Page 48 of Unraveling the Truth About Love
“Gorgeous,” Treat answered.
“Oh, Josh! Why didn’t you tell me that Riley hit the nail on the head?” Max pulled Riley into a tight hug.
Josh beamed.“She always hits the nail on the head.”
“Josh, what do you think? You’re the expert,” Riley said. She held her breath as he picked up the drawing, narrowed his eyes, and shook his head. Her stomach lurched, fearing he didn’t like it.
“You designed this after just talking to Max at my dad’s that day?” he asked.
“Yes,” Riley answered. “I was sort of thinking about it, and this is what came tome.”
“Satin chiffon?” Josh asked in a discerning voice. His eyes darkened as he studied the image.
“Single layered,” Riley said.
“I really like the curved shape of the neckline, the way it draws the eye to her face by narrowing as it comes down between the breasts. The single thin spaghetti straps, so feminine and natural.” He ran his hand through his hair and nodded. “I never would have thoughtto do that on a wedding gown.”
Josh seemed to really like her design, but the seriousness of his gaze and the intense scrutiny of the design left Riley feeling as if her body were made of eggshells. One wrong breath and she might fall to pieces.
“No train. Is this embroidery, appliqué, or printed, where it gathers under her chest and across the torso?” Josh asked.
“Light embroidery. Faded pastels:peaches, blues, yellows. It’s a little different.” She came to his side and pointed. Feeling the pressure of Josh’s examination, she pushed the words out as fast as they would come. “See the way it’s patterned across the bodice, but horizontally stitched? I’m thinking about one and a half inches or so, runs under the breasts and another half inch or so at the waist, then scalloped embroideryedging the lower part of the horizontal waistline.” Riley let out a fast breath in an effort to ease her tangled nerves.
“I see that, and the arc across the hips, with just the stretch of white between that and the waist.” Josh nodded.
Riley watched him, sure he was going to tell her that it was too different, or that it looked cheap.
Josh rubbed his chin, then looked at Riley, his brows stilldrawn together. “Why didn’t you go for a traditional all-white wedding gown?”
Riley had known that she was taking a big risk when she’d chosen a cream gown with pastels. She’d weighed the potential feedback in her mind before going in that direction, and the worst that might have happened would be that Max or Josh would hate the idea. As she looked at Josh, she wasn’t sure if he hated the ideaor liked the idea, and all she could do was be honest with him. She took a deep breath, trying to quell her nerves before answering.
“Ri?” Josh said.
“It’s what I felt.” She glanced at Max, then Treat. “When Max was describing what she envisioned for their wedding, she didn’t strike me as wanting a traditional wedding gown. Max has her own style, and her personality seemed more suited for awedding dress that accentuated that style. Max, I’m sorry if I misinterpreted. We can do the same dress in white.”
Max put her hand over her heart. “Me? Goodness, Riley, you hit it spot-on.”
Relief brought a smile to Riley’s lips and an excited pitch to her voice. “Really?”
“Ri, I was just asking,” Josh said. “I wasn’t judging. I wanted to know why so I could understand the process.”
He didn’tsay it’s cheap or awful!Josh turned back to the drawing, and Riley watched as his face morphed from the momentary softness, when he was explaining why he asked the question, back to the serious scrutiny as he once again pondered the design. She found his ability to switch from business mode to boyfriend mode and back again appealing. She bit her lower lip and waited for him to pepper her withmore questions.
“You carried the same pattern in the bodice as you did down the front of the skirt, from the arch of the print down,” Josh pointed out.
“Yes,” Riley said nervously. “When you look at it as a whole, it gives the impression of a summer breeze, movement, I guess. That’s what I was going for, but if you think it’s too much, I can change it.”
“No,” Max said. “Please, I love this.Josh, I assumed I’d see fifty designs of fluffy white gowns. This is so…me. It’s simple, light, airy, and I love the colors.”
“Length?” Josh asked.
Treat stood. “It looks like it doesn’t matter what length it is; you have a designer on your hands, and a really good one.”
“I have more designs,” Riley offered. She shuffled the papers. “I drew, like, twenty of them. They were so fun.”
“When didyou have time?” Josh asked.
Riley bit her lip. “I squeezed them in while I was on hold at work and on the subway.” She shrugged, watching Josh’s lips curve into a smile.
