“I got what I needed,” Deb grouses. “This morning when my lawyer called to tell me it was done and done and Jackson wouldn’t be a part of my life anymore.”
“That’s your mistake,” Donna informs her sister as they both follow me over to the side of the boutique where I keep all the clothing from my independent designers. Some people gasp at the price tag, so I like to prepare people with my little talk of how this stuff is all hand made. For many people, this is their means of making a living. It’s like wearing someone’s art, and I think that’s worth a higher price tag. “Marrying a guy named Jackson. I told you that no one named Jackson could be trusted.”
“You say that about every single guy.”
“Only the ones you meet because they’re all terrible.”
I expect a tither and a bit of a tussle- at least verbally, but instead both women, who I’m now more sure than ever are sisters, just giggle together happily. Apparently nothing is going to spoil Deb’s good mood.
“It really does start out all good,” Deb says as she takes a step forward to insect the racks and displays of clothing. “They sucker you in, let you think that they’re hung the bloody moon itself. They say all the right things. Do all the right things. You know it’s too good to be true, but you still get suckered into it anyway because they’re just so- so charming. They’re so wonderful. So different from any other guy that you’ve ever met. They feel so right, like it’s meant to be.”
My heart is starting to pound and I feel vaguely sick. I’m half wondering if this is the first signs of morning sickness- finally- or if it’s really just what Deb is saying that’s getting to me, because wasn’t I just thinking exactly the same thing before they came in?
“Meant to be,” Donna scoffs. She holds up a daring red dress that plunges low in the front and at the back. It’s a beautiful piece, but Deb shakes her head. “That’s too much boobage and buttage. I’m going out to celebrate, not to attract attention so that I can repeat my mistakes all over again.
I don’t tell her that anything and everything in this section will attract attention, for the cut, quality, and uniqueness of the designs. I want to make a sale, but I also don’t want to appear snarky. I think it might be better just to listen right now. Both sisters seem perfectly okay with me standing there. I try not to hover like a pushy salesperson or make it obvious that I want to know more about what Deb was saying. About what went wrong. Like everyone else, I guess I want to know when the train wreck started, but unlike everyone else, I only want to know so I can potentially avoid one of my own.
“The thing is, you can’t just fall in love after a day or two,” Donna admonishes. “That’s where you went wrong. You’re too trusting. You give your heart away too quickly.”
Deb groans. “You’re right. But I did get two beautiful children out of the bargain, so how can I regret anything?”
“You might be right about that, but falling for someone after the first date… It’s never a good idea. You can never fully know someone, but you really can’t know them if you have your googly goggle eyes on for them right from the start. Everyone is flawed. You just wouldn’t listen to me and mom when we tried to tell you that.”
Deb sniffs in her sister’s direction and slowly reaches for an elegant, emerald green dress. It’s very understated, but I know it would look gorgeous on her. “I didn’t fall in love with him right away. That’s not how it went. Yes, I thought we were a good match. Yes, I thought he was impossibly nice and caring. Yes, I guess maybe he suckered me in a little, but it wasn’t a catfish or anything. He didn’t go from being so nice one second to being a complete bastard the next. It took time. Years. You know that.”
“He still changed his zebra stripes real fast.”
“That’s a stupid saying. Oh! That one!” Deb points to a sleek black dress with a huge bow on the side. It’s not what I would have picked out for her. Decidedly vintage looking, it’s also very classy. More for a five star, expensive dinner kind of date, but if she loves it, good on her. She grabs for the hanger, tucking it in her hand beside the green one. “Anyway, he might have changed, but maybe I did too.”
“Yeah, for the better.” Donna’s words are terribly dry, to match her tone. She rolls her eyes even though her sister isn’t paying attention. “It starts out slow, though, maybe you’re right. I remember how it went. How all of a sudden he was missing doctor appointments when you were pregnant with Liam. There was always some excuse. Half of them were made up, then he was missing everything, then he was going out of town for work, which was really code for leaving you home alone to look after two kids while he was screwing a mistress half his age. How token.”