by L. K. Kuhl
“You’re crazy if you think I’m saying no to that, Aaron Stuart. Lead the way.” I pumped up my voice, making it bright and enthusiastic. But the petulance grazed my throat and wormed its way in, and it was hard to fight down.
We drove to Great Falls and Aaron took me to Crystaline’s, one of the most expensive, influential stores in the city.
My mouth gaped long, like I was using it for a flycatcher, when we stepped into the large doors of the store. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling. A black baby-grand piano sat off to the right of the front door—a gentleman in long coattails playing Mozart upon it.
A brusque saleslady, looking like she had had about one-too-many plastic surgeries, advanced, greeting us as we made our way past the guards at the store entrance. Bright red lips, stuck in a permanent position from her last bout with Botox, protruded out farther than her nose. Stiff, purplish-black hair twisting at an angle, rested on the side of her head, accentuating long diamond earrings that hung low with their weight, looking like they could pull out of her earlobes if she moved too fast. Her low-cut dress glittered and sparkled when the lights hit it just right.
“Aaron, my darling, you made it.” She stepped up close to him and grasped his shoulders, giving him a kiss on each cheek. Her voice, deep and raspy with a slight French accent, purred like a kitty after downing a bowl of milk. “My, aren’t you a sight for these old eyes. I’ve missed you.”
“Annabella, how wonderful it is to see you.” Aaron mirrored her, giving a kiss on each of her cheeks, entwining his fingers through each of hers. “You’re ravishing, and you look younger now than you did a year ago. Did you get it ready for me?” He drew her back away from him, taking her in fully with his eyes. His eyes stopped and frolicked briefly on her large, fake bosom. As though they were about to dance, he still clutched her fingers.
Her black eyes absorbed him, almost as if there had been a long passionate love affair that once flamed between them. “I did. You didn’t think I’d forget about my Aaron, now, did you?” She playfully pinched his cheek, enhancing her voice with a deep, dire laugh. “Wait right here.”
She went to the back of the store and slipped around a corner. A couple of seconds later she came out carrying a garment bag draped on a crystal clothes hanger.
Aaron squeezed my hand as we watched Annabella flaunt her way back to us. “Wait until you see this, Sophia. You’re going to faint.”
Annabella lifted off the garment bag, unveiling a silver sequined ball gown, its blinding bright prisms dancing and glittering in the store lights.
I inhaled sharply, my jaw slamming to the floor. “Oh, my…it’s beautiful.” My hands flew to cover my gaping mouth.
Aaron pointed to the top of the dress. “Look at this. The entire neckline, extending down to the waist, is made with real diamonds. This dress cost me over fifty thousand dollars. Sophia, please tell me, is there any reason you would not love something as exquisite as this?”
I shook my head, unable to believe a dress like this even existed, let alone that I would wear it. “Oh, Aaron, I love it. You bought this just for my senior prom? It’s stunning.”
He kissed Annabella on the cheek again. “Thank you, Annabella. I think she loves it.”
“Here are the shoes that go with it.” Annabella opened a box that held silver stilettos, glittering as much as the dress they matched. “These are encrusted with diamond shavings throughout the surface of the shoe.” She glanced up to see my reaction, balancing the shoe on the palm of her hand.
I was Cinderella going to the ball—Aaron was my fairy godmother, taking me from rags to riches. “I can’t believe you did all this for me, Aaron. When did you pick them out?”
“I just picked up my phone and rattled off my credit card number. My good friend Annabella, here, did all the rest.” He puffed his chest and smiled at Annabella while she zipped up the garment bag, my dress stashed inside.
* * *
I glowed, feeling like a fairy-tale princess at the king’s ball when prom night arrived. The entire school did a double take, watching me lift my dress and walk down the four steps to the gym, their necks stretching and craning. Resentful and envious glares searched and followed me all night. Whispers leaked out from behind cupped hands, bouncing around the room while Aaron and I danced.
But as the night wore on, my feet hurt, and the dress became too heavy. Money has its price, I guess. I sighed when the night drew to a close, eager to go home and put on my old T-shirt and dirty sneakers. Plus, with each passing milestone, it put me that much closer to my wedding day.
* * *
The day of graduation dawned bright and clear with seventy-degree temps. My stomach quivered, knotting itself into a ball of nerves when I walked up to the school doors for the last time. Spring robins greeted me on the way in, their songs welcoming me to this new chapter of my life.
Our entire class, all thirty-seven of us, gathered in the study hall room, going over last-minute details and helping each other put on our caps and gowns. The boys wore black, and the girls wore gold. All of us had black caps with gold tassels.
I huddled in a corner with Claudia, Laura, and Jenny. Claudia clutched a handful of bobby pins in the palm of her hand, holding one in her mouth, positioning my cap over my long hair, that today, I had curled into loose ringlets.
She finally got it pinned securely on my head, but her forehead had worry lines creasing it. “Can I talk to you in private?”
“Who, me?” My eyes questioning, I laid a hand to my chest, not sure why Claudia needed to talk to me without Laura and Jenny hearing. After some hesitation, I shrugged. “Sure, what is it?” I didn’t know if she was scared about our big day or if something else was bothering her.
She took me by the arm and pulled me over to the big wooden doors that were still shut until graduation time drew nearer. “I didn’t want Laura and Jenny to hear because I didn’t think it was any of their business.” Her voice rasped low, and I stared at her, my eyes fixated on the unruly fire-red curls lapping up over her cap, still unwilling to cooperate for her even on this special day.
Nervous because of the way her eyes flashed around the room, making sure no one heard, and also because nothing usually bothered Claudia, my muscles tensed. “Is everything okay, Claudia?” My breathing picked up pace. I knew her dad had heart problems. “There’s nothing wrong with your dad, is there?”
“Calm down, Sophia, it’s nothing like that.” She sighed. “Everyone’s fine. It’s just that I saw Stacy Sheffield riding around with Aaron on my way up to the school earlier, and they looked rather…cozy.”
“With Stacy Sheffield…? Cozy? How cozy?” I blinked, disappointed, the fury stirring within me, roiling my innards. Then, I calmed myself back down, not wanting to upset myself right before I had to walk out in front of a few hundred people.
“Cozy as in she was sitting right next to him in the front seat.”
“Well…they were old friends…maybe they’re just catching up on…things.” I blew out a blighted breath.
She stirred, shifting her weight from one foot to the next. “That could be. I hope I didn’t upset you. It just seemed kind of strange to see another girl riding around with him when your wedding is only a month away. I thought you should know.” Claudia dropped her arms at her sides and stared at me solemnly.
“No, that’s fine, I’m glad you did. But I trust Aaron wholeheartedly, and I know he wouldn’t do anything like that.”
We went back and rejoined Laura and Jenny. Laura narrowed her eyes. “Is everything alright?”
“Everything’s fine.” I waved it away, keeping my voice cheery. “I’ll tell you later.”
The principal’s voice echoed way off in the background of my thoughts, gathering us up to form a line by the wooden doors so we could go out and become adults, and each make our own impact on this strange and funny world. But right now, I tumbled, lost in other things—things too far away from today’s festivities, and I knew when I was
this far gone, there’d be no pulling me back.
Our long line proceeded to walk out into the hall, stepping down the steps into the auditorium. I was still lost, my mind aloof, and I tripped over Dane Jackson’s foot in front of me, stumbling and almost crashing to the wooden floor. My graduation partner, Jimmy Yale, grabbed my elbow, pulling me upright and steadying me again.
I kept my eyes focused on the blue line on the basketball court, paying special attention now to where I was going, mouthing a quick thank you to him for saving me. My face burned and my heart pounded wildly as I walked, still keeping pace with those darn painted lines that kept tripping me up and embarrassing me.
We made it to the stage, and the principal ambled his way over to the podium to make his welcome speech. Hundreds of eyes burned into me, watching us seniors and the program, while at the same time, my eyes searched everyone out in the crowd to see if I could spot Aaron.
The empty folding chair glared back at me—the spot reserved just for him—when I found the row where my family sat. I caught my mom’s eyes and she shrugged, her eyes darting to the empty chair, trying to tell me she didn’t know where he was. I nodded and gave her a halfhearted smile.
The valedictorian made his way to the podium while I searched on, my eyes scanning everywhere, even out in the hallway beyond the stairs where we entered. When I still couldn’t find him, the disappointment trickled down to my toes. But he had to be here somewhere. Maybe he didn’t realize he had a place reserved for him with my parents. He could be sitting anywhere, and with this many people, I would never be able to see him.
The principal told us all to rise, and I stayed sitting, once again embarrassing myself when someone had to nudge me to get up out of my chair. I swallowed three times, my chest tightening, getting pretty good at making a fool of myself by this point. He announced us as the graduating class of two-thousand-fifteen and, on cue, we were all to turn our tassels to the other side of our caps. This time, I managed to get the job done.
My eyes scanned and searched as families and friends cheered and clapped, watching us make our way back down the same aisle we marched in on. Mom rushed out of her chair when I reached her row, throwing her arms around me with a thousand tears in her eyes. I handed her a white lily and kissed her on the cheek, giving her a hug.
Dad stood by us, the tears pooling in his eyes, too, even for as hard as he tried to hide them. He awkwardly gave me a pat on the back. “Good job, Sophia.” Josh and Kristy each grabbed me up in a hug.
Mom’s hand fluttered to her neck to twist the strand of pearls. “I don’t know where Aaron is. He should be here. I can’t imagine him missing his future wife’s graduation.”
“Oh, he’s here somewhere. Has to be.” I scanned the crowd again, standing on my tippy-toes, getting flanked by well-wishers and people nudging their way through the line.
We walked up the auditorium steps and drifted out into the hall. Aaron stood off to the side by the water fountain.
His eyes darted away, then back again, when he saw me. “Sophia, congratulations!”
I walked up to him, my chest caving when he picked me up in the air and twirled me around. My cheeks burned hot, feet flying through the air, barely missing a lady with a thick mound of hair piled high on her head, hair so black it looked blue.
He slobbered my cheeks with kisses and deposited me back down on the floor. I fought off the tears but couldn’t keep the vile disdain out of my voice. “Where were you? This was my big day. You were supposed to be here for me.”
“I was here.” He brushed at the tears that did decide to escape. “Let me explain. There was an emergency at the office, and I was on the phone with Scott trying to get it worked out, which caused me to be late. I didn’t think it would look proper to meander through all of the people, trying to get to my chair while the program was going on, so I stayed back here in the hallway and watched. I didn’t want to cause a commotion.”
He was flawless, never blinking an eye.
Aaron…not wanting to cause a commotion…yeah right. I studied him, watching his eyes and actions for any wrong moves or gestures. He sounded believable enough, but why had he been with Stacy?
“Okay, I believe you. I don’t want to ruin my day any more than it already has been.” He rubbed my arm, smoothing over his wrongdoing. “But I still need to talk to you about something I heard earlier. Just not here.”
“I’m glad you understand. I feel awful about the whole thing, but it couldn’t be helped.” His gaze dashed to the floor, and he took me by the hand. We hurried and caught up with my parents, Josh, and Kristy as they walked toward the door.
* * *
Later on, after my reception died down, and I had chatted on incessantly about my future with friends and family until my voice grew hoarse, I pulled Aaron up the stairs to my room.
I didn’t know if my drilling would do any good since he had been drinking the entire afternoon, but it was worth a try. “What are we doing, Sophia, the party’s not over yet.” He pointed over his shoulder with his thumb, tugging on my arm to escape back down the stairs.
“It is for us, Aaron.” I opened the door to my room and pushed him down on my bed. “Besides that, I have something to discuss with you.”
It didn’t take much to push him, the alcohol had twisted him into a soft, blubbering child. He rolled over, looking up at me with a sideways grin. “What did you do that for?” His innocent face was like a young schoolboy looking up at an angry teacher. “You mad or something?”
“Why did you have Stacy Sheffield in the car with you?” I demanded, my hands on my hips, leering above him.
“Stacy Sheffield?” He sobered up some when I brought up her name. “In the car? What are you talking about? Oh, I remember now. I did have Stacy Sheffield in my car because…hers broke down. Yeah, that was it.” He snapped his fingers, his voice thick. “I was on my way up to the graduation, and I saw her walking along the street. I pulled over to see if she needed anything, and she said her car broke down and she needed a ride.” His eyes were halfway closed by this time. “That was another reason I was late.”
I sneered and gave him a scathing look, pulling him up off the bed by his shirt. “Are you telling me the truth? Because if you’re not, someone is going to be in hot water.” The satin material wrinkling under my strong grasp, I finally let go of him, letting him fall down hard on the bed again.
He laughed and struggled to sit back up as his hands swiped at the air, trying to gather me up in his arms. “Come here, my love. You look so cute when you’re angry.”
He pulled me back down with him and rolled over on top of me, tickling me under the chin. But I held my face tight. He wouldn’t make me laugh. Not giving in to his antics, I held firm to my defiance. I couldn’t hold on long, though. Caving under the pressure of the dreaded tickle, I giggled right with him as he kissed my neck and buried his head in my chest.
“Don’t, Aaron.” I ground my teeth, becoming angry again, flattening my lips and throwing my chin to the air. “You made me mad today, and you need to learn your lesson.”
“Oh, come on. You know you can’t stay mad at me for long.” He untied the ribbons that laced through the top of my blouse, his eyes seeking mine.
He fumbled with it. I crossed my arms, pulling my blouse tight.
Exasperated, he laid his head on my chest. A few seconds later his heavy breathing became a snore. The alcohol had gotten the best of him. I pushed him off me, pulled off his shoes, and dragged the comforter up over his chest.
I stretched down beside him and stared at the ceiling, wanting to believe his story about Stacy Sheffield. Why would he be lying to me? If he wanted her, he never would have asked me to marry him.
I rolled over and closed my eyes, willing Tate to fill my mind and soothe me. An image of him did flicker in and out of my mind. His piercing blue eyes and compelling smile flashed there for an instant, but it was fleeting—far too short a stay as far as I was concerned.
Chapter 28
My wedding was one week away. For the past few days, I had been scurrying around like a squirrel gathering nuts for the winter. This last week would fly by, and it would be a miracle to get it all done in time.
Today, I had a long list of things that had to be done. The first was to go and try on my wedding dress for one last fitting. My heart beat sluggishly and a sour taste coated my tongue; I should have known better than to eat that last donut for breakfast.
Then, I needed to go check on the flowers. The florist called me last week, unsure whether she could get the right shade of purple in what I had requested. So, I had to go and either give her my consent on them, or order something different. Getting married made my stress level shoot through the hemisphere. Who would have thought that something as simple as saying I do could create so much drama and tension?
Claudia piled in the car with me to help ease the tension, and we drove to the Bridal Boutique. The seamstress furrowed her brow, staring at the looped measuring tape wrapped around my waist, her eyes squinting heavily. She shook her head. “Let me start over. I think I have the tape hung up somewhere.”
I winced, hoping this was the case but already knew better.
She swung it around my waist again, watching it to make sure it was positioned just right. “Nope, I’m still getting the same reading. I think you did put on a couple of pounds, Sophia. I’m going to have to let a little out so it’s not quite so snug.”
Great, so much for the beautiful bride that I wanted to be. A fat toad had invaded my body. Aaron would not be pleased about it, either. He expected a perfect, princess bride. I prayed he wouldn’t notice these few extra pounds. I hoped that the seamstress could become a fairy godmother and work her magic so no one would notice.
After we left the dress shop and got back in the car, Claudia threw me a sidelong glance. “So, I guess this means no going out for lunch?” A weak smile grew on her face.