“I’M SO HAPPY you’re here.” Elaine reached her dry, cracked hands across the square table. The fluorescent lights of the visitation room made her mom’s skin look dull and yellowed. Since the last time that Gabby saw her, the lines around Elaine’s eyes had deepened, and her frown lines had grown more pronounced.
The room buzzed around them—families reunited, husbands and wives talking in hushed voices, visitors trying to cheer up their imprisoned friends—but Gabby tried to tune them out and focus on her mom.
“It’s been months,” Elaine said, lowering her eyes. “Why didn’t you come for Christmas?”
“I’ve been busy, Mama.” Gabby squeezed Elaine’s hands. Busy lying about you, a guilty voice said in her head.
The prison guard walked past them, her boots clicking on the gray tile floor.
“You’re glowing.” Elaine’s lips curled into a mischievous smile. “Who’s the guy?” Her mother put her elbows on the table and leaned in eagerly.
Though Gabby hadn’t visited recently, she and her mom had been keeping up with their regular biweekly calls, but Gabby knew she’d been distant on the phone. She hadn’t told her mom about the engagement yet—hadn’t even told her about Tony—and was afraid that she’d hurt her mom’s feelings. Here, finally face-to-face with Elaine, she wouldn’t be able to hide the truth.
Gabby took a deep breath. “Mama . . . I’m getting married next month.” She leaned back, bracing herself for her mom’s reaction.
Elaine’s eyes widened. “Oh,” she said softly. “I just thought you might be dating someone. But marriage? Wow. I can’t believe . . . I can’t believe I’m going to miss that.”
Gabby paused, her shame intensifying. She didn’t know what to say to that. “It all happened so fast,” she confessed. “We just picked out the venue last week.”
Elaine sat up straight and pushed her curly brown hair behind her ears. “Well, tell me about him.” She was smiling, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Tell me about my new son-in-law.”
Gabby lowered her head. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.” I’m sorry about so much more than I can tell you. . . .
Elaine put her hands across the table, her eyes looking deeply into Gabby’s. “I understand. This . . . it’s hard. But I’m really happy for you.” She softened her tone. “Tell me about him.”
“Well, his name is Tony, and he’s a lawyer,” Gabby said, fidgeting with her engagement ring. “He’s so smart, Mama. And funny.” She smiled, thinking about him. “And kind . . . and has a wonderful family.”
“That’s great, darling. That’s so great.” Elaine swallowed, glancing away. “So, tell me about the wedding. Where’s it gonna be?”
Elaine’s words felt weighted, and Gabby realized that her mom might be jealous. She was spending time with another family, making memories that had nothing to do with Elaine.
Gabby took a deep breath, trying to squash her guilt. It wasn’t her fault that her mom was in jail. “Tony found this gorgeous antebellum home—it’s got huge oak trees and a ballroom. It’s absolutely beautiful.”
“Wow! Sounds so classy.” Elaine paused, as if steeling herself. “Have you picked out a dress yet? Is . . . is his mom going to go shopping with you?” Tears filled her eyes. “I can’t believe I don’t get to be there when you pick out your dress.”
Gabby’s heart sank. She hadn’t thought about how painful this would be for her mom. “I’m not going with his mom. No one will ever replace you, okay?” She swallowed, trying not to cry, too.
Elaine gave her a watery smile.
Gabby continued, “I’m going with Laura tomorrow.”
“The girl who used to do pageants? Wasn’t she Miss Maple Bacon Praline Pie or something like that?” Elaine laughed, wiping the tears away.
Elaine and Gabby had gone to that pageant to support Laura, and it was about the cheesiest thing they had ever witnessed. So much off-key singing during the talent competition, and one too many answers about world peace during the Q&A. Needless to say, Laura won by a landslide.
Gabby nodded, smiling nostalgically. “That’s her. She’s taking me to a store a half hour out of town that she used to get her pageant dresses from—she says they had a whole section of wedding dresses.”
“Well, that’s just lovely,” Elaine said, looking like she meant it. “You’re gonna be such a beautiful bride.” She sighed. “I just wish I could be there to see it in person.” She began to cry again.
“You’ll be there with me in spirit, Mama,” Gabby said, her stomach twisting.
“Well, it’s my own fault,” Elaine said, shaking her head.
Gabby couldn’t deny that, but she felt for her mom. It was hard to imagine getting married without Elaine by her side—she couldn’t even imagine what Elaine must be feeling. She reached out and grasped her mom’s hand again, giving it a supportive squeeze.
“So, you’ll come back here with Tony soon?” Elaine asked, brushing away tears with her other hand. “I’d like to meet him.”
Gabby nodded slowly, but she knew there was no way that could happen. She’d been trying not to think about this. Eventually Elaine would be out of jail, and Gabby could only hope that she and Tony had been together long enough by that point that she’d have come clean to him . . . or that he would be so committed to her that he wouldn’t care. It was a problem, she kept telling herself, for another day.
“Well, I can’t wait to meet him.” Elaine paused. “He’s a lucky guy.” She smiled.
Gabby lowered her head, unable to keep holding her mother’s heartfelt gaze. Something like that.
• • •
“AND THEN AS the reception ends, they’re gonna hand out sparklers to everyone, and Tony and I’ll run through them to the car,” Gabby told Laura as she drove them into the parking lot of Lilah’s Gowns. After the visit with her mom, she’d been feeling down, but talking about the plans with Laura was getting her excited for the wedding all over again.
“That sounds gorgeous!” Laura said, unbuckling her seat belt. “So, what kind of dress are you hoping to find today?”
“I have some pictures,” Gabby said, reaching for the wedding book in the backseat. She looked down at the black three-ring binder and pursed her lips in embarrassment. “Please don’t make fun of me, but some of these might be a little outdated—I’ve been collecting pictures since I was eight.”
“Um, amazing,” Laura said, grabbing the book. She began flipping through the pictures and stopped on a three-tiered magnolia cake. “Beautiful!” She turned the page to a curly-haired bride wearing an A-line chiffon dress with intricate beading on the back. “Oh my goodness.” She gasped. “Gorgeous.”
“You think they’ll have something like this here?” Gabby asked, looking up at the store.
“Let’s go find out!” Laura said, opening up the car door.
Inside, pristine white carpet covered the floor, and racks of clear plastic garment bags holding sparkly dresses lined the walls. The store was bustling. A tween held on to a red rhinestone gown, crying, as her mother tried to coax her to try on something more conservative. Two older teens, spray-tanned an impressive orange-brown, teetered around the racks in five-inch heels.
Laura took Gabby’s arm and guided her to the wedding section in the back of the store.
“Oh, look—a sale,” Laura said gleefully. “This one’s only a hundred-ninety-nine. That’s amazing.” Upon closer inspection, the girls realized the hem was lined with dangling pom-poms. “Oh dear,” Laura said, raising her eyebrows and sliding it back on the rack.
“Can I help you?” A tall slender woman with a pixie cut approached them.
“Aw, hi, Miss Kathie. Do you remember me?” Laura asked in her sweet high-pitched tone. Gabby recognized the voice she was using: it was one Laura saved for important adults and customers at the Sea Shack.
“Well, if it isn’t Miss Maple Bacon Praline Pie herself!” The woman hugged Laura. “How are you, sweetie?”
“I’m good! Just shopping with my friend Gabby for a wedding dress.” She grabbed her arm and pulled Gabby closer. “Can you help us find something?”
“I certainly can! Now, what style are you looking for?”
“Long, flowy, maybe a beaded sash or a sexy but classy cutout back.” Laura turned to Gabby and put her hand over her mouth. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to take over. This is your day. You should answer.” She shook her head and let out a laugh. “Look at me pretending I’m the one getting married.”
Gabby smiled, glad for the guidance. “Oh, please. That’s why I brought you! You know more about this stuff than I do.” She turned toward Miss Kathie. “Everything Laura said is right. I’m just looking for something simple but elegant, like this.” She handed her the tear-out of the A-line dress Laura had admired in the car.
“Oh, wow—this is definitely a beautiful style,” the woman said, looking at the model. “When’s the big day?”
“Next month, actually.” Her stomach fluttered with a mix of nervousness and excitement.
The woman’s eyes widened. “Quite the time crunch. Well, that just makes it more fun, doesn’t it?” She smiled and put her hand on Gabby’s shoulder. “Don’t you worry—we’re gonna find you a dress today.”
The three of them began pulling dresses off the rack that they thought might work: a sleek halter with a tulle bottom, a lacey off-the-shoulder, and Gabby’s favorite—an elegant cap-sleeved with a sheer low back. As Laura assisted her in the dressing room, Gabby twirled and posed in front of the mirror, feeling as chic as Kate Middleton.
“Girl, you look amazing!” Laura squealed. “Now, for the final touch.” She placed a veil atop her friend’s head.
Gabby gasped. The deep sweetheart neckline—outlined in lace and beading—made her neck look long and regal. A belt covered in clear jewels hugged her slim stomach. Her back peeked through soft sequined netting, looking somehow both sexy and demure. And the veil, elbow length and dotted with fake pearls, completed the picture.
She looked like a bride, a real bride.
“Oooh! What do you think?” Laura asked excitedly.
Gabby studied herself in the mirror, proud of the girl staring back at her. Not just the dress, but everything. This was how Tony saw her every day—the perfect bride, the perfect future wife. Finally, that little voice in the back of her mind that chanted fraud, fraud, fraud went silent.
“So, how’s it going in here?” the woman asked, popping her head into the fitting room area.
“I think this might be the one,” Laura said with a beaming smile.
Gabby smiled and nodded slowly, awed into silence by her own appearance.
“It sure is beautiful,” the woman said. “Now, do you want to try on any more? Or are you sure?”
Gabby kept her eyes on her reflection in the mirror and smiled. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”