AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It’d taken quite some time to switch gears from daydreaming about that moment with Rick earlier to carefully cutting out icing shapes.I missed him, but as sorely tempted as I’d been to accept his offer of company, my focus on this needed to be absolute.
My dedication paid off, because now, three trays of intricate fondant hearts, each stamped with initials for the bride and groom, sat downstairs in the kitchen, while Jenny laid out over a dozen dresses on my bed.My fingers ached, but the hearts were done, and they looked good.
The cake was the next challenge, but I was taking a much-needed break for the makeover montage that’d had Jenny clapping her hands in excitement.
She had turned up on my doorstep with two enormous black bags of clothes.
“Thank goodness we’re similar sizes,” she was saying as she smoothed out dresses.“Borrow whatever you like.I won’t be wearing anything like this for a little while.”
She cast a wistful glance in the direction of her house, where Toby slept while Rick was home.I had immediately imagined going over to snuggle up with him, settling my head into the crook of his shoulder.
I had it so bad.
“Not that I have anything to complain about,” Jenny added.“I adore my son.”
“That’s obvious, but you’re allowed to have a life in addition to a child.You have some gorgeous clothes.”I stroked my palm down the skirt of a coral and white striped dress with black flowers embroidered up the left-hand side.
“Thanks,” she beamed.“Try some on!Music!”She tugged her phone from her back pocket and tapped at it until her playlist started, and then she lined up dresses for me to try on.
Jenny snapped pictures so I could see how I looked in each dress.“After this, we’ll rank your favourites from one to ten,” she promised, squealing with delight.“I’m so happy we get to hang out again.I had so much fun with you at Molly’s.”
I stepped into a heavy jacquard fabric dress patterned with tiny violets on a gray background.“Me, too.I didn’t come here expecting to find a new bestie-level friend, but here you are, and, time zones be damned, I’m going to blow up your phone with gifs and emojis every chance I get.”
She squeezed me back.“I’m so, so glad you came.Let’s look at you.Oh, this looks nice with your skin tone!”She snapped a picture and showed it to me.“But I don’t think it’swowenough.Let me see.Oh.This is the one.I feel it in my soul.”
She sifted through a pile of silky dresses and picked out something gorgeous.
The dress was forest green, peppered with tiny stars embroidered in gold thread.The scoop neck was demure, but on one side the dress split up to mid-thigh.
“This isbeautiful,” I breathed.
She grinned so big.“I know.I wore it on Toby’s first birthday.Mom and Dad wanted to take us somewhere really fancy on account of me being so sad when I got back here.Rick bought it for me, by which I mean he gave me some money and told me to buy something frivolous that would make me happy.”
My heart squeezed.“He’s almost too good to be real, Jenny.”
“He is, but don’t think he has no problems.The Army gave him purpose and widened his world, but it left him with scars.I’ll let him tell you about that, if he wants to.”As I chewed over that, she added, “Put it on!”
I slipped into the baby-soft jersey fabric, which felt like heaven against my skin, and when I turned to look in the mirror, I knew that this was the one.It made me look and feel like a goddess, like I’d stepped out of an advert for an otherworldly faerie perfume.The dark green complemented the olive-gold tone of my skin to perfection.I lookedfantastic.
I grinned and gave Jenny a double thumbs up.
She laughed.“Yes.This isthedress.My brother’s gonna swallow his tongue.Icannotwait.”
I traced my finger over one of the tiny embroidered stars.The thread shimmered.“How come you’re not mad?I mean, I’m so happy you’re not, but I’ve twisted myself in knots thinking about Rick and how, in not too long, I’m going to be an ocean away.”
Jenny sighed and plopped down on the end of the bed.“I haven’t seen Rick this happy and relaxed for a long, long while, Maddie.”
She paused, thoughtfully, worrying a corner of the quilt in her fingers.“When he first got out of the Army, he was twitchy, and a fish outta water.He wanted to help, but was kinda bullish about it, to be honest.Once he settled in, he was fine, but antsy.He’s been getting better,especiallysince he started going to that support group, but since you came, it’s like he lit up inside.”
My heart felt so full.“Oh,” I settled for saying, but it came out all dreamy-sigh.
Jenny smiled.“Yeah, that deserved a rom-com kinda answer.He deserves to be happy, and—wait,” she added, when I opened my mouth to interrupt.“So what if this only lasts a week?He’ll have fun with you.You haven’t pretended you’re going to move here.You haven’t, as far as I know, made him any false promises.”
“I swear to you that I haven’t,” I said solemnly.
“I know.And, the other thing is, what if it lasts longer?Your mom used to live in America before she met your dad, after all.”
“Jenny…” I hedged.
