Page 13 of Karrington

“It’s for you,” she said with a syrupy voice, handing me the phone.

My eyes rolled and heart raced. I didn’t want to talk to Karrington. The last time I heard his voice, it made me leak between my thighs, and that was a first.

“Hello?” I turned my back to Mommy, not giving her the satisfaction of being able to read my expression as we talked.

“Do you want to go to Paris, Eyela?”

“Honestly, no. I want to get one of my designers to do it.”

“Then why haven’t you?”

“It’s too short notice. They’re all booked.”

“That’s all?” I blinked. “Have your mom send me the name and contact information for whoever you want to do it. Call me when you get back to Memphis.”

“O-Okay.”

Even though he sounded confident, I wasn’t sure he’d be able to make any of them change their plans. After we disconnected the call, I handed Mommy her phone back.

“He sounds just as good as he looks. Have you seen him yet?”

My head shook as we stepped out of the dressing room. “No. I don’t want to see him until the wedding.”

“That’s romantic.”

I laughed. Romance wasn’t what I had in mind when I made the decision not to see him. Truth was, I felt a little resentment toward Karrington and his family for agreeing to join mine. Had he not, I wouldn’t be looking for a wedding dress. But I told myself, even if it wasn’t him, it would be someone else. It seemed joining with the Lowe family would be fulfilling and prosperous for mine, and I kept telling myself that made it worth it. Regardless, it was happening, and the sooner I accepted that… the better.

8

Eyela

Two Days Later

I’m not exactlysure what Karrington said or did, but Nicoletta was waiting for me at home when we made it back to Memphis with her sketchbook in hand. That evening, she sketched a few options for me to choose from. I worried about the fabric, but she assured me Karrington made it clear his resources were unlimited and that I could have whatever I wanted.

Today, she’d come back with three options for me to choose from. My friends, Tina, Faith, Zara, and Mia came over along with my favorite cousin Carma. While they snacked on charcuterie boards and baked brie and sipped wine or champagne, I tried on one dress after another. Even though the first two weren’t what I wanted, I was pleased and at peace because they were created by Nicoletta, so they were my style. By the time I made it to the third one, Mommy was entering my dressing room.

“This is the last one,” I told her, pointing to Nicoletta’s rack.

“Then it will betheone.” Her steps were light as she walked over to the rack. Pointing toward the black garment bag she asked, “What’s this?”

“I’m not sure. She didn’t mention it.”

“Hmm… Nicoletta!” It didn’t take Nicoletta much time to enter the room with a warm smile on her face. “What’s this?”

“Oh! Yes. Mr. Lowe asked me to create something in case Eyela didn’t like the other three designs.”

“Can I… see it?” I probed, running my fingers down the garment bag. My request was for a silk gown because it was my favorite material.

“Uh, sure. But it has lace.”

Nicoletta opened the bag, and I waited with bated breath. There was no part of me that believed Karrington could have asked for anything I would have liked, but I was curious about his taste. Or, at least, his taste when it came to me.

“He actually did really good, Eyela,” Nicoletta said. “He asked me what you liked then picked a sample and told me to freestyle.”

“Hmm…” Mommy said before taking a sip of her champagne.

“I asked him why he went with lace,” Nicoletta continued as I stepped toward the dress. “And he said because you were about to enter into a new phase of your life. Maybe what you liked before wouldn’t work for your wedding.”

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