Fatal Impulse: A Widow's Web Novel (14 page)

A
ndi pushed through the front door of the Black Sails Diner and paused for a moment to let her eyes adjust after the harsh glare of the midday sun. She spotted Dana at a table in the back, studying a menu. The tinkle of the brass bell above the door sounded as the door swung closed behind Andi. Dana looked up and waved, a wide grin splitting her face.

"You look like the cat that ate the canary." Before Andi even sat down, she narrowed her eyes and smiled. "What's up?"

The redhead grinned and held out her hand, palm down and wiggled her fingers. There, on her ring finger, was a beautiful round solitaire.

“Oh, my God! He proposed! You’re getting married!” Andi turned to the woman at the next table and thumped her on the arm, “Hey! My best friend just got engaged!”

Several people in the small restaurant smiled and clapped and offered their congratulations. Pink crept
up Dana’s cheeks and she shushed Andi, while she thanked the well-wishers and ducked her head in embarrassment. Andi sat down across from her and grinned. Jill Price, their waitress, sashayed over and congratulated her, too, before taking their orders.

“You are such a goof!” Dana said, shaking her red locks in mock disgust, but the look on her face belied her thrill at the fuss being made.

“Hey, we gotta make a big deal of this. We’ve got to go celebrate and,” Andi looked around at the cheesy pirate-themed diner filled with tourists, leaned forward and whispered, “
this
is not the place to celebrate. Let’s meet after work and go out.”

She shook her head and said, “I can’t. I’m meeting Derek tonight for dinner. We’re going to tell his parents tonight.”

Though Andi's feelings of good will toward her friend were genuine, she felt a niggle of fear that her best friend would be caught up in her new life, with no time left for friendships. In spite of her misgivings, she gushed, “Oh, my God. I don’t believe this! So, tell me, how’d he do it?”

Dana's grin widened as she related the story, “We’d gone out to dinner at the Clifftop. " A shadow crossed her face and she paused in mid-thought.

Andi made a rolling motion with her hand and smiled. "It's okay. Go ahead."

"It was wonderful, we were both drinking wine and laughing, just a perfect night. After we ate, he suggested we go for a walk. I figured he just wanted to walk before driving because we’d both had a drink with dinner. He started getting all mushy, telling me how much he loved me, and I told him I’d better drive home because I thought he’d had one too many.”

Andi laughed – she could picture it, and could just imagine how nervous Derek had been. He was always such a clown, it would have been hard for him to do something so serious. The two of them seemed so in love. Hopefully it would last longer for them than it had for her and Chad.

Dana continued, “He bent down and started messing around with his sock and I tugged on his arm, thinking he was being really weird, but he pulled a little blue velvet box out of his sock and told me I’d make him the happiest man in the world if I’d marry him!”

“Oh, wow. In his sock, huh?” Andi took her friend's hand and examined the sparkling gem. “And I’m guessing you liked the ring so you said yes?”

She laughed. “Of course I said yes! I said yes before he even got the box open. He’s finally making an honest woman of me!”

They had been living together for months, largely due to the economics of sharing one household when they were always together anyway, and Dana had confessed during one of her and Andi's Saturday morning coffee dates that she didn’t think they’d ever get married. “Have you talked about a date? The location? Colors?”

Dana ducked her head and pretended to examine the menu. “We’re not going to do a big church wedding since it’s a second marriage for him and I’m older than the traditional bride-“

“Bullshit!” Andi looked up just as Jill arrived with the food and felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. She lowered her eyes and murmured, “Sorry.”

"Shoot!" Jill set their plates down and waved her hand. "Honey, I've heard worse!"

Andi pulled the tomato off her tuna salad and Dana pulled the pickles off her sandwich. They traded. Dana stuck the tomato in her sandwich and went back to wedding talk. “Let’s face it, I am older than the traditional bride, and with Mom and Dad gone, I just don’t want to do the big church wedding, so we’re thinking about going to Atlantic City.”

“Seriously? Like an Elvis wedding or one of those little chapels?”

Dana waved that idea off quickly. “No! Of course not! But remember the wedding pictures I showed you of that attorney that used to work in our office?”

Her portraits were gorgeous, with the waves rolling onto the beach, the wedding party standing in sand, and a boardwalk behind them. Most of all, the pinks and oranges and reds of the sunset made the bride absolutely glow.

Andi shook her head. “That couldn’t have been A.C.”

She grinned. “Sure was. And we can do a package deal, so it won’t be as expensive as a big church wedding, and that way we can put our money towards that farmhouse we’ve been looking at on the cove.”

Memories of Andi's own wedding flashed through her mind. The extravagance of the affair had highlighted the differences between her family and Chad's. Her mother couldn't afford it, but Chad's mother insisted and paid. Of course, that also meant that she planned the event. Maybe Dana had the right idea, keeping it simple. “Wow. You’ve thought this through.”

Dana continued to talk about Atlantic City, and the chapels and hotels, while Andi half-listened. Images of the vaulted ceilings of the cathedral, the sunlight filtering through the stained glass windows, and all Andi's hopes and dreams -- it seemed so perfect at the time. When Chad slipped that gold ring on her finger, she thought it was happily-ever-after come true. And now her finger bore the marks of wearing that ring for the past six years. Even with the ring off, the faint indentation remained as a reminder of her marriage.

Dana’s voice broke Andi's reverie. “Hey! You tuned me out!”

The corners of Andi's mouth twitched up. “I’m sorry. Just zoned out for a moment.”

“Thinking about Chad?” Dana rested her elbows on the table.

Andi looked down and nodded.

“I thought so.” Dana gestured towards her friend's left hand. “I noticed you’re not wearing your wedding ring anymore.”

Andi rubbed the dented area on her ring finger and shrugged. “It was time to take it off.”

Dana brightened and said, “Hey, I've already talked to Kelly Anderson about being my wedding planner. Are you free Friday afternoon to go for an appointment?"

"She owns Blissful Beginnings, right?" Andi took a sip of iced tea.

"Yes, and she's agreed to find me a gorgeous vintage gown."

Andi smiled. "That is so you." She pushed down the worry about money. How could she afford a bridesmaid dress, a gift, all the other stuff that came along with a wedding?

Dana grinned. "I know, right?"

Friday afternoon, the girls met at Blissful Beginnings, located in a quaint little white cottage just west of the harbor. The sisters who owned the business built up quite a reputation for putting together weddings on a budget, featuring "pre-enjoyed" dresses. While Kelly selected dresses that met Dana's style requests, Dana filled Andi in. The meal with Derek’s parents went well, and they welcomed her into their family with open arms. They pretty much had already, one of the reasons Andi was so happy for her friend. Since Dana's parents died when she was in her early 20s, she felt like an orphan, but didn’t fall into the traditional child orphan category. Holidays were always tough for her, and Andi had been relieved when Derek’s parents invited her to join them for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

That had always been a sore spot between Chad and Andi. She invited her best friend to join them for Thanksgiving the previous fall, but he pitched a fit, claiming it interfered with his plans, that he worked hard and deserved some time alone and didn’t want to entertain anyone. He forbid Andi to invite her friend to join them, but she'd already done so. He didn’t care, and sneered, told her that if she didn’t tell her friend not to show up, he’d make sure the rest of the holidays would be miserable. The fact that Derek’s parents invited Dana to their holiday get-together saved Andi the embarrassment of having to uninvite her.

“Hey! You’re doing it again!”

Andi started. "What?"

"You're zoning out." Dana frowned, concern in her eyes. “You know, if you don’t want to be my maid of honor, it’s okay. Really. I know this is difficult for you.”

Andi glanced at her friend and grinned. “Your maid of honor? Of course, I’d be, well, honored!”

“And you're looking forward to going to A.C. with us?” The excitement in her friend's voice bubbled over.

“It’d be fun. I’ve always wanted to go. Chad went a couple of times . . .” Her voice trailed off as she remembered the credit card receipts in his dresser. He could afford to go, surely she'd be able to find a way to. She ran a hand through her short hair.

Dana reached out and touched Andi's forearm. “You okay?”

Andi shrugged. "I found receipts in Chad's stuff. He was seeing someone in Atlantic City."

"How can you be sure? I mean, he went to conferences right? So he'd keep receipts for his taxes, right?"

"Receipts for double rooms? For steak dinners at romantic restaurants? I'm not that stupid."

"I'm so sorry, Andi." Dana paused. "But you kind of suspected, didn't you?"

Andi's lips pressed into a thin line and she stared at her friend through narrowed eyes. "Did you know?"

"No." Dana answered quickly, then shrugged and looked away. "Maybe. I mean, I suspected. But didn't know for sure. If I'd ever known for sure, I would've told you. You know that, right?"

Andi nodded. She'd had her doubts, but hadn't had the guts to confront him about it. Couldn't blame Dana. Or herself. Chad was the one who'd cheated.

“So, will this be too tough for you? Going to a wedding so soon, I mean?”

“No,” Andi shook her head firmly and met her friend's earnest gaze. “This is for you. Chad is in the past. Over and done with. I’m moving on with my life, and not looking back.”

“Good for you.” Dana pulled a binder of invitations off the table and flipped through it. Just then, Kelly and Noelle entered the room, each laden with gorgeous gowns. They made the pair feel like real VIPs. The friends sipped on champagne and nibbled on hors d’oeuvres while Kelly talked to Dana about what she wanted, the feeling she wanted to convey with her event. The consultants treated Dana like royalty, and had her try on several gowns. Dana grinned from ear to ear the whole time, but when Kelly helped her into a flowing ivory gown with a deep v-neck, Dana absolutely glowed. The column of elegantly draped fabric, with incredible crystal detail at the waist and a slight flare at the foot, fit the redhead perfectly, as if it were made just for her. Andi wiped away a tear when her friend turned and the skirt swirled around her. There was no question – that was the dress.

And then it was Andi's turn. She tried on dresses from designers, but she and Dana agreed that the one-shouldered pale pink dress that hit her just above the knee was the best fit. The simple, elegant gown hugged Andi's rounded hips and generous bust as if it were made for her. And to Andi's relief, she could afford it. Thank goodness for vintage!

The two women congratulated themselves on finding their dresses, then Kelly came in with a selection of veils and shoes. Dana tried several veils, but didn't find anything she liked, until Noelle brought in an elegant pearl and crystal headband decorated with a delicate feather flower. They turned their attention to shoes, and took turns trying them on and walking like models, but they opted for white flip flops accented with crystals. Both consultants assured them modern brides often opted for casual footwear, that eliminated the chance for falling down the aisle.

Before they knew it, everything was picked out and the pair finished shopping. It had been such an enjoyable experience, a welcome escape from the everyday stress of life, Andi almost hated for it to end.

The friends toasted their good fortune at finding their dresses while they waited for the dresses to be hung up and accessories bagged. Dana reached for her purse, but Andi stopped her and pulled out her MasterCard. She could pay it off a little at a time.

She handed the credit card to Kelly. “This is on me.”

“No,” Dana shook her head, and pushed a stray ringlet of red hair behind her ear. “There’s no way I can let you do that.”

“Yes, you can. I wouldn’t have gotten through the last couple of months without you. Your friendship means a lot to me, and this is my wedding gift to you.”

Dana smiled and hugged Andi. When they pulled apart, a tear ran down Dana's cheek and Andi's heart swelled.

Kelly appeared in the doorway. She smiled apologetically and handed the card back to Andi in two pieces. Dana gasped. Andi frowned and looked at the woman with rounded eyes, torn between confusion and anger.

Kelly said, “I’m so sorry, Andi, but your card was declined. When I called to check on it, they instructed me to destroy the card, as it's a frozen account and no longer valid.”