Her teeth sank into her bottom lip as her feet stumbled on the carpet. Turn away! I’m the worst best woman ever!
She forced herself to focus ahead of her again, but she heard his stalking steps behind her. She didn’t dare look back when she arrived at the solar where Tempest and the other women were. Her hand trembled when she lifted it to knock on the door.
“Who is it?” Hannah called.
“It’s Aria,” she called back.
“Come in! Come in!”
She dared a glance back at Braith when he leaned against the wall beside her, his thick arms folded over his broad chest as he watched her. “As soon as this is over, you’re mine,” he vowed.
Aria swallowed and her toes curled in her slippers. “Then I’m going to get their butts in gear,” she replied before slipping into the room.
She closed the door behind her and leaned against it until she trusted herself enough to walk away from it. Her eyes widened when she took in the chaos of the room. There were clothes strewn everywhere. Hannah hustled from one end of the room to the other with a veil in her hands. Tempest’s best friend, Pallas, was fluffing her hair as Melinda pinched Tempest’s pale cheeks.
Aria almost groaned aloud when she saw Melinda doing this; she recalled her sister-in-law trying to do the same thing to her. Nora, one of the young orphans from Tempest’s town stood in the corner, looking completely overwhelmed by everything. Moira, another woman Tempest had fled Badwin with, was pushing white roses into a thick bouquet while Maeve wrapped a ribbon around the stems.
“We’re almost ready!” Melinda declared. Her hand went to her back as she stepped away from Tempest to reveal her rounded belly. She was due to give birth next month, but Aria thought the baby would be coming sooner as it seemed far too big for Melinda’s slender frame.
“How is William doing?” Tempest asked anxiously.
“He’s nervous,” she admitted as her gaze ran over Tempest’s exquisite gown. She’d never seen anything like it. The sleeves were off the shoulders and dipped down across her upper arms. The low cut of the bodice revealed the swell of her breasts and the front of it ran down in a deep V that emphasized her slender figure and rounded hips.
Ice blue thread had been stitched throughout the gown to match the color of the bridesmaid dresses. More than the ice blue color gave it a wintry appearance. Icicles had also been intricately interwoven and threaded throughout the lace covering the skirt of the dress and the train spilling across the floor behind her. Tempest came from a town where winter had ruled; she’d loved her mountains and the snow. It was only mid-September, yet she looked like the snow-covered village she’d escaped with William and her friends.
“That dress is beautiful!” she gushed to Tempest.
Because Aria was part of William’s wedding party, this was the first time she’d been allowed to see the wedding gown. Melinda had been afraid she’d accidentally reveal something about it to William. Aria didn’t like that Melinda believed she couldn’t keep a secret from her brother, but she’d been more than happy to avoid all of Melinda’s wedding planning. Her interest in dresses was as much as most people’s interest in dirt. She’d actually rather deal with dirt.
Tempest gave her a radiant smile as she smoothed her hands down the front of her gown. “Thank you,” she said.
“Don’t just stand there, help us!” Melinda commanded.
“What should I do?” Aria inquired as she approached, unwilling to get too close to the dress in case she stepped on it or somehow made it dirty.
“Aria’s not good around dresses,” Melinda said to Tempest, and Aria glared at her. Melinda ignored her as she took the veil from Hannah and settled it onto Tempest’s silvery ringlets before flipping the veil back. “She’s getting better with them, but let’s face it, she belongs with the guys on this one.”
Aria rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t argue with the truth. She still couldn’t walk in high heels and refused to try anymore. However, if it made Braith look at her again like he had in the hallway, she may wear this dress every day.
“Fix the train, Aria,” Melinda commanded impatiently.
“If you weren’t pregnant, I’d choke you,” she muttered as she bent to carefully rearrange all the many layers of lace within the train.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Melinda replied with a wave of her hand and stuffed a pin into Tempest’s hair.
Melinda placed another pin between her lips as she studied Tempest carefully. Aria smoothed the train out further, careful not to touch it for too long for fear she’d somehow tear the delicate material.
“Was this made by the same tailor who made mine?” she inquired. Her dress had been beautiful, but Tempest’s dress was a work of art.
Melinda pulled the pin from her mouth. “No, he retired last year and moved away. A new dressmaker moved into town shortly after he left. She’s making quite an impression here.”