Page 82 of Wedding Season
Mariella froze like a deer caught in the crosshairs of a hunter’s rifle. She’d tried to keep the work she was doing for Alex behind the scenes, but she had a feeling Amber knew. Amber also clearly didn’t like the idea of two people she’d left as debris in her wake finding their way to each other and creating something new.
“Did you think I wasn’t aware of your involvement with Alex and his company?” Amber’s words landed like shards of glass against Mariella’s skin. “I saw him just last night when we got to town.” Her smile turned benevolent. “Of course I rang him right away. We were so close once upon a time, and there are no hard feelings between us. Or secrets. I’m sure not everyone can say that about a former lover.”
Mariella felt Angi surge forward and put up a hand to block her. She wouldn’t jeopardize anything about this weekend, no matter how much she wanted to punch Amber right in her creamy throat.
“Did you mention to Alex that you wanted to be a part of the fashion show? It’s his company.”
“I’ve had so much on my mind,” Amber said with a practiced hair toss, “and we focused on catching up on a personal level.” She wrinkled her pert nose. “That’s how it goes with the ones you never forget. Time fades away in an instant. I’m sure you know what I mean.”
“I don’t know what you mean,” Emma said stiffly. “Perhaps you could explain in exactly what context you and Alex had your little tete-a-tete last night?” Amber’s eyes narrowed slightly. In the circles in which she traveled, no one would dare question or challenge her in any way.
Mariella loved her friends, and in her truest heart, she knew Alex wouldn’t have spoken badly about her to Amber. She believed without a doubt that he wasn’t pining for his lost love.
He’d told Mariella he liked her. He’d shown her in a hundred other ways that his feelings went far deeper, but they never talked about anything more than “like” or discussed the time frame beyond the generic “being together.”
He hadn’t asked her to think about considering Luann’s position now that the older woman was well and truly gone. Maybe he didn’t want her that involved in his life. Maybe he was still holding a part of himself back.
She wouldn’t blame him. In some ways, she’d been doing the same thing. So why did her heart ache?
“Ultimately,” she told Amber, “the decision rests with Alex.”
“Then I’m as good as the star of the show.” The director called her over at that point, and she practically skipped away, her work done for the moment.
“Who should I contact about the pieces Ms. Turner will wear for the fashion show?” the assistant asked, her words landing with all the finesse of a fart in Sunday service.
“You should not...this is ridiculous,” Angi muttered.
“I’ll handle it,” Mariella told the assistant. “Give me your phone, and I’ll put in my contact information. It doesn’t look like Amber’s measurements have changed since I fitted her for a wedding gown. I should be able to come up with something for her.”
The girl looked chagrined as she handed over her phone to Mariella but said in a calm voice, “She’s going to want to be the star.”
That wasn’t a joke. “I understand,” Mariella agreed, also certain the weekend would be more difficult than she could have imagined.
ALEXWATCHEDMARIELLAstride toward him across the town square and his heart gave an extra thump inside his chest.
In truth, it was more than a thump. Each time he saw her, his chest felt as though it was filled with a herd of thundering mustangs. Ever since she’d made her public declaration, his walls had been coming down swift and sure.
He could put a name on what he felt for her even if he hadn’t shared it yet.
Love.
He was in love with Mariella Jacob, the head-over-heels kind of all-encompassing emotion. But he wanted to wait until after this weekend to tell her. The festival would be over. Amber and the rest of the Hollywood crew gone from Magnolia and, hopefully, out of his life for good.
That’s when he would tell Mariella he loved her. She’d need some time to adjust. It would freak her out, but he was a patient man. He’d wait as long as she needed to wrap her mind and heart around the idea that he wanted to be with her. Only her.
She’d accused him of being a white-picket-fence type of man. Maybe he was, but only if that fence had her waiting on the other side. He didn’t care about the details. They could figure those out as they went along as long as they were on the journey together—forever if she’d have him.
He smiled as she drew closer but his smile faded as he noticed the tightness around her mouth and the corners of her brilliant blue eyes. She’d had a meeting with the cast and crew from the movie at the inn today. If Amber had done something to mess with Mariella, Alex was going to have a word with his former fiancée.
“How was it?” he asked when she was almost directly in front of him. He didn’t want to assume things had gone badly at the inn. Maybe she’d been stuck behind a slow-moving tractor on the way into town. He knew she loved to drive fast.
“Where were you last night?” she demanded, not bothering to answer his question.
“You know where I was.” He studied her, trying to unwrap the puzzle in her gaze. “I spent some time with Bex and then came to your house late after she’d settled for the night.”
They’d had plenty of time working together recently, but it had felt important to spend one last night with her before the craziness of the festival weekend started.
Mariella crossed her arms over her chest. “Is there a woman you’re leaving out of the equation?”
