Page 38 of Overtime
“Excuse me, miss? Are we ready to start?” Mom asks the attendant, who comes with a steaming cup of tea for me.
“Oh, thank you.” I accept the mug and bring it close to my face. Peppermint. Not my favorite, but it’ll do.
“Yes, we’re ready and so happy you have chosen us for your big day.” The woman smiles so wide her face must hurt. “Between one daughter getting married and the other one expecting, you must be so happy, Mrs. Berkley.”
“Wha—” Mom turns to Meg, as if doing the math. Here’s the one daughter getting married. But who’s the one expecting? Then she turns to me and screeches. “Madeline! Are you freaking pregnant?”
I rasp out a laugh. “Goodness, no.” I haven’t even found a willing man to kiss me more than once. Forget about sex.
“Then what is this all about?”
The attendant’s smile drops into an abyss, and with it goes all the color from her face. “Oh my gosh. I amsosorry. I just thought…” As she trails off, she looks pointedly at my stomach.
Mom presses her lips tight and casts her patented disapproving state. Famous in at least two states. “Maddie, this is why I begged you to lose weight before the wedding.”
“Mom!”
Meg clears her throat. “How about we change into the first option, huh?”
“You two go ahead. I’ll drink my tea first.”
“Maddie!”
“Let’s go, Mom. Maddie looks really pale and probably needs a moment to feel better.” Meg stands up, pulling at Mom’s arm. “I’ll try on the first dress and then you two try yours. How about that?”
Bless her. My sister is the only person who has seen me faint from my cramps, and ever since, she’s been a true believer in just how severe my pain is.
Mom grumbles something and stands up. But a second later, she turns to the attendant. “Please inform me if my youngest here attempts to make a run for it, you got it?”
“Yes, ma’am.” The woman gives me a wince, which I guess is all the apology I’ll get.
They leave me to my tea for a bit. It apparently takes Mom and the shop’s employee to help Meg wrestle into one dress, which I can already tell won’t be the right one. If it will take Justin that much effort to take it off, it won’t work.
The tea is really potent, but it warms up my insides and eases the tightness in my muscles, giving me enough strength to remove my coat, scarf, and hat. I leave them scattered on the sofa, along with my bag, and heft myself up. Slowly, I walk over to the party but stop when Mom rushes out, all emotional.
“Oh, Maddie. You sister looks so beautiful.”
But beautiful is not enough to describe it. Meg comes out in this concoction of fluttery, feather-soft white fabric that drapes around her torso like a second skin. It cascades down her hips in a twist that doesn’t seem accidental. As she moves, the twist remains intact and shimmers under the light. Megan’s natural fiery red hair streams over her delicate shoulders. I don’t know whether it’s the exertion or that she’s in her feels too, but her cheeks and her pointy nose are as red as apples.
She looks majestic. Ethereal. Soft, but at the same time strong.
Dang, maybe this isthedress. Justin will have to be patient.
“Oh, wow.”
“You look stunning, Miss Berkley,” the attendant says, and this time it’s a genuine compliment.
Meg sighs when she looks at herself in the mirror, a soft smile playing on her lips. “I love this dress. But I’m curious about how the next one will fit.”
Slowly, I pull out my phone. “Wait, let me take pictures. We can compare more easily that way.”
“Oh, smart.” Meg winks at me through the mirror.
I snap a few pictures from different angles, although it takes me a long while to do so with how slowly I move.
“Okay, okay. You’re stalling now.” Mom pushes me into the next dressing room. “Please bring the extraextra-large bridesmaid dresses.”
“Mom, she knows which ones to bring. You don’t have to be extraextraclear,” I say with a whine.
