Southern Devotion (Southern Heart 4)
“Yeah, thanks for doing this.”
“Umm, I had an ulterior motive,” I remind her.
“Regardless. Thank you.”
“Come on, let’s go find you a wedding dress.”
As soon as we enter the shop, we’re greeted with “Welcome to Bridal Memories. What can we do for you today?”
“Well.” Jamie looks over at me, smiling. “We need wedding dresses.”
“Well, my dears, you’ve come to the right place. Do you know what you’re looking for?”
“I’m having a beach wedding in two weeks, so I’m not sure I can make this happen. But I was thinking something flowing,” Jamie says.
“We do alterations in-house, so we can definitely make it happen if you find something we have here in the store. If we have to order it, the alterations depend on shipping time, but we can worry about that once you find a dress. And you?” she asks me.
“We’re, uh, just starting to plan,” I say, which is not a complete lie. “We’re having a small intimate country wedding outdoors. I want something simple, elegant, but that won’t look too out of place in the outdoor setting. A field of wildflowers,” I add, just in case that’s information she needs.
“Excellent. Let’s start with you… I’m sorry, your name is?” She looks at Jamie.
“Jamie, and this is Olivia.”
“My name is Hazel. It’s lovely to meet both of you. Since your wedding is first, let’s take you to the simple flowing section, shall we?” she asks, turning to walk away, and we follow her.
“This place is amazing. You have it so organized.”
“Thank you. Planning your special day can be stressful enough, so I try to make it fun and relaxing while you find your dream dress.” She smiles kindly. “Can I offer either of you a drink? We have a range of soft drinks and water, plus champagne.”
“No, thank you,” we both say.
“All right then, I’ll leave you ladies to it. I’ll just be right over here if you have any questions.” She points to a rack of dresses that she’s placing price tags on.
“Where do we start?” Jamie asks, her eyes wide.
“Let’s just go to the end and start looking through until something catches your eye.”
That’s what we do. Jamie begins to sort through each dress one by one, and I stand by giving my thoughts on those she stops on. They’re all beautiful, and I still find it surreal that we’re doing this.
“Oh.” She pulls a dress off the rack. “I like this one,” she says softly, almost as if she’s talking to herself.
“Let’s try it on. I’ll go get Hazel.”
As if she heard Jamie, Hazel appears. “Need a fitting room yet?” she asks.
“Yes.” Jamie holds the dress up to show Hazel.
“That one is perfect for a beach wedding. Let’s get it on you and see what you think.” She leads us to a back hallway that has little alcoves with couches and mirrors set up. “We like each bride to have her own space,” she explains. She must have noticed the awed expression on my face.
“This is perfect.” I take a seat on the couch, setting my purse beside me. “Go.” I motion with my hands to send Jamie to the fitting room. “I’ll be here waiting,” I tell her.
“Olivia,” she calls out a few moments later.
“Yeah?” I stand and go to the fitting room door, thinking she might need help with a zipper.
“I love it,” she says, her voice cracking.
“Let me see it.” Excitement lifts my voice.