I look over at my friend, and she’s giving me a funny little smile. “You’ve gotten yourself in a real jam, my friend.”
“Thanks. I appreciate your input.” I shove her arm, and she starts to laugh.
“It’s going to work out. It always does.” Her eyes are dancing, and despite my mental distress, I love seeing her so happy. “What do you really want, Ruby Banks? You’re a grown woman. Now’s your time to decide.”
I think about her question. “I want to be able to take care of myself. I want to be confident in my choices.” The carousel slows to a stop, and we stroll to find Lillie running to meet us. “Maybe I do want to be a part of their life, but I want to be independent first. I want to make the choice.”
Drew’s lips press into a half-smile. “I think that’s perfect.”
“Well, stop it. I don’t like all this mushy stuff. Aren’t we supposed to be shopping for a wedding dress?”
“Oh! I found one I really like online. I think they have something like it at Second Acts.”
“Second Acts?” Lillie is holding my hand, skipping while we walk toward the pre-owned wedding dress shop. “I know you’re not making celebrity-nanny money, but why are you looking at used wedding dresses? That’s got to be bad luck.”
We walk into the store filled with racks of ivory and white gowns, along with a rainbow assortment of bridesmaids’ dresses.
“Princesses!” Lillie tosses my hand, and she’s across the store burying her face in sparkly satin and tulle.
“Stop acting like your mother all of a sudden,” Drew snarks.
“Bitch, you did not just say that to me,” I tease right back.
“Just, no more bad luck juju.” She catches my hand and pulls me close. “The markup on all this wedding crap is outrageous. I honestly can’t believe some of these prices.”
“Like that’s some kind of state secret.” I do my best to adjust my attitude and start sliding hangers across racks.
I’ll admit, there are some interesting options in here. Some don’t even look like they’ve been worn. Lillie is in heaven twirling around the colorful bridesmaids’ section, and I keep my eye on her as we shop.
“You need to do something casual with him.” Drew comes from behind a rack with three dresses over her arm. “To take the pressure off and see each other in a more friend-type way.”
“I’m not sure we can get much friendlier.”
A sales associate appears, reaching for Drew’s armload of dresses. “Would you like a room? Let me take these.”
Drew follows the woman, and I’m right behind her. “I mean more as friends, less as roommates who can’t keep their hands off each other.”
I shrug. “Sounds reasonable. What did you have in mind?”
She goes in the room, stopping me before I can follow her. “Stay out here so you can get the full effect once it’s on.”
Going to the door, I watch as Lillie ducks under veils and holds her hands out. She’s going to dream about this tonight.
“Gray said karaoke starts Tuesday at the Red Cat. Why don’t we do that together?” The door opens, and she steps out in a fitted, sleeveless white gown. “Like old friends.”
“Oh!” My breath catches, and my eyes get hot. “You’re beautiful! I’m going to cry.”
Fanning my face quickly, I shake my head.
“Stop it! You’re going to make me cry, and I have two more dresses to try on!”
My bestie tries on two more gowns, but the first one’s the winner. We’re driving back to Oakville by dinner time, and Lillie’s crashed out in her booster chair in my backseat.
“So you’re still coming to the wedding next month, right?” Drew’s got her phone out, and I panic slightly—which my bestie doesn’t miss. “Ruby! You’re my maid of honor. You have to be there.”
“It’s just a weekend thing?” I’m really panicking because of all the parties and showers I need to get scheduled for her. If she’s pregnant we can’t go too crazy. Maybe a lunch?
“It’s Thursday to Sunday.” She shows me a wedding planner app on her phone. “Or Saturday night, I guess.”