AllFreeNovel
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“I’m pretty sure I do know how,” Ronnie said, her voice low and conspiratorial.
“Are you going to share?”
“I might. Quid pro quo. What do you have to offer in return?”
“An invitation to the wedding once we set the date?”
Her eyes brightened and a sudden, happy smile lit her face. There was warmth in her unguarded reaction that surprised me, made me feel she was more human than she let on.
“For real?” she asked.
“You’d have to promise two things. First, you tell no one else about the date or venue. Second, you come as a guest, not a celebrity blogger. Think you can honor those commitments?”
She thought for a minute. “I can. I really can. I sense that you’re something like me, a working-class kid who has broken through an invisible social barrier.”
“Yeah, I guess we are sort of the same.”
Only I keep secrets. I don’t publish them on a blog.
Simon would freak when he heard what I’d just promised but that was another problem for another day. “So how and why did Maddy copy my dress?”
“It may surprise you to learn that I have sources all over town. I heard a couple of weeks ago that you were making regular visits to Madame’s. I’d like to think my knowledge was exclusive but sometimes I get things second and third hand.”
“Meaning?”
“There’s a café across the street, and a waiter who works there is very ambitious. He recognized you going in there and, for a price, shared the information with me.”
“You think he shared it with Maddy too?”
“That would be my guess.” She sighed. “Believe it or not, Madame Sainte Clare is off-limits to me. I’ve been refused appointments there many times over the years.” Ronnie didn’t meet my eyes and small circles of color rose in her cheeks. Interesting. She was actually embarrassed at not being able to shop there.
As if reading my thoughts, she added, “I think the proprietor doesn’t trustme. What a laugh that is, given Maddy’s trick.”
She paused for a minute, but I waited patiently, letting her draw out this dramatic moment.
“Here’s what I know for a fact: one of Madame’s dressmakers quit recently and opened her own salon. No prizes for guessing who is singing her praises to all her friends.”
“Maddy.”
“Bingo. Everything is for sale in our society and information is precious goods. I wouldn’t be the slightest bit surprised if she wasn’t an investor in that new salon.”
“But that doesn’t explain why.”
“Why? Maddy has been fixated on Simon for ages. Years ago, she strong-armed him into being her plus one at a major fundraiser. She told everyone who’d listen that they were a thing. I guess Simon didn’t listen. When it became clear he wasn’t interested in going any further, she took the next best option, in terms of net worth anyway. Michael McDonald was in one of those long-term marriages that had lost its heat. She had him eating out of her hand within months. In less than a year, he’d turfed wife number one and Maddy was laughing all the way to the jeweler. But she’s been angry at Simon ever since.”
“She’s mad at me because Simon and I are engaged?”
“Sort of. Mostly, I think she’s just trying to get Simon’s attention any way she can. Plus she enjoyed being mistaken for you at the party by people who didn’t know you well. Like that professional dancer. I’m sure someone had described your dress to him and told him to watch for color and fabric that matched Simon’s accessories. How many men wore tuxedos to your party? I counted five. How many of those were wearing a lavender bow tie and cummerbund? When Clyde danced with Maddy, he thought she was you, so he handed her to Simon. The plan would have worked perfectly if she hadn’t done her best to ruin it.”
“Maybe.” It seemed like Maddy had gone to a hell of a lot of effort for little reward.
“I like the payback your mother got.” Her voice was cool again, prying. She knew part of the story but not all of it. I wasn’t going to fill in any blanks.
“I don’t want to give Maddy any more time or emotional energy,” I said. “But as to my wedding dress, any idea where I should look?”
“Now you’re talking! My sister just happens to have excellent connections in the rag trade. Maybe if you’re not too busy looking after your mother and grandfather, you and I could have a girl’s afternoon and go shopping?”
“Sounds like a plan.” I smiled and pushed my untouched dinner away. I had no intention of going shopping with her, but we would be sitting beside each other for the next few hours. I wanted to keep things friendly.
