Page 238 of Redeemed

Nodding, he places it next to me on the bed. The skirt poufs out a bit instead of laying completely flat, and I run my hand over the soft material. Silk, maybe?

“A friend helped pick it out,” Colton says. “She has great taste.”

I look up from the dress. “She?”

His smile is amused, although there’s a note of pain, too. “Charlotte is in her sixties, angel.”

“Oh.”

“I’m sorry I’m throwing you into this, and I’m sorry I scared you.” He kisses the top of my head. “I just really need you to put the dress on.”

I almost make a comment about how I never wear white, but I bite my tongue. He’s not the one who picked the dress out, and Charlotte probably doesn’t know much about my fashion choices.

Once I’m closed in the bathroom, I quickly slip the dress on. It’s gorgeous. The lacy off-the-shoulder top leads into three-quarter length sleeves that make me look much more elegant than I ever thought I could. Underneath the lace stretching across my chest is the silky white fabric that starts in a sweetheart neckline and continues all the way into the skirt. There are a few layers of tulle underneath to give it some shape, and then it cuts off just above my knees.

I frown at my reflection in the mirror, and my fingers trace over the sparkly embellishment at my waistline. Am I crazy for thinking this looks like a wedding dress?

Regardless, I can’t wear something like this without putting on a little makeup. I expect Colton to knock on the door and tell me to hurry up, but I even have time to do my hair without a single word from him.

When I step out of the bathroom, he’s typing on his phone, but the second he sees me, he drops it onto the bed.

I clear my throat, barely managing to keep my head high under his burning gaze. “I don’t have shoes to go with—”

He hands me a pair of simple white heels and then holds out his arm. Hesitantly, I grab onto it for balance while I slip on the shoes.

Once I have them on, Colton steps back. With his head tilted, he takes me in. I swear his voice is a little hoarse as he says, “Perfect.”

“You’re acting really weird, you know that?”

He smirks. “Says the girl who grew up in a cult.”

“Hey!” But I’m not mad. We’ve fallen back into the friendly banter we used to have with each other, and his teasing only ever warms my heart.

Colton collects his phone and something from his nightstand drawer that I can’t make out. “Let’s go.”

I follow him downstairs and into the garage. He selects hisLamborghini and helps me into the passenger seat. As he does, I try to get a good look at whatever is in his hand, but he drops it into his pants pocket and shuts the door.

Dammit.Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s a clue to whatever is going on, but as usual, Colton is choosing to be frustratingly vague.

Once he’s in the driver’s seat, he glances over at me and frowns. “Seatbelt, angel.”

I’m too fixated on the object he just slipped into his pocket, running through ideas of what it could be in my head. When Colton leans over me, I’m snapped back into reality. His arm brushes mine as he grabs the seatbelt, and when he pulls it over my body, I’m hyper-aware of how close he is to me. His eyes meet mine as he clicks the seatbelt into place.

“Much better,” he says, lips barely an inch from mine.

Speechless, I watch him turn on the car and pull out of the garage. It takes me multiple minutes to gather my thoughts, and by then, we’re well out of his neighborhood and on our way into town.

“So… Charlotte,” I say.

“What about her?”

“Who is she to you? You called her a friend, but most men in their twenties aren’t friends with women in their sixties.”

“She’s the closest thing I have to a mother.” Colton’s voice is laced with pain, and I realize he’s not trying to hide it from me. “When my mom died, Char stepped in to help raise me. As I grew up, my father’s morals eroded, and I credit her with saving me from a similar fate.”

“So she’s a good person?”

“I don’t know about that, but she’s always been good to me.”

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