Page 3 of Wedding Season
She didn’t mention the slightly smudged makeup or the bits of powdered sugar still clinging to Suzette’s chin. Emma would handle that. Mary Ellen led the bakery patrons in a round of applause. Emma walked the couple out of the shop amid supportive cheers and loaded them into the inn’s bright white van.
“I think you deserve a congratulatory muffin for that,” Mary Ellen said from behind the counter. “You did an amazing job helping that sweet girl. They’re probably going to name their firstborn daughter after you.”
“That was better than bingeing a whole season of90 Day Fiancé,” one of the customers nearest Mariella agreed.
She blew out an unsteady breath and pressed a hand to her stomach. Suzette’s revelations might not have made a difference to her fiancé, but they’d rocked Mariella’s world.
Leave the past where it belongs, she told herself.You made the best decision you could at the time.
“Any blueberry muffins left?” she asked Mary Ellen, forcing her voice to remain steady.
“I have a fresh batch in the back,” the bakery owner answered and disappeared into the shop’s kitchen.
Mariella began to clean up the remains of Suzette’s donut massacre then stopped when the little hairs on the back of her neck stood on end.
“You really have this town fooled.”
The deep, rumbly voice scratched across her nerves like sandpaper. It was the last voice on the planet she wanted to hear right now, or ever for that matter.
She glanced up into the piercing hazel eyes of Alex Ralsten, the only Magnolia resident who’d known her in her former life. The man who’d seen her at her worst and would never let her forget it.
ALEXRALSTENSTAREDinto Mariella’s summer-sky-blue eyes and tried to let the wave of anger that typically consumed him in her presence overtake him. Anger he could manage. Maybe his reaction to her wouldn’t be so intense if his body wasn’t painfully attuned to her beauty. From her delicate bone structure to her fair complexion to those blue eyes surrounded by dark lashes. She had shoulder-length blond hair that looked like it would be perfect spread across his pillow.
At the moment her normally lush mouth pursed into a stern line. It was the same look of consternation she always gave him.
When Alex first arrived in Magnolia, he’d enjoyed her reaction. In truth, he hadn’t been built for holding a grudge no matter how much he wanted to. No matter how much she deserved it. Even that motivation was fading.
Yes, she’d made a scene at his wedding when she’d revealed his fiancée’s infidelity as they stood at the altar with most of Manhattan’s social elite watching. The proverbial kick in the pants was the fact that his life being turned upside down had in some ways been a blessing.
Without Mariella’s interference, he never would have realized how unhappy he’d been. Not until it was too late anyway. But he wasn’t going to give her credit. Somehow he knew deep inside that finally forgiving Mariella and letting his guard down around her could do more damage than any sort of public humiliation.
“I’m doing my job,” she said through clenched teeth.
“Spreading your particular brand of pre-wedding joy and generosity to unsuspecting brides at the Wildflower Inn?” He raised a brow in challenge.
“I’ve never denied my past.” Her chin hitched ever so slightly, and he couldn’t help but admire her gumption. She’d lost as much as he had in the aftermath of his wedding day. Maybe more.
Although he wasn’t going to let her off the hook. Not now. Not ever.
“The inn is getting a lot of press these days,” he continued. “Emma is becoming known as a wedding planner expert. I noticed you’ve tried to keep your name out of the articles.”
If looks could kill, Alex would have been a dead man based on the death glare Mariella leveled at him. But after a moment, her gaze shifted away and he saw her breath hitch.
Damn.
It should have felt like a victory, getting a reaction out of her. Instead, he had the bothersome urge to apologize.
“I’ve had my share of fame.” Her tone was reed-thin and sharp as the crack of a whip. “I have no desire to be front-page news for any reason. But if you’re giving some kind of veiled threat that you would try to make me the story, I’d think again. Emma and Angi are well-loved in this community. People aren’t going to appreciate my past dragging them down.”
She didn’t give herself enough credit, and Alex had to admit it made him curious. Had it always been this way, even when she was one of the world’s most sought-after bridal gown designers? Did she make herself small as a rule or had that started after the public spectacle of his wedding and her subsequent blacklisting in the fashion and society communities?
“I don’t need anyone else to know what you’re capable of, Mariella. As long as you remember the lives you ruined.”
She opened her mouth, but before she could answer, the bakery owner joined them. “A blueberry muffin plus one of my new coconut and almond butter energy bars for later.”
Mary Ellen smiled at Alex. “This one works too many hours without a break.”
He offered Mary Ellen a genuine smile, one that turned his features from handsome to drop-dead gorgeous. “I could never forget to stop for lunch.”
