23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Evie

The bell on the door rings as I rush through the entrance of the bridal shop.

"I'm so sorry I'm late," I immediately say, but I stop and gasp as I see Jess standing on the platform. Tears burn the back of my eyes. "Jessica! You look breathtaking."

Her eyes are glassy, too, and her facial expression is soft as she meets my eyes through the mirror.

I look around and see my mom, Lenny, and Penny all sitting looking at Jessica with smiles on their faces.

Jessica is stunning. I don't have to wait long before the expression on her face changes .

"Soooo," Jess coos. "Tell us about you and Jamie. We are dying to hear about everything, especially after that kiss last night."

"I thought the ice was going to melt," Penny teases. A sparkle in her eye.

I feel my face start to heat, and I wave a hand across my face. "Is it warm in here?"

Laughter fills the room, and my mom gets up to give me a kiss on the cheek and then helps me with my coat.

"Let's all bask in Jessica's beauty a bit before we grill Evie, shall we?"

"Mom!" I scold without any bitterness in my tone, grateful for the time to settle in.

Since rushing out of Espresso Yourself, I've been on a high. I need a few minutes to let the adrenaline work its way through my body and process everything that's happened in the last twelve hours.

I look up at Jess and see her staring at me through the mirror. The smirk on her face says she is not letting me leave today without getting all the details. I grin in response.

"Oh, thank goodness," she says. "There's the Evie we all know and love. I wasn't sure how much longer I could handle the grumpy version."

"Hey," I yell, while everyone else laughs.

"Oh, Jessica." Lenny stares at her daughter with glassy eyes. "Sean is not going to be able to take his eyes off of you. You look magnificent."

Jess wipes the corner of her eye and smiles at her mom. "I don't recognize who this person in the mirror is," she whispers.

We all sit in silence as we watch Madelyn look over her work to see if anything needs to be adjusted, but the work she's done is beyond reproach.

She finally stops and looks over Jessica's shoulder. "Now for the piece de resistance." She walks over to the dress rack and pulls out the veil, and we all let out a collective gasp.

She walks over to Jess and places this delicate piece of lace gently on the top of her head. The veil falls to her waist in both the front and back. The fabric has the same intricate berry design as the dress.

Tears run down my face at the sight of my best friend. I can see tears running down Jessica's face too.

"Guess we'll have to make sure the makeup is waterproof," Lenny jokes as she dabs at her eyes.

"On all of us," my mom throws in, and we all chuckle.

She's not wrong. There isn't a dry eye in the house, except for Madelyn.

An image of me in a wedding dress, holding my dad's arm as I walk down the aisle toward Jamie, fills my mind. My lips lift at the corner, and my heart jumps around my chest like a bird trying to escape its cage.

"Everything looks perfect." Madelyn's voice breaks through my haze of thoughts, and I hear her unzip Jessica's gown. "Let's get you out of this dress."

I look in the mirror and see the wide smiles on everyone's faces as they all look at the bride. This moment is absolutely perfect, and there is a part of me that doesn't want to take the focus off of her and put it on me.

"Don't think you're off the hook, Evie," Jessica yells over her shoulder. "When I come out, you are giving us every single little detail!"

"Every single little one?" I ask with a raised eyebrow, teasing her.

I notice her face scrunch as she remembers that those details would involve her brother. "Okay. Maybe not every single one."

Everyone laughs, and Penny leans in to whisper, "You can give me every single little detail. He's not my brother."

"Penny!" I throw my head back and laugh as she winks at me.

Lenny and my mom are talking amongst each other about the tree-trimming party that Jessica and Sean are having while we wait for Jessica to come out of the dressing room.

Normally, all of our trees are up and decorated right after Thanksgiving, but with the wedding and all the parties Sean and Jess have been having, neither of theirs has been decorated yet.

not to get a tree, since after the wedding he'll be at Jessica's house and they'll wake up Christmas morning as Mr. & Mrs.

I raise my hand to my heart as an internal ‘aww' fills me. When Jess and Sean first told me they were getting married Christmas Eve, I thought they were crazy, but now I totally see the appeal of it.

Every year, this holiday will be doubly special for my Christmas-loving brother. It honestly couldn't be more perfect.

They couldn't be more perfect.

"Okay, everyone, circle up," Jessica says bossily as she comes out of the dressing room. "Madelyn doesn't have anyone coming in until twelve-thirty. We have plenty of time to hear about Evie and Jamie now."

The smile she sends my way is filled with all kinds of mischief, and I feel my cheeks starting to heat as everyone stares at me expectantly.

I move my gaze from each of them and feel my heart start to pound. I swallow hard.

Wow, this is going to be awkward.

"It won't be awkward at all, Evie." Jessica smirks. "We all knew about you and Jamie already, remember?"

I run my hand over my face, shake my head, and let out a sigh of laughter.

"It's true," everyone chimes in.

"Why don't you start with what happened when he left," Madelyn says. My eyebrows lift, and I stare at her with my mouth agape. She chuckles at me and pushes my mouth closed with a finger. "Sweetie, Willow Falls doesn't have any secrets, and I want this scoop firsthand."

I look around at all the faces intently staring at me and blurt out the first thing that comes to my mind.

"Did you know that Jamie being away for six months was just training?" When every single one of their mouths drops open, I feel a tiny bit of satisfaction knowing that Jamie will be grilled just as much as I am right now. "Yup. He knew that when he was finished, he could decide to work wherever he wanted, if they decided to hire him permanently."

"He definitely didn't tell me that!" Lenny balks. "How could he make his mother suffer like that!?"

I nod my head vehemently at her words. "Right? He just told me that little tidbit this morning. When I thought about how awful I felt over the last six months, and he knew, knew , he could come back home, I almost kicked his shin under the table."

"Evelyn O'Connell!" My mother berates me as everyone laughs.

"What?" I turn to her with an eyebrow raised and my mouth in a firm line. "Are you saying that he didn't deserve that small ounce of pain?"

"No, dear," she laughs and grabs my forearm. "He definitely did. I just know you would never do that."

I sigh. "You're right, I wouldn't have. But it was fun to think about for a moment."

All of them throw their heads back and laugh.

"I can't wait to see Jamie squirm his way out of that when mom talks to him later," Jessica says. Her eyes twinkle as she looks at Lenny. "But now let's talk about the other stuff. That kiss last night makes me think you made up and are an official item. Am I right?"

"They need a nickname," Penny says excitedly.

"Yes," I say.

"Hmmm….now I have to come up with some ideas." Penny tilts her head and starts thinking.

"Yes, we are official." I look at Penny directly and add. "And no, we don't need a nickname."

I can't help but laugh at the disappointment that comes over her face.

I start to tell them what happened from the moment that Jamie told me he was leaving to everything he told me this morning at Espresso Yourself.

Before we know it, the bell over the door chimes, and Madelyn's next bride has arrived.

We grab Jessica's gown along with the bridesmaids' gowns, thank Madelyn for all of her help, and head out.

The cold air hits my face as soon as I step outside, and I'm glad that I remembered a hat.

"Evie, you're coming with us for lunch, right?" Jessica asks as she grabs my elbow and walks to the car. Her question wasn't really a request but a demand. I don't mind.

"Of course! What else would I be doing for the rest of the day?" I tease and nudge her with my hip.

For the first time in more than half a year, I actually want to spend time with the people I love. It feels good to be me again.