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“Yes, we are.” He stooped down to kiss me. “And there’s no reason why we have to say goodbye.”
“What about Arianna?” I asked.
“What about her?” His forehead creased.
“Do you still have feelings for her?”
He took too long to answer before stuttering something about time healing all wounds.
This was a test, I thought. The next evening would give me a chance to observe him with her. I would be able to tell if he’d truly let her go and if there was space for me in his life.
“Don’t look that way,” Darby said. “She’s in the past.”
“Sure, I know.”
“Whatever happens tomorrow, we go home together, all right? You and me.”
I smiled, feeling slightly better. Still, my insecurities were raging like a teenager with hormones. This was an emergency situation. One that required my girlfriends.
* * *
That afternoon,Stormi was sprawled on the bed while Tiffany looked through my closet and pulled three different choices out to show me. I was perched nervously on the end of the bed, sitting on my hands to keep from biting my nails.
The first was a summer dress with ruffles, very feminine and romantic.
“She wore that one to your wedding,” Stormi said. “So it’s out.”
“A guy won’t remember what I wore to a wedding,” I said.
“Disagree.” Stormi sat up and crossed her legs, pointing to the closet. “Darby notices Jamie, no matter what she wears. Plus, he’s the sensitive type who pays attention to what’s happening around him. What else do we have?”
Tiffany grabbed the pair of skinny jeans and a sleeveless silky lavender blouse. “How about this?”
“It could work,” Stormi said. “I wonder what this Arianna will wear, though? How fancy is she?”
“Pretty fancy,” I said. “And we’re going to dinner at the upscale restaurant at the lodge.”
“We need a cocktail dress, not wedding attire or what you’d wear going out with the girls.” Stormi gestured to my closet. “Do you have anything sexy like that?”
I groaned, thinking this might have been a mistake to get Stormi involved. Of the three of us, she was the most unconventional in her clothes and everything else. She could pull off combat boots and a summer dress, for instance. I could not.
Tiffany scurried back into the closet. The sound of the hangers being slid one after the other, followed by a bark of triumph. “I’ve got it.” She came out holding my little black dress. My mother had bought it for me when we went to a charity auction back in California before my dad left and she could still afford to go to events like that. A halter top paired with a pencil skirt, it could be dressed up or down depending on shoes.
“I do like that dress,” I said. “I haven’t had anywhere to wear it really.”
“Put it on,” Stormi said. “To make sure it still fits.”
“Very funny,” I said, but stood to take it from Tiff, then slipped into the bathroom to change. Fortunately, it did still fit well, hugging my hips and showing off my toned arms and shoulders. All in all, I liked what I saw. I had a pair of strappy sandals I could wear with it.
I went back to show the ladies, and they were enthusiastic enough that we knew it was a winner.
“Okay, now we just have to do something about your hair,” Stormi said. “I’m thinking you should wear it down with beach waves.”
“I can do those for her,” Tiffany said. “I’ve had to step in a few times to help my brides when they’ve had hair disasters.”
Tiffany could do pretty much anything.
“What about makeup?” Stormi asked. “Something subtle but striking.”
