The Wedding Dress Yes (Crossroads Collection)

by Amanda Tru

  Adam shook his head in confusion. “But we love each other, London. All of the details can be worked out. I’ve loved you since high school, and that’s not going to change.”

  London swallowed, her confidence wavering slightly. “I don’t love you, Adam, and I really don’t think you love me either. You love that eighteen-year-old girl, but she doesn’t exist anymore. You don’t love the person I am now. You don’t love my goals and interests and my tendencies to bend your definition of rules. I’m sorry, but we really need to go our separate ways. Someday you’ll find someone you can love today and can join in your future. But that isn’t me.”

  Adam stared intently at her and slowly nodded. “I lost, didn’t I? Mason is the one you want.”

  London shrugged and smiled sadly. “I don’t know that it was ever really a fair contest, Adam. Since high school, I’ve only felt a strong friendship for you. I wanted to feel more, but I didn’t. And I’m sorry. I don’t know if things will work out with Mason, but I know they won’t work with you, at least in anything beyond friendship.”

  Adam smiled sadly, and London stood on her tiptoes to give him a little peck on the cheek.

  “Don’t feel bad, Adam. Someday you’ll meet a woman you want to give a real proposal to. Instead of marrying her as a matter of course, you’ll get down on one knee, and the thought of marrying her will make your excitement over New York seem boring.”

  Adam’s eyes lit with understanding. “Touché,” he said, seeming to finally accept that maybe his heart wasn’t where it should be where London was concerned.

  “There you are!” Dallas said, bursting into the office. “Mom is ready to serve dinner, and I promised her you two needed to make a big announcement before saying grace. Or I’d be happy to do the honors!”

  Dallas rubbed his hands together eagerly. “What did we decide on? Rings before or after New York? Or if you want, I can grab some rings off a few plastic water bottles, and we can get the job done tonight! Did you know that Sydney is ordained?”

  “Dallas Hutchins, you breathe a word, and I’ll make sure it’s your last!” London said fiercely.

  Laughing, Dallas danced away from her swipe and sprinted away. London took off after her ornery brother, exactly as she remembered doing many years before. Only this time, she couldn’t manage to find her rose-colored glasses.

  With the ceremony concluded and the food at the reception served, London stepped away from the wedding party, seeking a hiding place in her parents’ backyard. With all of the stress of the past few days, she longed for just a minute of isolation when she could take a few deep breaths. Stepping to the outer tables bordering the edge of the lawn, she sought the lengthening shadows and turned around to survey the scene before her.

  The yard where she’d grown up had been transformed once again into a wedding fantasy. Her gaze drifted across the tables and perfectly white tablecloths crowned with beautiful, unique floral arrangements. Beyond the table, the chairs for the ceremony still stood at attention in neat rows facing a gorgeous archway interlaced with more flowers. Above the laughter and happy chatter of the wedding party and guests, the day slowly relinquished its hold to evening and beckoned the sunset to soon make its appearance.

  Perfect.

  Somehow it all seemed so fitting. They’d started the summer with Dallas and Kate’s wedding in this same backyard. Now they were ending it with another beautiful, yet completely different wedding for another Hutchins sibling. All in all, Brooke and Dylan’s wedding had been the stuff fairy tales were made of. Brooke was stunning, Dylan was dashing, the bridesmaids looked exquisite in their original London Hutchins designs, and everything ticked off like clockwork, courtesy of wedding planner, TeraLyn Snow.

  Figuring she wouldn’t be missed from her own bridesmaid duties for at least a few minutes, London wearily sank to a chair at the nearest table, which happened to be occupied by only one other guest—a small older man with wispy, white hair framing a shiny bald head.

  London sat watching the scene in silence for a few minutes, feeling her tight muscles relax while she people-watched her friends and family. It seemed as if everyone had a somebody. All of her siblings were matching up and getting married. Even Geneva had brought a date to the wedding, though London doubted he would last as her date past the next few days. Geneva was a serial dater, and to London’s knowledge, she’d never had a serious relationship or even a boyfriend last longer than a few months.

  Sydney was still single, of course. With her all-consuming profession, Sydney didn’t have a love life that London knew of. Idly, she realized that was probably something that she should talk to her sister about. Sydney was always eager to deposit her two cents into London’s life, but it never worked the other way around.

  London watched as the cake was cut, realizing she should probably be more involved, but she just didn’t have the energy. She felt lonely, as if on the outside looking in on everything. Mason had been busy and unable to come to the wedding. They’d talked a lot over the past few weeks, and he’d come to visit a couple times, but no actual decisions about the future were made. She suspected Mason was trying to take things slow for her sake, but deep down, she feared he was still the shallow movie star afraid of any real commitment. Now that they were kind of back together, would all of those fancy words fall by the wayside as having no real substance?

  The speeches started in a prelude to the toasts. Fortunately, they had already designated Geneva as the sister spokesperson to make the appropriate remarks. London listened attentively, so very happy for Brooke and Dylan and yet reluctant to fully engage in the party atmosphere.

  “Peppermint?” the man beside her asked, offering her a white and red-striped mint.

  London turned to meet the sparkling eyes of her silent table companion. Smiling at his friendly offering, London accepted the mint, unwrapped the crinkly plastic, and popped it in her mouth. Somehow, the act made her feel not so alone, as if she had a co-conspirator in her people-watching.

  The man beside her didn’t say anything else, and London wondered who he was. Maybe he was Dylan’s friend or family. He seemed like a nice man, and as she watched, she noticed his mouth turned upward with humor when he saw or heard something amusing.

  “There you are!” Rhonda Snow bustled up, and London flinched, fearing she’d been discovered.

  “They’re about to start the dancing, and you must come out of hiding. You promised me a dance, Mr. Snow!”

  London’s mouth fell open as Rhonda latched onto the arm of the older gentleman and tugged him up gently.

  “You’re Mr. Snow?” London asked aghast.

  “Of course, he’s Mr. Snow!” Rhonda said. “Has been his entire life!”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting you,” London said, standing to her feet and extending her hand. “I’m London Hutchins.”

  The man’s eyes twinkled, and his head bobbed as he clasped her hand in both of his. “I know.”

  “Of course, you know him, London!” Rhonda said with exasperation. “Mr. Snow is always very involved in everything I do. Now if you’ll excuse us, the music is starting, and I don’t want to keep Mr. Snow waiting!”

  Rhonda made her way through the tables, tugging her husband along behind her. With an amused look on his face, Mr. Snow turned back one last time and winked London’s direction.

  London couldn’t stop the giggle that bubbled up. To think that mild-mannered, sweet, old man was the infamous Mr. Snow!

  “What are you laughing about?” TeraLyn asked, approaching London’s post.

  “I just met your father,” London said lightly. “He’s not exactly what I expected. He seems like a very nice man.”

  TeraLyn’s brow furrowed. “You haven’t met him before?”

  “No, not at all.”

  Understanding dawned on TeraLyn’s face, and her own little giggle matched London’s. “From the way Mom talks about him, you must have thought him pretty ferocious!”

/>   “Yes, I did!”

  It felt good to laugh, but as the bubbling giggles subsided, TeraLyn turned serious. “I can’t thank you enough, London, for recommending me to Brooke to plan her wedding. I can’t tell you how much you’ve changed my life both personally and professionally.”

  London shook her head. “You’ve earned it, TeraLyn. You’re building yourself a great reputation. You’re already on the map in terms of the best wedding planners in the area. Brooke was drowning in the stress of trying to plan the wedding and manage her business. All I did was make one little suggestion, and she immediately wanted to snatch you up to plan the wedding. And you’ve done a beautiful job. It’s everything she wanted and more.”

  “It did turn out well,” TeraLyn smiled, looking at the scene with shy pride. Then she bit her lip and sidled a glance London’s direction. “I need to talk to you about something, but I didn’t know the best time to do it. I don’t want to detract from your sister’s wedding tonight, so if you want, I can wait until tomorrow.”

  London laughed, “With that kind of intro, now you need to tell me right now!”

  TeraLyn self-consciously ducked her head. “I know you haven’t wanted to move your business back into the shop, even though Mom is now the president of the London Hutchins fan club, and I understand that. But would you be willing to move back into the shop if I was the owner of Snow White Bridal?”

  “TeraLyn!” London squealed excitedly.

  TeraLyn put up a hand. “It isn’t official yet, but Mom is retiring. Dad is quite a bit older than her and has already been retired for several years. He wanted Mom to retire so they could travel, but she hasn’t been willing to consider it until now. Mom gave me her blessing to handle the business and building as I wish, and I know what I want to do. I want you to take your space for London Hutchins Designs, and I also want to operate my wedding planning business. Then I want us to go into business as partners in the local Snow White Bridal shop. We’ll probably need to hire a few more employees, but the business is solid, and I think all three businesses will be successful and fill vital niches in the community. But if you don’t want to do something like that, I totally understand. I just—”

  Without a word, London threw her arms around her friend in a fierce hug. “Yes!” she finally cried. “I’d love to go into business with you, TeraLyn, and your idea sounds amazing! Let’s do it!”

  TeraLyn’s breath whooshed out in relief, and she dashed away tears that appeared in the corners of her eyes. “Let’s have that new lawyer in town figure out the legal details and get started right away.”

  “And you’re sure your mom will be okay with our arrangement and not insist on running the show?” London asked, suddenly nervous that Rhonda would still manage to end up as her boss.

  “Don’t worry,” TeraLyn assured. “I’ll make sure Mom legally signs everything over to me beforehand. I think she will. She’s already talking about wanting to go see her sister, Sandy, before the Thanksgiving reunion, and Dad promised her a trip to Europe as well.”

  “You two need to stop hiding!” Sydney said, coming up alongside them. “You’ll make Brooke sad if she sees you standing around at her wedding. Go dance!”

  “Are you following your own advice?” London pointedly asked her sister.

  “I’ve already danced with Dad and all three of our brothers,” Sydney said proudly. “However, I’m the designated bouncer for this party. If I see people standing around, it’s my job to bounce guests back to the dance floor.”

  “Fine,” London grumbled. “TeraLyn, go find yourself a handsome single guy. I’ve got dibs on all the ones who are already taken. I’ll start with Dad. Sydney, where can I find him?” London stood on her tiptoes, trying to peer over and around the swirling mass of wedding guests.

  “Last I saw him, he was in the corner near the back of the yard,” Sydney pointed helpfully.

  London weaved her way in that direction. Catching sight of a figure in a suit standing at the edge of the yard under a large tree, she stopped suddenly.

  Mason?

  The man looked at her steadily for the space of three seconds, then he winked, turned around, and disappeared into the bushes.

  Certain her eyes hadn’t deceived her, she hurried to follow. She found the familiar trail threading its way through the bushes. Though she could no longer see the man in front of her, her feet hurriedly pattered down the faint path while trying to keep her bridesmaid’s dress away from the branches reaching out to touch the frothy blue fabric.

  Finally emerging from the brush, she saw the tree at the edge of the rim. Below its branches, Mason stood looking out at the sunset.

  “Mason, what are you doing here!” London asked breathlessly. “You said you were busy!”

  “I may have over-stated my business just a little,” Mason admitted with a smile. “Careful, you’re standing right in our living room.”

  Confused, London followed the direction of his gaze downward to their feet. To her surprise, her delicate blue sandals rested on smooth ground. All of the overgrown weeds and brush had been cleared from around the tree, revealing bare ground. In that dirt, London could see shapes where dust had been brushed aside into small hills. The clean parts of the ground extended around the tree in a network of interconnected “rooms.”

  “You did this?” London whispered, slowly understanding that he’d built a tree house, exactly as she’d done as a child.

  “Yes,” Mason said, looking like a proud little boy eager to show off his work. “I didn’t really plan on all the dust, though.” He brushed at his suit, showing the evidence of the fine layer of dirt that lightened his designer suit a few shades. “Come on, I’ll give you the tour.”

  Taking her hand in one of his, he gestured to the little dust hill borders with his other one. “You’re in the living room. We’ll have a big bay window out the back looking out over the valley. If you go this direction, you’ll find the kitchen. I have the areas for the stove marked with little rocks, and I’d also like to put a window right over the sink so we can look out at the front yard when doing dishes. If you go around this other way, you’ll find the bathroom and two bedrooms. The larger one is the master bedroom, obviously, and we can always add on more if necessary. I thought about maybe adding a sunroom, but I wanted your opinion of what else to add to our house.”

  “Our house?” London repeated, inspecting his intricate little hallways and rooms in the dirt.

  Reaching out with his hand, Mason drew her chin upward from the ground to meet his eyes. “I made it for you. I know the real one will be a little different, but I wanted to give you the dream. London, whatever house you want to dream in dirt, I will do my best to make in reality. I intend to claim all of your dreams as my own.”

  Before she could process what was happening, movement caught her eyes. She looked up behind Mason’s shoulder to see a beautiful white dress hanging on a branch of the tree. Because it was on the opposite side facing the valley, she hadn’t seen it as she’d approached or during Mason’s tour. Now, a slight breeze caught the delicate material, and it floated like a beautiful apparition.

  “That’s my dress,” she whispered, recognizing the exquisite combination of simplicity and elegance she’d only before seen on paper. “That’s the dress I designed for me. How did you…?”

  His eyes shining with love and sincerity, he explained, “Sydney showed me your sketchbook, London. She asked me to choose the dress I thought you should wear at your wedding. I chose that one. It’s the perfect dress for you, and I couldn’t imagine you wearing any dress but the one I saw in that drawing. Sydney and TeraLyn helped create the dress from the drawing. I’ve wanted to propose for weeks, but I’ve been waiting for the gown to be a reality. They said you could change things if they didn’t get it right. They wanted to make sure it was ‘The London’ in every sense.”

  London choked on her tears. “It’s perfect. It’s all perfect. You did all of this for me?”

  �
�Yes, I did.” The corner of his mouth lifted upward in a half-grin. Then, meeting her teary gaze, his blue eyes became serious and intense. “I know there are things about me you don’t like. I know you wish I wasn’t in the industry at all, but I can’t change what I feel God is calling me to do. I’m not perfect, and we definitely carry some baggage into our relationship. But I’d really like the chance to work out our issues together and spend the next seventy-five years or so making up for my past mistakes.”

  London looked up at him, and a phrase drifted through her mind. Forgetting what things are behind and straining toward what is ahead…The entire Bible verse from Philippians played through her mind, leaving her with one certainty. She wanted Mason by her side as she ran the race God set before her. She didn’t want to go back to the person she was even yesterday. She wanted to eagerly push forward, allowing God to teach her, use her to do His will, and change her into someone who could finish the race strong.

  With utmost sincerity, she whispered, “You’re my garbage man, Mason.”

  Mason’s brow wrinkled in distaste, and he shifted his feet awkwardly, “I can’t say that’s the most romantic phrase a woman has ever said to me. Are you referring to the dumpster diving episode?”

  London laughed. “Not exactly. But trust me, it’s a very romantic thing to say!” she assured, taking both of his hands in his so he couldn’t retreat before she’d explained. “Sydney told me that no girl dreams of marrying a garbage man, but she falls in love with who the man is, not what he does. Mason, I now realize that I don’t care what job you have because I love who you are! More than that, if being an actor is what God is calling you to do, I know He will also call me to be supportive and love you through every aspect that is involved. Just like God will equip you to support me. You’re everything I never knew I needed, and I want to be by your side for whatever God has for us, wherever that may be. I know it won’t be easy, but you mean more to me than outward circumstances.”