“Uh…” I turned to Hayley absolutely mortified. “Hayley, what’s this?”
Hayley turned around and screamed like she’d been attacked by a bear.
“That’s not the dress!” Hayley shouted.
“But that’s the dress that arrived in the store. A lovely young man delivered it himself the day before yesterday because it got delayed at the airport.
“What did this lovely young man look like?” I said through gritted teeth as I turned and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked like I was about to go on stage as an orange in some fruit ball pantomime.
“Tall, good looking.” I knew exactly who the woman was talking about before Hayley showed her a picture to confirm it.
“Is this him?” Hayley asked the woman.
“I cannot say,” the woman said. “I wasn’t here to take the delivery; my other assistant was here on that day. I was just telling you how she described him.”
“That son of a bitch!” Hayley spat. “This is the last straw.” She looked at me. “Get out of the hideous thing. You look like Bo Peep that just had a fight with a bucket of orange paint.”
“I can’t believe he’d do this,” I hissed and stormed into the changing room.
“I can,” Hayley seethed. “We need to fix this.” She ordered the shop assistant to bring all the bridesmaid dresses she had in soft rose pink.
While the shop assistant piled the dressing room with dresses, I changed as quickly as I could and paraded them to Hayley. She had that look in her eye that was a mixture of anger and a thirst for revenge.
I actually felt a little sorry for Damon, but whatever Hayley was planning, Damon had it coming to him.
I eventually found the most stunning soft dusty pink dress. It had off the shoulder straps and bandage bodice that dipped into a soft V in the front slightly below my collar bones. The tight bodice slightly flared from the waist to float softly around my hips and gently taper to just above my knees. The dress was made out of satin and felt amazing as it caressed my skin.
“Oh, Carla,” Hayley sipped her third glass of champagne. “That is definitely the one.”
“Are you sure?” I asked Hayley.
“Oh, yes,” Hayley nodded. “Do you have any shoes?” She asked the assistant.
“We do,” the woman told Hayley. “My dear, that dress looks like it was made for you.” She told me before going off to get some shoes in the size Hayley ordered for me.
“I have to say that I think Damon’s plans to sabotage you has really backfired,” Hayley smiled wickedly.
“What are you up to?” I asked Hayley as I tried on a pair of one-inch strappy heels that go perfectly with the dress.
Hayley’s other two bridesmaids turned up for the fittings and were appalled to see what Damon had done. After all the fittings had finished, the five of us headed off for lunch.
***
It was only Hayley and I left at the restaurant we’d had lunch in. We were finishing off the bottle of wine and waiting for the bill when Damon walked in with the French woman from the previous night. He did not look happy. The waiter showed them to a table where an older man was sitting. Damon greeted the man amicably but he hardly acknowledged the woman.
Typical Damon! I thought.
“What the hell is she doing here?” Hayley whispered.
“Doesn’t she have the right to be here with her husband?” I asked Hayley.
“She’s not married to the old man,” Hayley told me. “She’s Damon’s ex-girlfriend who tried to trap him into marriage.”
“Excuse me?” My brows creased in confusion. “She arrived last night while we were closing up the lounge and accused Damon of leaving her alone and pregnant in Paris.”
“No,” Hayley shook her head. “She pretended to be pregnant so her father would make Damon marry her.” Hayley finished off her wine as the waiter brought the bill.
“I’ll get this,” I told Hayley and put my credit card in the sleeve and told the waiter to add a large tip before she could argue.
“Not sure what she’s doing here now,” Hayley frowned. “I hope she’s not coming to the wedding.” She shook her head as we slid out of the booth when the waiter brought my card back.
“Let’s not let it ruin the rest of our day,” I smiled. “We have our spa treatment tomorrow.”
“I am so looking forward to that,” Hayley sighed, “I have been so on edge. I just want to have some pampering.”
“And you deserve it,” I linked my arm through Hayley’s as we walked to the parking lot to get the car.
“We both do,” Hayley patted my hand.
CHAPTER 14
Damon
“You really know how to attract them.” Drew widened his eyes as he looked at me in the mirror.
“Her father was so embarrassed that she’d flown here,” I explained to Drew. “Can you believe she landed on my parents’ doorstep with a sob story and telling them she was pregnant and I ran away.”