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There was no way it was a coincidence. I was sent a blood-soaked wedding dress with a promise of revenge, and then days later a poor man was murdered at the building right across from me? That was too close to comfort. Was I supposed to believe they weren’t connected? Because I knew better by now; I knew to always trust my gut. And my gut was saying Ryzen had been up there.
My heart beat erratically and I took a deep breath in and then out. Had he been up there watching us and gotten caught by security? I knew it sounded crazy. Maybe I was going fucking crazy.
“What do you think?” I hated that my voice quivered when I asked her.
Juliet scrunched up her nose, shaking her head. “This feels like the beginning of something bad.”
Beginning of something bad? How about my never-ending nightmare?
“Maybe Cian was right. Maybe we should get a gun? At least for the store?”
“I don’t know.” I groaned and plopped down into my chair. I had never been a fan of guns. They just felt unsafe, like I would end up shooting my toe off. Cian had always chuckled and assured me that would never happen. He was right, of course, but it still didn’t change my mind.
“Should we cancel dress shopping today? Thora made an appointment, but if you think it’s not a good idea…” Juliet trailed off as I shook my head. No way was I going to hide from this, whatever “this” was. I refused to be a prisoner in my own home or walk around scared. I was going to try on wedding dresses today, and nothing was going to stop me.
Milliani waved at us as she walked out of the conference room with Sophie and Owen, and I smiled back at her. I hadn’t forgotten about that incident with Thora and Sophie at the restaurant, but I had to remember that Milliani was not like the rest of her family.
A few hours later, after work, Valik pulled up to a little boutique on the north side of the city. It was owned by Alicia, the wife of one of Thora’s art friends we had met at her exhibition a while back. All the wedding gowns were one of a kind and super-unique. You would not find anything in there that you might find at a traditional bridal shop. We walked in and there was a woman sitting behind the counter. She was dressed in a skintight white leather dress. Her black hair was braided, and the tail end reached just above her ass.
“Thora, darling,” she purred and pulled her close. “Judith said you would be coming by today. You must be Nova, the beautiful bride.” She held her arms open and squeezed me tight. I had never been a hugger, or at least that was what I used to think. Turned out I was definitely a hugger when people’s energy matched mine. And Alicia was one of those people.
“I’m so happy you guys came.” Alicia hugged Juliet and did a double-take at Valik. “My, you are quite the treat, aren’t you?” She winked at him and led us through the store. It was… enchanting, to say the least. The walls were splashed in pastel colors, with sparkling chandeliers throughout. Off to the side were displays of different-colored wedding gowns and veils. There was a plush red velvet curtain hiding a room off to the right, and Alicia grabbed my hand and squeezed. “That’s the honeymoon room. We’ll stop in there too.” She winked and dragged me down the hall to an even larger room.
Soft music played overhead, and we all sat down on the white velvet sofa while Valik stood behind us, his eyes alert as he looked around. Alicia rolled out a cart of champagne and poured each of us a glass. “Now everything is customizable, Nova, so don’t worry. Thora gave me some details about your style, so I’ve picked out a few pieces I thought you might like.” She clapped her hands and three women in matching black dresses wheeled out an assortment of dresses and veils.
The three of us went through each trolley, fawning over all the beautiful pieces. Most of the dresses had intricate details and you could tell someone had put in a lot of hours making them. There was one dress made completely out of beads, and I scoffed at the thought of trying to fit my big butt in it. The second I sat down, all the beads would have been blown to smithereens. Thora pointed at a red dress that had the most beautiful embroidery over the chest, but it wasn’t the one for me.
An hour passed, then another, and I was still no closer to finding a dress. Which sucked because I really liked Alicia and wanted to findthedress here. I had tried on so many, but none of them were speaking to me.
“Any luck, ladies?” Judith, Alicia’s wife, came through wearing overalls covered in paint, and Alicia gasped.
“Judith McIntyre, you get those dirty old clothes out of here,” Alicia scolded her, but reached up and planted a kiss on her cheek.
“All right, all right.” Judith held up her hands. “Show her the one from France you just got in. It would fit her perfectly.” She waved and headed back out through the curtains.
Alicia scoffed, shaking her head. “Of course. What was I thinking?” She snapped her fingers and left without saying another word. Thora, Juliet and I all looked at each other and shrugged. At least the champagne was great. I was already completely loosened up and ready to spend Cian’s money. He had told me I could get ten dresses if I wanted. Not that I would ever do that, but having the option was kinda fun.
Alicia came back into the room with a massive box and placed it against the wall. She unwrapped the ribbon and removed the cover slowly. My mouth fell open at the dress, just as Juliet and Thora gasped. Inside was the most gorgeous black dress I had ever laid eyes on.
“Come, Nova, let’s try it on.”
I stepped behind the curtain and Alicia helped me put the dress on. “Oh, my, my, my. This is it, dear. Absolutely stunning.” She clapped her hands, and I stepped out to show Thora and Juliet. They were speechless as I stepped up onto the platform. My eyes teared up as I looked at myself in the mirror. She was right. I looked spectacular.
The black satin hugged me like a second skin with a plunging V-neck with lace and sheer panels covering my cleavage, and it cascaded down into a dramatically flowing train. The sleeves were sheer, except with black lace roses running up the side. It was so perfect, like it was made just for me. Judith placed a black diamond-encrusted headpiece on my head, and Valik’s mouth fell open.
“Nova, you look so beautiful. Cian’s not going to know what hit him.” Thora placed her hand over her heart as Juliet dabbed at her eyes with a tissue.
Oh, yeah. This was definitely the right dress for me.
I changed back into my regular clothes, the champagne making me slightly tipsy. God forbid I ruined the dress before I had even paid for it. Judith came back into the room, dressed in clean clothes, and sat down with us. We sipped on champagne for a little while longer and chatted, with them wanting to know how I had met Cian and me not knowing exactly how to answer that question. I told them we’d met at a Halloween party, which wasn’t really a lie. I checked my watch and realized that we had been at the store for over three hours.
A phone rang in the distance, and Alicia gripped my hands. “I’ll send the dress off for adjustments and should have it back by the end of next week.”
One clerk who had been helping me try on dresses peeked from behind the curtain and waved at me. “Miss La Roux, your fiancé is on the phone. Just press number two and it’ll connect you.” She pointed to a phone against the wall.
Why would Cian be calling me here and not on my cell? I furrowed my brow and walked over to the phone to pick it up. My cell must be dead, and I hadn’t even realized it. I pressed two on the panel. “Hi, love, I’m sorry, didn’t realize my phone died. We’re just about to leave.”
“You didn’t like the dress I sent, Nova?” a devilish voice hissed into the receiver, and my blood ran cold. The voice that had haunted my dreams for months laughed hysterically into the phone, and it felt like every ounce of air in my lungs disappeared. I reached down into my pocket where my knife was and gripped the handle.
