"It's ready, Ms. Summers," Carole said as she made her way back to us.
"Please, call me Carly," I said, following her to the fitting room.
The girls sat outside and waited for me to try my gown on for the first time.
Carole helped me into the dress and tied the sash after buttoning up the back.
I stepped out and heard a shriek.
"Oh my god, Carly, that is perfect, absolutely perfect!" Jodie said as she took in the detail of the dress.
It was simple but that's what made it so beautiful.
"She's right, Carly, it's amazing. You look so … " Naomi said as she stood up to hug me.
"So … ?" I questioned.
"Magnificent!" both the girls chimed.
"Thank you."
I hugged them both to me and we all shed a couple of tears.
I took the gown off and Carole told me that it actually fit perfectly so it didn't need any adjustments. I paid her and she told me I could pick it up the day before the wedding rather than try to hide it at home. I thought that was a good idea so I left it in her capable hands.
The three of us took off and our next stop was for wedding lingerie.
We found some amazing lingerie and I purchased it before I could change my mind-it was a little racier than I was used to due to Jodie's influence. The three of us laughed and agreed that it was my wedding night, after all.
"I just hope Grey doesn't expect racy lingerie all the time once we're married!" I joked and lightly punched Jodie on the arm.
"Ouch! I'm precious, don't damage the goods!"
"Precious? You? Pfft!" I said as we walked through the mall to find somewhere to have lunch.
"Hey! Matt says I'm precious!" she retorted.
"Oh, it must be true if Matty boy says so!"
"Don't call him that!" She pushed me and I bumped into a lady walking by me.
After apologizing to the lady, I turned to Jodie.
"Hey! Don't push me, I'm precious." I laughed.
The three of us burst out laughing and finally found the perfect place for lunch.
"So, we have our three dresses, I can tell Grey the cravats have to be the same shade as my dress. Now all we need are the younger bridesmaids' dresses and the ushers' suits."
"Yep. What's next on the list? Flowers? Cake? Photographer?" Jodie asked.
"When we set the date, yes. But for now, I need a dress to wear to my engagement party at Katrina's. I also need to look for Grey's ring. I know it's not traditional for a man to wear an engagement ring, but I want to buy him one."
"I think that's a fantastic idea-who cares about tradition? We can eat and then shop ‘til we drop."
"Shop til we drop? Thank goodness I have the money my father set in trust for me, else I couldn't afford all these beautiful things you keep tempting me to buy!"
"Well, at least your father was good for one thing. Now, you'll want new underwear, new shoes, and a clutch to match the dress for the party," she said as she perused the menu.
"Oh no, not more racy underwear, Jodie, give me a break."
"Not racy, just something sensual so that when he peels you out of the dress, he'll … "
"Hey!" I said as I gently shoved her. "No more talk of that, thank you."
"Okay." She held her hands up in surrender.
We ordered lunch and sat talking about when I thought I'd like the wedding to take place and where. The girls reminded me I needed to choose a wedding song and sort out music. They asked if I wanted a DJ or a live band. I wasn't sure, so I said I'd discuss it with Grey, after all it was his wedding, too.
I paid the bill for lunch and then we hit the mall again.
Jodie was right about one thing, we shopped until we dropped. We found the perfect dress, lingerie, shoes, clutch bag and some new makeup. The next shop was a jewelers.
The bell above the door chimed as we walked inside. The man behind the counter smiled at the three of us and I introduced myself, telling him what I was after.
"Well, we can make rings to order. Do you know your fiancé's ring size?"
I looked through the catalogue of made to order rings and selected a black titanium band with a Celtic band engraved into it.
"Is it possible to engrave a message on the inside?" I asked the shopkeeper.
"Oh yes." He smiled kindly.
"Then I would like to have Ti Amo Con Tutto Il Mio Cuore engraved and also 381, please."
"Certainly, Miss. Can you write that down for me so that it's spelled correctly?"
I wrote it down on the paper he offered and handed it back to him.
"It will be ready in about two days, would you like to collect it or have it couriered to you?"
"Collection, please. My fiancé stays over most of the time and I don't want him signing for the package."
"Of course. If you could just add your name and telephone number to this piece of paper and then there's just the matter of payment."
I wrote down my name and phone number, and asked him not to leave a message if I didn't answer, just in case Grey listened to the message.
I paid by credit card and the girls nearly fainted when they heard the price. I can't say I blame them, but it was a small price to pay for the man I love.
Naomi hugged me goodbye as we got to our cars.
"Thanks for coming today, Naomi, I've thoroughly enjoyed it."
"Thanks for inviting me along."
"I told you I wanted your input," I said as she got in her car and started the engine.
"Well, I'm glad you did. I had a great day. I even got something in the lingerie shop while you were trying yours on." She winked at me and I leaned down to kiss her on the cheek.
"Safe journey home."
"I always drive carefully, don't worry."
"See you later, Naomi," Jodie said.
"Yeah, it was good meeting you properly, Jodie."
"You too."
Naomi drove off and waved to us as she left the car park. Jodie and I got into my car and I drove to the restaurant to drop her off for the late shift.
"Thanks for the lift, girly. See you tomorrow?" Jodie asked as she kissed me on the cheek before getting out of the car.
"Yeah, I have a shift in the afternoon, want to meet for breakfast?"
"Sure thing," Jodie said as she walked towards the door of the restaurant.
"Okay, see you then!" I said before driving off.
I made my way home and was surprised to see Grey's car wasn't in the drive. I thought he was staying the night, but maybe he was out running errands or photographing something-maybe that's what the call this morning had been about, a job.
I didn't hear from Grey that night, not a call, not a text. Nothing. I was worried something had happened and spent the night pacing, unable to sleep.
I was overtired and stressed the following morning as I made myself a coffee before going to meet Jodie. I might have been over thinking things, maybe Grey had a good reason for not contacting me. Maybe his phone battery had died. Maybe he'd lost his phone. But Katrina had a home phone he could've used. Maybe he didn't go home last night. Maybe he'd gone to visit Tim and Naomi, but they had a home phone, too. So what was his excuse? It had better be a good one!
I got dressed and made my way to the restaurant to meet Jodie.
"Woah! What happened to you?" she asked as I walked in the door "Did you and Grey have a bit of nookie before you left the house and you forgot to check a mirror?"
"What?" I asked, confused.
"Come with me!"
Jodie took me by the arm and pulled me into the staff room. She pushed me in front of the mirror and only then did I realize what she was on about.
The woman who stared back at me had messy hair, was wearing her top inside out, and looked like hell.
I quickly dug in my purse for a comb and hair band to tie my untidy hair into a ponytail. I took my top off and put it on the right way. After spraying some deodorant and borrowing some perfume from Jodie, I looked and smelled better. But no amount of preening would calm my inner turmoil.
"Grey didn't come home last night!" I blurted before bursting into tears.
"Oh, sweet girl," Jodie wrapped her arms around me "What's gone on?"
"I don't know. I went home expecting Grey to be there. When I saw his car wasn't in the drive, I assumed he would be back a little later. He wasn't. I texted him, no answer. I rang him, it went straight to voicemail. I paced so much I swear I made a hole in the carpet."
Jodie wrapped me in a bear hug and let me sob into her shoulder.
We stood there like that for what seemed like forever. Neither of us spoke. The only sound that could be heard was my crying and sniffling.
"Do you think you can manage breakfast?" Jodie asked quietly.
I shook my head. I didn't trust my voice to come out without another flurry of tears.
"Okay. Want a coffee?"
I nodded and sat at the small table in the staff room.
Five minutes later, a steaming mug of coffee was placed in front of me. Jodie pulled up the seat next to me and took my hand in hers.