Page 95 of Forever

It didn’t take long to realize that the dress no longer fit.

Justin sighed and stopped attempting to button the buttons that trailed down the back of the dress. “Curse you and your fantastic curves.”

It was a compliment. Kind of. My hips were a little wider. And I was definitely a little wider around the ribcage. Unfortunately the dress was very unforgiving. It had been designed to be skintight, giving the sheath dress amore fitted form. I stared at the lace trailing down my arms. I still absolutely loved the dress. It was flowy and bohemian and as timeless as I hoped it would be. But it didn’t fit at all.

If I was 16, maybe I’d just try to lose a few pounds. But I was 32. And pregnant. And that wasn’t an option. “It’s not going to work.”

“Well, come let the ladies see. We’re all going to figure it out together. But it is a shame that it was already fitted.”

Yeah.I held my hand to my chest as I walked out of the changing room. Not because I was worried the dress would fall. The sleeves made sure of that. But my chest still ached. I really wished my mom was here.

Mrs. Caldwell smiled. “You look more beautiful now that you did when you were a teenager.”

I felt my cheeks flush. “Thank you.”

“But your ass and boobs are way bigger,” Kennedy said.

“Por favor, mi amor,” Mrs. Alcaraz said.

I laughed. “It’s fine. She’s right. It doesn’t fit at all.”

Mrs. Caldwell stood up and walked around me, inspecting the dress. “Well, we need a little extra fabric from somewhere. What if we lower the neckline?”

Justin gasped. “Yes. I love it. Show off the girls.” He started writing something in his notebook.

“Oh.” I kept my hand on my chest.

“And we can use the extra fabric to expand the waist a pinch,” he said.

“How much fabric exactly?” I asked.

Kennedy stood up, grabbed my hand, and lowered it from my chest. “I know back then you were worried about the dress being too sexy. But girl…you’re not a teenager anymore. I say if you got it, flaunt it.”

I smiled. “But seriously…how low cut are we talking?”

Justin tuned his notebook to me. He hadn’t been writing anything down. He’d been sketching. The neckline originally cut right beneath my neck. But the new neckline plunged in a deep V. A very deep V.

“We can find a matching tulle,” Justin said. “Put a little right here?” He drew a line where the neckline originally was. “So it’ll be sheer. Classy and sexy AF.” He looked up from his notebook at me.

I didn’t bother to ask why we couldn’t put a matching tulle along the waist to make it fit. Because the drawing Justin had done was perfect. Kennedy was right. Back then, I’d been worried about my dress being appropriate. I wanted Mrs. Caldwell to like me. And I’d been so nervous picking out the dress with her.

But she was standing here nodding her head. I didn’t think it mattered if I showed up in a burlap sack. She loved me, because her son loved me. I made him happy. And that’s all she wanted.

I turned back to Justin. “I love it.”

“Yeah?”

I nodded. “What do you guys think?”

“I think you’re going to look amazing,” Kennedy said.

“It’s perfect,” Mrs. Caldwell said. “Matthew is going to love it, Brooklyn.”

I smiled and turned to Mrs. Alcaraz.

There were tears in her eyes. “I wish Jim could have seen you. He’d be so proud of you, Brooklyn. So proud.”

I wish he could be here too.If he was, it would have made the who is going to walk you down the aisle question easier. I would have asked him in a heartbeat.

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