"Hold on." Belle smiled, but the air in the room went cold, fast. "I want your opinion on the second."
Vicki tried hard not to feel. It would be better if she didn't care. Josie, the store manager, came to stand next to her. "I tried to help her, but she said you were personal friends."
"Don't worry." Vicki nodded. "I'll handle Belle."
Belle came from behind and turned around near the mirror, "Okay, Tori, will you get the buttons for me in the back?"
"My name is Vicki, or Victoria. I'm not Tori." Vicki's hands clenched.
"I'm sorry. I'm trying to be friends."
"Then call me Vicki." Vicki buttoned Belle in the dress.
Belle held still and stared at herself in the mirror. "If we're all getting along closer to the wedding, maybe you can be one of the bridesmaids."
When she'd worked for the Hudsons to keep her identity a secret, Vicki hadn't felt these sharp pains of a knife lodged in her spine. Her throat went dry, but somehow, she managed to hold her smile. "We'll see."
Belle turned around and narrowed her eyes. If the situation were reversed, Vicki would beam her happiness, but there was something about the gaze that made Vicki's body alert and ready to run. She stood a foot shorter than the dark-haired Amazon type, and her entire body felt small.
Belle nodded. "No matter what happens later, Victoria, remember he was mine for years."
If only Colt chose her instead, but Vicki couldn't say that. She lowered her head. "Of course."
Belle shrugged. "On second thought, I don't like either dress in this small shop. I'll get one in D.C. Miami isn't my style."
Then Colt wasn't a good life accessory for her either. Bitterness held Vicki's tongue. Instead she turned and nodded at the store manager. "I understand everything. Josie will help you out of your dress."
The bell chimes of the door on Vicki's way out told her that she could breathe again. Her skin felt like ice, but the humidity that pressed against her would make her melt. As she walked across the parking lot, her stomach flipped. Why Colt would marry Belle, she had no idea. Vicki started her car and closed her eyes. Her skin crawled with anxiety. She swallowed and found her phone. "Clara is the only good thing in my life now."
Her skin jumped as the air conditioning blasted against her. She picked up her phone and called her brother, but no one answered at John's house. She checked her messages, but she had no new or missed calls. Her shoulders caved as she told herself she'd not cry.
A few minutes later, she knocked and John let her in. "Why didn't you answer?" She hugged her brother and heard her daughter's laughter in the back. "How is Clara?"
John tucked his hands in his pockets. "She's great. We went to the store for some ice cream."
Alice waved. Vicki nodded and swallowed. John brought her to the table, where she saw papers from Peter's lawyer. She read that it was a contract for authorization. She'd need a lawyer if Belle became Colt's wife. She gazed at Clara as she signed the papers on the table that authorized the attorney. Then she pushed the papers toward John, and her phone rang again. She glanced at the number and sighed. Finally. Colt's name flashed on her screen. Her heart raced as she answered. "Colt. Hello."
"I was booking Belle an airline ticket all morning. I'm at the airport with her now, and this day has been long."
He hadn't been at the store. She massaged her neck and stared at John, Alice, and Clara. Now was not the time to sound bitter, so she swallowed. "I called and left a message."
"I know. It's been a hectic morning. I'm glad you're with Clara. We'll talk when I get home."
"Belle made me meet her at my shop." The static on the phone was so intense that she wasn't sure he'd heard her. "Hello?"
The line was hard to hear, but the sound did change into machines in the background. Colt told her, "I have to go."
"Can you hear me?"
"I'm heading inside with her bag, then she'll be gone. On your way home, can you and Clara meet me at the diner around seven?"
Her racing heart beat for a new reason. Maybe Belle was a momentary blip, though that didn't explain the dress shop. A family dinner with Colt relaxed her mind. "Sounds good. Thank you."
"And tell my sister hello for me, and that I'll stop by soon."
"I will." She smiled up at her friends. "We'll see you tonight."
Her family smiled at her, and Vicki stared at Clara. "Ready to go? We have errands to run, and then we'll have dinner with your dad."
"Okay," Clara answered. "Bye, Uncle John and Aunt Alice."
Vicki shook her head and then hugged John and Alice. She grabbed her bags as Alice walked them out. "My brother is a good guy. I knew he'd not let you down."
"He is always good to me." In Vicki's dreams, she'd have been in a family and lived on that farm with him, but she couldn't let those dreams mess with her reality. "But he's still engaged."
"I hope for your sake and his that everything works out."
Her friend was generous. Vicki found her keys in her bag and held out her hand for Clara. Once they were near the door, Vicki whispered to Alice, "Tonight, Clara and I meet him for dinner, just the three of us."
"Good luck." Alice held the door.
Vicki walked Clara her to the car. Once her daughter was secure in the car seat, Vicki let the bubbles that grew in her stomach send a smile through her. Tonight, they were going to be a family. It was all that mattered. Today was going great.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Vicki's heart skipped a beat the moment she parked the car in the lot outside the diner. Colt would tell her what happened today. Her stomach flipped with the thought that he'd found a way to work everything out with Belle. It sounded like they had dated for years. She closed her eyes as she imagined Colt kissing her and saying he wasn't getting married.
She swallowed, and then fixed her hair one more time with the front mirror. Then she stared into the backseat. Clara wore a new pink dress that matched Vicki's. Once the decision to dress alike hit Clara, Vicki had jumped in to find the perfect outfits. There were a few differences in the attire. The bottom of Clara's dress flared out, and Vicki's bottom clung to her body. The high belts also made her waist seem tiny. All of this was to show Colt that they were a family. Clara danced to her music.
Vicki's makeup was flawless. She stepped out of the car and thought she saw a flash of light. A memory of New York where the Hudson family smoked her out once played in her mind. She shook her head, blamed the sun, and helped Clara get out of the car seat. She fixed the hem of the dress at the same time. Finished, they went inside, and Vicki held the door.