Total pages in book: 47
Estimated words: 45045 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45045 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 225(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
“I’m not upset,” I told her. “I’m just excited to see it again. When the salesperson brought that corset into the changing room, I thought she was crazy. I’m a believer now.”
“Foundation garments are critical,” said the sales associate, smiling at me.
“What about her boobs?” asked Randi, one of my friends. We’d grown up together, but we’d only gotten really close over the last couple of years. “I think it’s amazing they haven’t popped out yet, but that fabric looks really delicate. Are you sure it’ll hold?”
“This is where strategic taping comes in,” the associate said, her voice confident. “It may look like her décolletage is insecure, but she could jump on a trampoline if she wanted to. We take these things very seriously.”
I gave a little hop, watching as my girls flew up and then came in for a safe landing.
“We’ll take it,” Mom announced. “All of it. And throw in some extra tape, too.”
“It’s too much,” I said, shaking my head. “Things are tight enough already financially, and we’re still getting hospital bills. It’s really gorgeous, but I can’t justify it. What about that other one? The one on sale?”
Megan and Randi exchanged dark looks, and the sales associate literally flinched—a response reflected back to me in all six mirrors.
“James and I will be paying for the dress,” Mom said.
“Mom—”
“He said if you argued, I should threaten to tell you what we did in bed last night. And then again this morning. I don’t want to give out any spoilers, but it involved a new kind of lube. Originally developed at NASA, according to James. You can use it for anything, but I really like it for—”
My vision narrowed, turning black around the edges as I swayed. The sales lady and Randi each caught one of my arms, easing me down.
“Are you all right?” Randi asked. I shook my head.
“No,” I said, shuddering.
“Still want to argue about who’s paying for the dress?” Mom asked.
I looked up at her, wondering how such a sweet-looking woman could be so sadistic.
“Thank you very much for your generous gift.”
Two hours later, I walked through the door of the Starkwood Saloon in full wedding hair and makeup. It was only a test run, but seeing my sleep-deprived eyes without black circles was almost as good as discovering I still had a waist.
Several of our regulars were already there for the afternoon, all of them asking about the wedding plans as I passed through. I answered as quickly as possible, eager to see my babies. The office door stood open a few inches, which meant they weren’t asleep. They weren’t crying, either. Things must’ve gone well.
“Eli, you won’t believe—” The words died as I stepped into the room. “I didn’t realize Gus was here.”
Eli sat on the couch, cradling Lynette as he gave her a bottle. Next to him was Gus, holding my son, Augie. Gus looked up at me, his face full of wonder.
“I can’t believe how tiny they are,” he said. “You did a hell of a job, Peaches.”
“I thought you were still in Mexico,” I said slowly. “You should’ve let us know you’d be in town.”
“So you could avoid me?” he asked. I considered lying, but decided the truth was better.
“Yes.”
I shot a dirty look at Eli, which he pretended not to notice. We’d have words about this little ambush later.
“Gus needs to talk to you about something.”
“I’m not sure we have anything to talk about.”
“I’m pretty sure you do,” Eli said, leaning forward a little to balance himself before standing up from the couch. “Lynette and I are gonna go check on the bar.”
He gave me a quick kiss on the cheek as he brushed past, which I allowed because I looked particularly good at the moment. Best for him to be fully aware of what he was missing when he didn’t get laid tonight.
I closed the door, then walked over to the couch. Gus looked old, especially next to the baby. I wanted to rip Augie out of his arms, but my boy was asleep. Eli and I had a second rule now—never wake a sleeping baby. And it came with built-in consequences.
“You had something you wanted to say?” I asked.
The old man nodded.
“I love you,” he said.
“Great,” I told him. “Glad we clarified that. You can leave now.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t a better man,” he added. “I’m really proud of you, Peaches.”
Silence fell between us, broken only by a tiny baby snore.
“You know I love you, too,” I told Gus.
“You always have. I took that for granted for a long time. I won’t do that ever again.”
His words pulled at my heart, reminding me of how much faith I’d put in him. How much I’d been willing to overlook. A part of me wanted to fall into his arms and cry because he’d always been my safe place.