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Mary grabbed Sam’s hand. “Come on, Sam, or he’ll hang onto you all day. We have some shopping to do, and we don’t want to be late.”
He kissed her nose as Mary pulled her away. “Make sure you two watch her and keep her safe—both of them,” Gray said to Rachel and Shauna.
They both nodded and turned to follow Sam and Mary out the door.
Shauna was driving and motioned for Sam and Mary to get in the back. They were meeting the girls in downtown Harmony Lake at the New Beginnings Bridal Shop. When they arrived, everyone was there. After Rachel and Shauna had been introduced, Mary started telling the girls what happened with the flowers.
Then Mary asked her to tell them about Cheryl and what had transpired since yesterday. After relating everything to the girls—from dinner last night to the events of Amanda, Cheryl’s husband, all of it—you could have heard a pin drop in that bridal shop. Finally, Jessie grabbed her in a bear hug and held her tight. After a long moment, she pulled away to look at Jessie. Tears ran down her cheeks.
“Sam, I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
She smiled at all the girls. “That’s why Rachel and Shauna are here, to keep us safe. We need to listen to them, and if they think there’s something amiss, we need to do exactly as they say. And, if anyone of you feels it isn’t safe being with me today, I completely understand if you don’t want to stay. I won’t be mad at any of you.”
They all looked at Sam like she’d just sprouted an extra head.
Dani spoke first. “Sam, we wouldn’t miss out on this because of Cheryl or anyone else. My brother is crazy in love with you, and I want to be a part of everything involved in this wedding.”
They all nodded and wiped the few tears that had leaked from their eyes.
“Okay, let’s find some awesome dresses. And, everyone, please keep a very close eye on Abby and Lily.”
One of the bridal attendants walked over to their group and introduced herself as Debra.
“Which one of you is the bride?” She looked at Tracie and Sarah, the younger of the girls.
“I am.” Sam grinned.
Debra looked surprised but quickly changed her expression.
“Okay, so do you have an idea of what you’re looking for?”
“I would like a halter style dress or a tank style dress made mostly of lace. Oh, and in a champagne color. Last, but not least, we’re getting married next weekend, so it will need to be something you have here or can get quickly.”
Debra pursed her lips. “Not asking for much!”
Sarah spoke up. “My dad tends to be impatient with Sam. We’re lucky we even got this week to plan and shop.” She winked.
“Okay, well, tell you what. Why don’t you all look around for dresses you would like to try on, and I‘ll pull a few dresses we have here that I think will be close to what Sam is looking for. Do you know what color the bridesmaids are wearing?”
“Purple!” Jessie squealed.
Mary sadly held up the purple rose she had plucked from the ground this morning.
“Okay, the purple dresses are all over in the corner toward the front of the store. I’ll find you in the store when I have a few dresses for Sam to try on.”
They dispersed throughout the store and looked through the racks of dresses for something that appealed to them. Mary thought she would like to wear a nice lavender dress. Dani wanted to coordinate and wanted to wear something in the purple family or maybe a bluish gray. Sarah thought that sounded pretty and wanted something like that as well. Eva with her blonde hair always went with softer colors and wanted something in a blue. For Abby and Lily, they hoped to find the dark purple dresses similar to the bridesmaids. Just then a loud squeal sounded throughout the store. Sam, a bit on edge, jumped. Mary did too. It turned out to be Jessie, who was running toward Sam with a purple dress in her hand.
“What do you think of this? It’s the perfect color and style. Both Pam and I will look great in it. Do you like it? Can I try it on? What do you think?”
Sam laughed. Clearly, Jessie was excited.
“I think it’s beautiful, and you’re right, it’ll look great on both of you.”
She glanced at Pam who’d made her way over to them. “I agree, that’s perfect,” her bestie stated.
Debra came to tell them she had dressing room six set up with some dresses for Sam to try on. Dani and Mary joined her in the room. The other girls hovered around waiting for Sam to model each dress for them. The first dress was pretty, but not her style. The second dress, well, that was the one.
It was a beautiful lace dress with a V neckline and narrow straps that came to a low V in the back. It was a shimmery champagne color with a darker shade of champagne silk belt that tied in the back, then flowed all the way down to the end of the short train. The lace scalloped down both sides of the V-back, and scalloped down in the front to just between Sam’s breasts, showing some cleavage, but not too much.
