dress up for you?” Lily asked, a huge grin plastered on her face.
Fancy reached down and checked out the price tag. She’d gotten so carried away that she hadn’t even looked to see the cost. She blinked once, then twice to make sure she wasn’t seeing things. Ouch! The dress was out of this world expensive. Way out of her price range.
“Is it too much?” Lily asked, a look of sadness creeping over her face.
“Yes, Lily. It’s a bit out of my league at the moment. I’m still trying to pay off some debt from living in New York. My credit cards are maxed out.” Fancy stood up straight. She sucked in a fortifying breath. “There’ll be other beautiful dresses.”
And she shouldn’t be focusing so much on her looks. That was the old Fancy, the young woman who had been taught that beauty was her only value. The new and improved version of herself wanted to be noticed for something other than her outward appearance. She had other attributes that were noteworthy.
“Are you sure? I can take off another fifteen percent.” Lily asked. “It looks ethereal on you. I can’t imagine another person doing this dress justice.” She wrinkled her nose. “Meryl came in to try it on, but it was all wrong for her.”
“I’m going to have to pass on the dress,” Fancy said, barely choking out the words. The sound of Meryl’s name sounded like nails on a chalkboard to Fancy. She made a face. “I haven’t seen her since I’ve been back in town and I’d like to keep it that way,” Fancy drawled. Even though her conflict with Meryl had been years ago, Meryl’s behavior still rubbed her the wrong way. She couldn’t imagine that she’d changed much over the years.
“I can only imagine, considering she’s dating Case,” Lily blurted out.
Fancy felt as if Lily had smacked her in the face with a hard object. She couldn’t seem to get a breath. Meryl and Case! Dating? No! It wasn’t possible. Why would Case stoop so low as to date nasty Meryl? This couldn’t actually be true. It had to be a fake rumor.
Lily let out a gasp. She raised her hands to cover her mouth. “Oh, Fancy, I’m so sorry. I’m such a big mouth. I had no idea that you didn’t know.” She slapped her palm on her forehead. “Stupid, stupid, stupid.”
Fancy reached out and grabbed Lily’s hand. “Stop, Lily. Don’t fret about it. I was bound to find out sooner or later. I’d much rather a friend give me the information than to run into the two of them somewhere out and about. Now at least I’m prepared.”
Dear Lord. Please allow me to accept the things I cannot change. And give me the wisdom to know that I cannot continue to hold on to someone who no longer holds me in his heart. I love Case with all of my heart, but being loved by someone is a gift. Only Case can decide if he wants to love me, and he’s made that decision. I have to let him go. It’s time to put my big girl pants on.
She took in a big, fortifying breath as she stepped outside into the crispy Fall air. Put one foot in front of the other. Baby steps. Healing from a broken heart was serious
business. Even after two years, it still felt as if a ton of bricks had fallen on her. And now that she’d discovered Meryl was dating Case, her emotions were even more jumbled. Was Meryl the reason behind Case’s sudden desire for peace between them? Did he want to smooth everything over so that he could have a fresh romantic start with Meryl?
The very thought of Case caring for another woman so deeply—particularly Meryl—burned her insides like acid. Although she knew that she had no right to weigh in on Case’s dating life, she resisted the impulse to call him up and give him a piece of her mind for dating someone so cold and ruthless. Men were so stupid sometimes! She fumed. They couldn’t see what was right in front of their faces.
All she could do at the moment was continue to pray for closure.
There wasn’t a manual for how to deal with a broken heart. It was one of those things, she supposed, that a person just had to wade through in their own way and in their own time. And her jealous feelings about Case moving on with another woman had to be stuffed way down inside her.
“Maybe by the time I’m ninety I’ll get over him,” she muttered as she slid into the driver’s seat of her car and cast a last look at Lily’s shop window. The beautiful gown would have been a nice pick me up, but even a one-of-a-kind dress wouldn’t have been enough to soothe the ache in her soul. It sat there like an anchor, weighing her down and serving as a reminder that she had single-handedly been the instrument of her own destruction.
