Page 88 of Love Redesigned
“She did the best she could,” Alex said, cutting me off. He stalked past me into the bedroom, dropping my overnight bag onto the fluffy duvet that lay across the bed. His hands now free, he shoved them into his pockets. “It was a glamorous life. I think she got swept up in it all. Plus, I chose to live with my father. I think a part of her always resented that choice.”
“But still,” I said. A part of me knew I should let it go. Stop pushing. But the injustice of Alex’s position as an outsider in the family his own mother had been such a vital part of felt blatant. “Didn’t she fight for you? How could she exclude you like this?”
“She did the best she could,” he repeated. “And she did fight for me. For my education to be paid for, for the car, the job. She wanted me to be successful.” There was a hollow note to his words that I couldn’t help but notice. The words hewasn’tsaying almost told me more. Money, she had given him without question. But time? Attention? Acceptance? Had Alex ever gotten enough of that?
Suddenly, I understood on a deeper level why Alex had been so driven to discover Sasha’s crimes. This was about so much more than a wedding dress. It was aboutAlexsaving Alicio’s company. He wasn’t just seeking vindication. He was seeking acceptance.
Later that night, my thoughts kept returning to the family portrait in the hall.
What must it have felt like for Alex when he spoke out about troubles at LeFranc, and his girlfriend sided with the company rather than him? A knot formed in my stomach. He’d spent his entire life watching his mom choose the LeFrancs. When he’d come to me—the one person who should have been on his side no matter what—I’d defended Sasha. Told him multiple times he was overreacting.
I’d picked LeFranc. Just like his mom.
No wonder he’d left me.
I’d hurt him in the worst possible way.
It took hours for me to fall asleep. Twice I crossed the room, opening the bedroom door determined to wake Alex, who slept on the living room sofa, apologize, and tell him I finally understood why he’d left so abruptly. Both times I chickened out, closing the door and huffing back to bed. How would he react? Would he accept my apology? Would he trust me again? He’d said he never stopped wanting me. But I wanted him toloveme. Because—Paige would be happy to hear me acknowledge she’d been right all along—I had never stopped loving him.
Early the next morning, I sat on the side of the pool, my feet swirling in the cool, blue water, and called Paige. Though it was not quite seven a.m., she answered on the first ring. I sighed with relief when I heard her voice. I no longer had the guarantee that she’d be up with the children since she’d officially given up her nannying job, but I’d hoped she would answer anyway. I needed the clarity only a conversation with Paige could bring.
“Dani! How are you? How’s Florida?”
“Oh, good. I was afraid I’d woken you up.”
“Nope. Just got back from a run. Are you avoiding my question? How’s Florida?”
I’d told Paige I was simply attending the wedding with Alex, that he felt obligated to go and try and make amends with his stepfather. She still had no idea we were attempting to get back her dress. “It’s warm,” I said. “And beautiful. Alicio’s house is unbelievable. We’re staying in the pool house and even just that is amazing.”
“Have you seen Sasha yet?” Paige asked.
“No. But I promise to kick her in the shins for you when I do. How’s wedding prep going?”
“Let’s see. My job for today is to convince my mother she doesnot,eight days before the wedding, need to have the caterer add five different kinds of shrimp to the appetizer list.Five,Dani. Who needs five kinds of shrimp at one dinner?”
“A Pinckney, of course,” I answered in an exaggerated Southern drawl.
“Yeah, yeah. So seriously. How has it been? How are you and Alex?” she asked.
I told her about the portrait I’d seen hanging in the pool house bedroom, as well as the chilly reception we’d received from Victor. “It all seems so clear now,” I concluded. “When I saw that portrait with him not in it, everything that happened between us made a new kind of sense. I was never fair to him, Paige. I didn’t mean to do it, but in his eyes, I chose LeFranc over him. It was the worst kind of betrayal.”
“So what are you going to do about it?”
“I have to tell him how I feel. Convince him that I recognize now that there’s more to life than fashion. That I’m not willing to put my career over the people who are most important in my life.”
“Do you think he still cares about you?” Paige asked gently. “I’m with you a hundred percent, Dani, but I don’t want you to get hurt again.”
“No, he does. He’s...he’s told me he does.”
She squealed. “Then go get him! Find a way to tell him. The sooner, the better.”
Three hours later, Alex and I leaned on the counter of the pool house kitchen and went over our plans for the day.
First, find Sasha. Ingratiate myself enough that she’ll allow me to assist her until the wedding.
Second, find the right moment to swap out the dress, relying on Chase who, after arriving as the most obnoxiously early wedding guest ever, will rendezvous with Alex to get the replacement dress and bring it to me to facilitate the swap.
Finally, meet Isaac, on standby with the floral delivery van, at the back door with Paige’s dress. Make sure Alex knows so that at the same time, he can find Alicio, tell him everything he discovered about Sasha/Sally Mabel Rivers, and provide proof of her embezzlement.
