“Gimme a sec to help this customer,” Brea said when she saw a woman browsing in the shoe nook.
I nodded with a smile and turned my attention toward the dresses.
Even though I’d been planning weddings for the last four years, wedding dresses were not my forte. I admired the brass racks divided by dress style: A-line, ball gown, fit and flare, mermaid, sheath and trumpet.
I was in awe of the spectacular gallery of fabrics. This could be heaven. After I touched dozens of gowns, I decided a silk sheath or mermaid style was totally me. If I were ever to get married.If…
My heart ached over what might have been had Will not ruined everything. But I shook those sad, pathetic thoughts from my head and turned my attention to the glamorous showroom.
There were over three hundred dresses before me. I imagined women searching for the gown of their dreams. When they found it, a bell would ring and happy cries of YES would follow.
Thus far today, no one had rung the brass bell.
I began to feel melancholy after I fawned over dozens of gowns.
Brea was wrapping up with the customer. She smiled, holding up a finger, and mouthed, “One more minute.” I appreciated her concern but I wasn’t put out by her helping a customer. We could always go over the customer files after lunch if need be.
Soon I’d drown my sorrows in a juicy burger, but I’d prefer a vodka cranberry instead.
Brea and I were sitting in a lively diner a few miles south of Radiance.Between the boisterous laughter from the table behind us and the grease clogging my pores, I happily relaxed into my seat. Nobody knew me here.
“I eat here a couple of times a month with friends.” Brea smiled before sipping her soda. “We love this place. I guess you could say it’s a college student’s dream.”
“It’s fantastic. I’ve been craving a burger ever since I got into town.” I looked around the small establishment. “So how long have you worked at Radiance?”
“Only six months. I love it.”
“And what are you studying in college?”
“English. I want to teach high school English.”
“Teaching is a wonderful occupation. Making a difference in the lives of children is so honorable. I would never have the patience for working with kids… especially teens.” But my mom sure had a knack for it.
“My parents are both teachers. Dad teaches American History and my mom is at the elementary school. She teaches fourth graders. But I’m the only one of us kids following in their footsteps. My older brothers opened a construction business.”
“Nice.”
Our number was called over the speaker, and Brea hopped up to retrieve our food. The more I surveyed this place, the more I liked it. It was just the event planner in me to size it up for a potential venue. This place screamed “bachelor party.” It was basically your typical burger joint with hardwood floors, white Formica tabletops and—
“I hope you’re hungry.” Brea set a tray in front of me with monster-size burgers and skinny fries on it.
“Skinny fries?”
“Yup, they’re the bomb! Have you had them before?”
Do I answer truthfully?
“I’m more of a crinkle-cut fry person,” I lied. This wasn’t In-N-Out. I would do anything for an Animal Style burger and cheese fries. Last week my appetite had returned, which totally sucked since there wasn’t anIn-N-Outin Spokane. I wished I had stopped at the one in Redding. While not the biggest mistake of my life, it may prove to be the stupidest. Dang, I wanted an Animal Style burger.
“I like any kind of fries, like my brother Owen. But Derek is a cheesy fry guy. What do you think?” Brea bobbed her eyebrows, taking a giant bite of her burger.
“It looks great.” I popped a skinny fry in my mouth and nodded my head. “Not bad. I like skinny fries, but I was sure a place like this would have crinkle-cut.”
“You can find those at Zips. If you want a ton of fries, order the bucket with fry sauce. Sometimes that’s all I order there.”
“Fry sauce? Tell me more… and where can I find this Zips?”
While Brea talked about the “addictive” fry sauce, my mind wandered back to In-N-Out.I remembered when Will and I went there the night of our first date. When I had ordered my burger Animal Style, he had looked at me like I had horns growing out of my head.“Animal Style? I don’t see it,”he’d said in a low voice, his dark-brown eyes searching the menu.