Twenty

 

Clay stepped off the ladder and looked up at the flower arrangement on the wall. It was even, just like the other ten he'd put around the room. He hoped no one attending the wedding had allergies, because he'd never seen so many flowers in one place.

His phone rang. It was Sarah, Charlotte's assistant.

He accepted the call. "Clay here."

"Aleah is about ten minutes away. She just needs to try on the dress, right? Nothing else?"

"I can double-check with Dakota, but as far as I'm aware, it's just the dress."

"Okay, perfect, because we need her to stop off in Portland on the way back to try on some other stuff for a charity banquet." Sarah rambled on about Aleah's schedule.

"Sounds good," Clay said. "I'll give the tailor a call to let him know we're a little ahead of schedule."

"Perfect. Aleah's supposed to make sure her driver gets some pictures, but can you take some, too? We really don't want to have send her back down again."

Clay's head hurt at the thought of it. "I'll get one at every angle. Should I send them to you or Charlotte?"

"Me, for sure."

"Phone or email?"

"Both. Thanks, Clay. You're a doll for putting up with all this."

"No problem. Bye."

Marina came over to him. "Now the bride wants streamers going from one bouquet to the next."

"I've got to deal with Charlotte's body double right now." Clay found the tailor's number and called.

"Of course she'd be here now," Marina grumbled. "Okay, I'll do the streamers."

"Sorry." Clay walked out into the hall and filled the tailor in on the new time frame.

His chest felt tight from all the stress. Dakota had come back a while earlier, but had locked herself in the office, refusing to open the door for him.

Clay needed his coat if he was going to escort Aleah to be fitted for the dress. He headed for her office, hoping she would at least talk to him. The whole day had been torture. His mind had conjured up some strange theories, but none of them made any sense.

He knocked on her door.

"I'm busy," Dakota called.

Of course she was. "I need my coat. Charlotte's dress needs to be fitted."

Shuffling noises sounded, and then the door opened a crack. His jacket appeared.

"Maybe you should come." He took his coat and put it on.

"I'm busy. Call me if there's a problem."

"Can we talk when I get back?"

"If I have time." The door closed, but to his surprise, didn't slam. Maybe she really wasn't mad at him.

He headed toward the main entrance. The door opened, and in walked an overly tanned bleach-blonde. She pulled off dark sunglasses and stared at him.

"Clayton Harper?"

"The one and only."

She gave a nod of approval and held out her hand. "Aleah Chesterton. I'm here to try on Charlotte's wedding dress."

"Perfect. Do you want to follow me to the tailor's?"

Aleah gave him a slow once-over. "Or you could ride in the car with me."

He swallowed. The last thing he needed was to give Dakota another reason to be upset with him. "It might be better to follow me."

She pouted. "What kind of car do you drive?"

"It's a motorcycle."

Aleah's eyes lit up. "Even better. I'll ride with you."

Clay wanted to crawl under a rock. This was growing worse by the moment.

Aria came over to them. "Clay would love to give you a ride on his bike." She turned to Clay and shot him an expression of warning. "Whatever Charlotte's body double wants, she gets."

He gritted his teeth. "Right." Then he turned to Aleah. "Follow me."

They went outside. Aleah stopped at a black Mercedes and spoke to someone inside. She turned to Clay and smiled. "He's going to follow us."

"Great." He went over to his bike and pulled out the two helmets, hoping desperately that Dakota was still locked away in her office. The last thing he wanted was for her to think he had any interest in anyone other than her.

Aleah took the second helmet and slid it on. She fought with the strap. "Can you get it?" She batted her eyelashes.

Clay fixed it without a word and then climbed on the bike and started it. Aleah climbed on and wrapped her arms around him, keeping her hands on his chest. She held on tightly and pressed herself against his back.

He pushed her hands down, but she slid them right back up.

With any luck, Aleah would leave directly from the tailor's. They made it in record time. He ushered Aleah inside and waited in the front, while she went back into the same dressing room he'd been in with Dakota.

That night felt like it had been so long ago. Dakota herself felt even further away. Why wouldn't she talk to him?

He kicked himself for getting sick right after their wonderful evening together. It had been his plan to call her as soon as he got rid of all the stuff Lauryn had given him, but then his stomach had other plans.

Time crept by as he waited. What he needed was an excuse to talk to Dakota. Maybe he could update her on Aleah trying on the dress—not that he knew anything useful yet—and then she might open up and finally tell him what was wrong.

Clay pulled out his phone and called her. It rang until he got her voicemail message. Of course. Hopefully, she would listen to his message. She'd have no way of knowing if it was important business.

He waited for the beep. "Hi, Dakota. It's Clay. Just wanted to let you know Charlotte's body double is trying on the dress now. If you need anything else, give me a call. I hope you're doing okay. You haven't seemed yourself today. Oh, and if I did anything to upset you, I'm sorry. Take care." He ended the call, wanting to say so much more.

A few minutes later, he received a text.

I'm not mad. If you need anything, call Marina.

Clay sighed. Maybe she just needed space. It was the last thing he wanted to give her, but if it would get him back on her good side, he'd respect that.

The door opened into the dressing room. Dale came out with a couple pins in his mouth and measuring tape hanging from around his neck. "The bride wishes for your opinion."

Of course she did. Clay nodded and went inside.

Aleah stood in the same spot Dakota had, wearing the same dress. She smiled and spun around slowly. "What do you think?"

He bit back the comment that Dakota had looked better in it. Instead, he forced a smile. "It's perfect."

"I think so, too. Charlotte is going to love it."

Dale ushered Clay out. "Wait. I'm supposed to get pictures."

Aleah's face lit up. "Where do you want me to stand?" She hurried over to a corner with only a burgundy curtain as the backdrop. "How's this?" She posed, placing her hands on her hips and thrust out her chest.

Clay held back an eye roll. "Great." He pulled out his phone and snapped a couple pictures. "Turn so I can get every angle for Charlotte."

She turned slightly and posed, repeating the process until she was back in her original spot. "Did you get enough?"

"Let's hope."

"Did the driver get some?" Clay asked. "Sarah said—"

"Oh, forget him. You want to get some extras instead?"

Clay shook his head. He scanned the images. "I've got about fifty here. That should be plenty."

Aleah squealed. "Can you send them to my phone, too? I—"

"You'll have to speak with Sarah. I'm sending them to her. Ultimately, it's up to Charlotte."

She pouted again. "Fine. I'll meet you out there. Unless you want to stay and keep watching."

"I have some calls to make." He rushed out of the room, focused on his phone's screen. Once sitting in the waiting area, he sent all the pictures to Sarah. She texted him a quick thanks.

He sent a text to Dakota, letting her know the fitting had gone well.

Let Marina know. Thx.

Clay felt like he'd been slapped. He sent Marina a text.

He tapped his foot repeatedly, thinking over everything he'd said and done around Dakota and Sullivan since arriving in Enchantment Bay. He couldn't figure out where he'd gone wrong.

Marina sent him a text asking for pictures. He sent them to her and then closed his eyes.

Irritation set in. If Dakota had a problem with him, why didn't she just say so? The same went for Sullivan. They'd been friends for years, spending hours studying for exams and even sharing secrets.

Why was he getting the freeze from them?

Aleah came out of the dressing room, fluffing out her hair. She smiled at Clay. "Hey, I have an idea."

"What?" he asked, trying to keep the annoyance from his voice.

"I'm ahead of schedule and I've never been to this cute town before. Why don't you give me a tour?"

He clenched his fists. "I'm just supposed to bring you here."

She tilted her head and winked. "It could be for business, you know. We could find some places for Charlotte and Hugh to sneak off to before or after their wedding. I happen to know they're staying the night here in town both the night before and after the ceremony."

Clay took a deep breath. Dakota had said constantly to do whatever it took to make Charlotte happy and to make her wedding the best it could be. "Sure. Let's go."

Aleah's eyes widened. "Really?"

He shrugged. "Sure. I can show you some spots only known to the locals."

She arched a brow. "On your bike?"

"Of course."

Her mouth formed a sly smile. "Let's do some research… for Charlotte."

"Right."

They headed outside. Aleah went to the Mercedes and spoke to the driver. He pulled out of the parking lot. She turned to Clay. "He's going to meet us at your work."

"When?"

She shrugged and looked him over like he was a piece of candy. "Whenever we're done. He's headed over there now."

"Okay. Let's go."

They got on the Ducati, and Clay sped through town, stopping at a couple hidden beaches and a wooded park that hardly anyone ever went to. He stopped just long enough for Aleah to log the information into her phone.

"Well, we'd better get you back," Clay said. "It's already been an hour and a half. You have to get to Portland, don't you?"

"Unfortunately."

They headed back. When he pulled into the parking lot, he swore he saw Dakota peeking out from a window, but when he looked back, she was gone.

Aleah got off the bike and removed the helmet. "If the dress needs even the slightest alteration, just let me know. I'll drop everything to make sure it's taken care of." Her mouth formed a sly grin. "You know, for Charlotte."

"Right. I'll call Sarah."

She shook her head. "No, call me. What's your number?"

Clay rattled off the numbers. His phone rang.

Aleah winked. "And now you've got mine, too. See you later." She gave a little wave and headed for the black Mercedes.

He added Aleah's number to his contacts as he headed inside.

Marina marched over to him. "Where have you been?"

"Aleah wanted me to show her some spots around town where Charlotte and Hugh could go before the wedding."

"Next time, check in first."

"Okay."

"Come on to the main reception hall. We're having serious issues with the speakers. You can help with that, right? Some kind of wiring issue."

"I'm sure I can figure it out."

"Good. Then you'll need to tell Dakota why you were gone so long. She was pretty mad when you didn't come back after sending the pictures."

So, they were both angry. If he was going to make any headway with her, one of them needed to calm down to get a good conversation going. He would have to work on his attitude while fixing the wiring.