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Candice choked on what seemed to be thin air.
Mandy picked up the phone. “Are you alright?”
Candice nodded and then asked, “Sexual advice?”
Mandy grinned. “Oh yes, she said that all of my ailments could be solved with some good sex. When I tried to tell her that I was single, she started to offer up ideas for vibrators.”
The longer Mandy talked, the more we laughed, and soon my drama of the perfect dress began to fade.
It has been a couple of difficult weeks. Because my nausea was so bad, Knox ended up having to take my statement in the city and Candice went back to Otterville Falls with him until my morning sickness passed.
After Candice left, I met up with Mandy a few times. Each time I found that she was sweet, engaging, and intelligent.
Soon we were fast friends, and despite the fact that I desperately missed Candice, it was nice to have someone who had been through a pregnancy of her own.
After careful consideration, Mark and I had decided to get married sooner rather than later. Hence, the wedding dress shopping.
“What is new with the case back in Otterville Falls?” I asked.
Candice sighed. “According to Knox, it’s two steps forward and three steps back. He was certain that the lid was about to be blown off and then nothing panned out.”
“It still bothers me that Earl just disappeared. That wasn’t like him. I would have sworn the man was going to live out the rest of his days in my trailer.”
Candice shrugged, saying, “There has to be more to it than what Knox has discovered.”
I wrinkled my brow. “I still think that Father Montgomery had something to do with it. Why else would he have been in the bar?”
Mandy’s eyes widened. “The priest?”
I blew out a snort. “He is no man of God, I can guarantee you that.”
“Is that why you chose to get married here in the city?” Mandy asked.
I sighed. “My life is here now. Sometimes I wonder if I had been living at all until Mark found me that day.”
Being a billionaire certainly helped when one was throwing together a wedding. Suddenly venues opened up when you offered the right incentives. Candice knew all of the ins and outs of party planning. Honestly, I was beginning to wonder if there was anything she didn’t know.
Mandy had taken me all around town looking for dresses. For the right price, bridal boutiques were willing to do last minute alterations. But they couldn’t do anything if I didn’t pick a dress.
“What am I going to wear?”
Mandy went to the pile and started sorting through the dresses. “I really think that the first gown was the one we wanted.”
After a moment she was able to pull a designer gown from the pile. It was sleeveless with a heart-shaped bodice and Venetian lace that was tight until my hips and flared out from there. I had vetoed it because I was sure my belly was huge in it.
“Just give it one more chance,” Mandy begged, lifting it up and holding it out to me. Begrudgingly, I took it out of her hands.
The bridal shop assistant hadn’t returned, so Mandy helped me to remove the current gown and slip into the first one.
After closing the buttons and using clamps to make the fit better, I turned and looked in the mirror.
Mandy clasped her hands together. “Oh, Sutton.”
Candice was yelling from the phone, “I can’t see!”
Mandy went over and picked it up. “There, can you see her?”
“That is the one,” Candice said breathlessly.