Page 104 of Finding Fate
My brows rise. What on earth is she telling him? “Mommy did not tell you that.”
“Did too!”
“Madden, she did not.”
“I promise, Dad!”
“Mom told you she beat up a girl?”
“I did. The heifer shouldn’t have been flirting with my man. Once someone is taken, they’re off limits.”
I smile at Madden at the sound of her voice behind me. “Mommy!”
He runs toward me but passes me by. I turn around at the exact moment she picks him up, my heart already beating out of my chest when I see her in the red, long sleeved, floor length dress. My right hand goes over my chest. The entire top half is V-neck and fitted but low cut, ending just below her boobs and also low in the back, also detailed with some beading. The bottom is solid red but looks sort of like a depleted bell. I like that Blondie stuck with Christmas colors for their wedding, because Gabby looks phenomenal in red. Her bright blonde hair is fixed in an updo. Her makeup is done just right. She takes my breath away.
Blondie insisted she be a bridesmaid shortly after they met. Gabby tried to tell her it wasn’t necessary, but the second Sayler mentioned that if she didn’t I was escorting another bridesmaid down the aisle, she had a change of heart. I’ve always loved her jealousy.
She kisses Madden’s cheek. “Where were you two handsome fellas off to?”
“To find the pretty flower girl!” he tells her.
Gabby’s face becomes animated. I love watching her with him. You’d never know they’d been without each other so long. “Oh, she’s pretty alright. Her long black hair is curled and she’s wearing a white long sleeve dress with a red sash. She showed me the pretty red rose petals in her basket. I told her I bet you’d like to see her petals before she dropped them down the aisle.”
“You did?! Can we go find her?”
“Of course, we can! Her name is Blair. She doesn’t want to walk by herself with all of those people. That’s actually why I came to find you. Aunt Sayler asked if you would carry the rings on a special pillow she found instead of Daddy. She’s scared he’ll lose them.”
He nods excitedly. “I’ll walk with her! I promise to take special care of them.”
“I know you will, sweet boy. She’s right over there by the fountain. Will you go introduce yourself?”
“Yes!”
Gabby puts him down and he takes off running, her eyes quickly diverting to mine. “What would you say if I told you seeing you in a tux makes me want to find a broom closet somewhere?”
“I’d say I need to buy a tux.”
She smiles at me. “Would you do it?”
“The better question is what would Inotdo for you.” I walk toward her, placing my hands on her hips. “You look beautiful. I’ve never seen you like this.”
“That’s because you never took me to prom.”
My heart sinks. “You know I wanted to. That’s why we got caught.”
“I know. Because I asked my dad if I could go with you.”
I take a deep breath, the memories flooding in. They aren’t good ones. My life shattered because I wanted a real relationship with her. I wanted her to hang out with my friends and be able to take her on dates in our hometown. I wanted to dance with my girlfriend at prom. It was my senior year. I wanted pictures that would last forever. For a moment, I thought her dad would understand that despite our age difference, we loved each other. Looking back, I would have just snuck her out and we make our own prom.
A thought occurs to me, breaking my heart. For a long time, I tried to keep anything related to Gabby and another guy out of my mind. “How was your prom? Was it everything you thought it’d be with me?”
She’s wearing a saddened expression. “I never went to my prom, baby.”
As much as I hate it, I’m relieved. I have no right to feel relieved that she missed such an important part of high school, because I went my junior year with Courtney, but I am. I’m happy that no one else saw her dressed up like this when I wanted to so bad. “You didn’t?” I whisper.
She wraps her arms around my neck, her smile returning. She likes my jealousy as much as I like hers. “It makes you happy that I didn’t go with anyone else to prom?”
“Yes,” I whisper, trying to feel ashamed, because I know damn well I was screwing other girls, but the feeling doesn’t come. “But why didn’t you go, Gabby? Did no one ask you?”