“Ari…” I couldn’t talk.
“Oh, baby girl…that is the dress. See, you’re even crying! They say when you put it on and cry, that’s the dress. Did she cry when she first saw it, Rachael?”
Rachael laughed. “Yes, but she really freaked out when I told her the name of the dress. ”
Ellie laughed. “What’s the name?”
“The Gemma. ”
I started crying harder. Before I knew it, I was sandwiched between my three best friends.
Amanda looked me in the eyes.
“Did you know?” I asked her.
She shook her head and smiled. “No. ”
“Okay, y’all…I’m so confused here,” Rachael said.
Everyone pulled back and turned to face her.
“My parents died in a car accident a few years ago. My mother’s name was Gemma. ”
Rachael got tears in her eyes and shook her head. “Motherfucker. ”
Ari laughed. “Hell, I knew I liked you for a reason. ”
After Rachael got her composure, she began telling us about the dress. “This is a strapless A-line taffeta gown with an exquisite hand-draped sweetheart bodice. The band is garnished with Swarovski crystals with matching floral embroidery and beading throughout the full skirt, corset back bodice, and chapel-length train. It is designed by Sophie Tolli, an Australian designer. ”
Ari looked at her and frowned. “Why can’t y’all just say it’s a beautiful dress with crystals wrapping under her breasts—which, by the way, your big-ass tits fill out very well—and it has a gorgeous train? That I get. All that other talk is like wah, wah, wah. ”
Poor Rachael. Girl never stood a chance.
“You’re lost in thought, baby girl. ” Elizabeth placed her hand on my shoulder.
I smiled. “I was thinking about the day I found this dress. ”
“You mean when I found it!” Amanda called out.
Jenny walked up with a huge grin on her face. “It’s time to put it on now, Heather. ”
I turned to Elizabeth. “Would you help me?”
She smiled with tears in her eyes. “It would be an honor. ”
I took off my robe and looked at myself in the mirror. I placed my hands on my stomach, and I could just barely see a little bump. I glanced at the pale blue strapless bra with the matching panties that Ari had bought and then the matching garter belt that Ellie had given me. The beautiful blue antique hairpin that Amanda had let me borrow looked beautiful in my hair. She said she had worn it on her wedding day, and before her, her mother, grandmother, and great grandmother had worn it on theirs. It held up half of my hair while the other half fell down in soft curls falling around my shoulders.
I reached up to touch it.
“Don’t touch your hair!” Jenny yelled out.
“Do you think Josh will like all of this?” I asked without even thinking that I was asking his mother. “Oh my god! I didn’t mean to ask you that, Elizabeth. ” I felt my face flush from embarrassment.
She laughed, looking at my reflection in the mirror. “Sweetheart…I think he’s going to pass out when he takes off your wedding dress. ”
I peeked up at
her and smiled.