Begin Again (Beautiful 2)

I held my breath and watched as Huntley’s eyes widened. “I mean if you’re ready,” I added quickly. I didn’t want her to feel pressurized if having another baby wasn’t something she wanted just yet. I could understand if she wasn’t ready but I was praying to God that she was. There was no better time in my life than when Huntley was pregnant with Hunter. Seeing her belly grow with my baby was something I desperately wanted to experience again. The room filled with silence, and then it was broken by nothing but a whisper.

“Okay.”

My heart leapt from my chest and I slid down next Huntley so that our faces were only inches apart.

“Okay?” I asked, wanting to hear it again.

Huntley gave a small nod and I captured her mouth in a long, deep kiss.

“Say it,” I murmured against her lips, “tell me we’re having another baby.”

I felt her lips tip up and then she said it. “We’re having another baby.”

Those were the sweetest words ever spoken. And then we were done talking.

We sat in the small yet opulent bridal boutique situated two hours outside of Breckinridge. The wedding was only three days away and it was the final dress fitting for all of us. Grayson’s mother, May, sat to my left and she was deep in conversation with Huntley’s aunt Emma as we waited patiently for Huntley to come out. Until now, the only person who had seen Huntley’s dress was her aunt and I was anxious to see how she looked. I envisioned her in something form-fitting with a slight flare at the knees and a chapel length train. Not that it really mattered what she wore. She’d make a black garbage bag look fantastic.

The shop assistant brought us some more champagne and I took the flute from her hand gratefully. I had an uneasy feeling in the pit of my belly and I was determined to squash it with more bubbly goodness. The last thing I wanted was to ruin this day for Huntley with my less than exuberant mood. It’s not that I wasn’t excited but my mind was preoccupied with other things. Huntley had texted me last night and told me that Brody was in town and knowing that he was here stirred so much inside me that I found myself thinking about our past, about things I’d rather forget but never will. I could lie and say I didn’t want to see Brody but I’d only be fooling myself. I wanted to cast my eyes on his beautiful face and look into the depths of his deep chocolate brown eyes. I wanted to know what the past year had been like for him and if he had hurt as much as I had. I wanted to know if he thought about me, about us, every day the way I did, if he had trouble sleeping because it was my face that kept him awake. I wanted to see if he had changed at all, or if he was the same man I gave my heart to when I had little understanding of just how much he’d come to mean to me. I wanted to know if he’d see that I had changed, that he had changed me and that despite all that we had put each other through, he was the still the keeper of my broken, yet still beating heart.

A gasp brought me back to the present moment and all thoughts of Brody vanished when I turned to see Huntley walk out of the dressing room and onto the raised platform in front of us. It was impossible to describe how beautiful she looked without comparing her classic looks to that of a Greek goddess. Her tulle and satin gown, with its romantic silhouette, was white with ivory all-over lace and lace applique. It had capped sleeves that accentuated her toned arms, and a deep v-shaped neckline that complimented her curves. It was nothing short of exquisite.

“Well?” Huntley’s voice broke the silence and I heard the slight tremor.

“You look…” May started but couldn’t get the rest of her sentence out and I understood why. Huntley looked…breathtaking.

I stood up and walked over to where Huntley stood, waiting.

“It’s perfect,” I whispered, feeling my eyes well up with tears. “You look like a princess and I can’t think of anyone more deserving.”

Huntley swiped away a few tears and stepped down from the raised platform. “Thank you,” she whispered. I smiled and hugged my best friend, feeling my heart swell. I was so happy for her but a small part of me wondered if it would ever be me in a beautiful gown of my own. Emma and May came up to Huntley and we all shared a few more tears.

“Grayson is going to fall over when he see’s you, sweetheart,” Emma said, grinning wildly like a proud mother. “Your mamma would’ve been proud and I wish they were here to share this magical time of your life, but they’re in your heart and taking it all in with you.”

I felt a pang of sadness and couldn’t even begin to understand how not having her parents here must’ve affected Huntley.

“Thank you Aunt Em,” Huntley replied quietly. “I’m so happy and I know they can feel it from wherever they are.”

“We’re all taking it in with you, baby girl,” May added while holding Huntley’s hand. I’m sure anyone walking past the boutique window would’ve thought we were crazy but we were simply sharing a moment that would only happen once. Huntley and Grayson had the kind of love everyone hopes to find but rarely do. I still held out hope that some day it would be me.

Huntley turned to look at me and smiled. “I have a surprise for you.”

I frowned, wondering what she could be talking about. She nodded at the shop assistant who disappeared for a short while before returning with another garment bag. Both Emma and May shared knowing glances and I knew they must’ve already known about this.

“What’s going on?” I asked. The assistant unzipped the garment bag, and pulled out another beautiful gown. I stared in confusion.

“I had this made for you,” Huntley said, taking the ornate dress from the assistant’s hands. It was far more beautiful than the dress we had originally chosen and I was almost drooling at the sight of it.

“But we had a dress picked out?”

Huntley’s mouth tipped up. “I know but you’re my Maid of Honor and you needed something more appropriate. So what do you think?”

“I love it,” I replied, holding the dress.

“Well don’t just stand there,” Emma laughed. “Go try it on!”

I squealed on my way to the dressing room and slipped the dress over my head after taking off my clothes. I didn’t bother looking at myself in the mirror before stepping out. I smiled widely when I saw Huntley’s reaction and giggled when Emma and May started fawning over me. I stepped in front of the raised mirror and looked at the girl staring back. Although I knew she was no longer a girl. Life had taken that away and had left behind a fraction of the person I used to be.

“It’s stunning,” I said quietly, admiring myself. It was a one shoulder, full-length gown, Champaign in color. It was ruched across the breasts and accented by a black band around the waist with a diamante flower detail on the side. Huntley came to stand next to me, and put her arm around my shoulders. “Now you look like my M.O.H.”

Huntley and I were in the car on our way home after having lunch with her aunt and Grayson’s mother. We’d been singing along to Taylor Swift’s ‘Red’ album for over an hour and spent a great deal of that time laughing at how terrible a singer I was. Huntley turned the music down and I found her regarding me carefully.

“You’d tell me if you weren’t okay, right?”