Page 50 of Honey Bee Library
“Sounds good. We’ll stop by Silhouet when we’re finished here.”
She said the normal goodbyes—they didn’t include anI love you, which I was not going to read into—and I found her sitting with her arms folded when I opened the dressing room door. I was wearing a satin top with a black pencil skirt. This was as dressed up as I got, so if this future dress was for me, I was curious as to what Silhouet had that this place did not.
But I was being ridiculous. The dress probably wasn’t for me. What would I need it for anyway?
“That’s so cute,” Maddie said as she sat up further on the couch.
I was standing in front of the mirror now, turning side to side so I could see the outfit from all angles. “I just don’t know where I would wear it,” I said as I turned to face Maddie. “Skirts aren’t practical with a five-year-old boy, and there’s no way I could wear this at the diner.”
Picking these clothes out was ridiculous. I should have asked Cole to take me to the airport after we visited his grandmother. I was the stupid one who’d allowed herself to get confused about my relationship with him. Now I was picking out clothes for a life I was never going to have with a man who was a few months away from leaving for good.
Maddie stood up. “That’s true.” She crossed the space between us until she was standing next to me. “But it’s important not to lose yourself. If this is you”—she waved toward my clothes—“then get them.”
If this is you…her words rang in my mind. If this was me? Who was I? Problem was, I hadn’t known who I was in years. I’d been Harold’s wife and Jasper’s mom for so long. I hadn’t been just plain Willow. And, the truth was, I didn’t know what she looked like.
If Maddie picked up on my existential crisis, she didn’t let it bother her.
“You’re going to get it,” she declared as she clapped her hands. “I’m not going to take no for an answer.”
I glanced back at my reflection. I thought about saying something to her, but then decided to just comply. I really thought the skirt and shirt were cute, and I did need some nice clothes for when Jasper and I went to church or I needed to meet with the bank. This outfit would certainly work.
“Get changed. We have one more place to stop,” Maddie said as she waved toward the open dressing room door.
“Where are we going?” I asked, not wanting to let on that I’d been listening to her conversation.
“We need to stop by Silhouet for a formal dress.” She spoke so matter-of-factly that I almost felt weird pressing her for more information. It was like she thought I should know what Silhouet was and be able to connect the dots.
“For you?” I decided to just ask outright.
Maddie glanced over at me. “For an event tomorrow at Obsidian.”
“Obsidian?”
Maddie frowned. “The club Cole owns.”
“Oh.” All the pieces were falling into place now. We were going to get her an outfit for Cole’s party. “That sounds like fun.”
Maddie snorted.
I frowned. “Will it not be fun?”
She shrugged. “I’ll be working.”
Now I was fully confused. “Cole makes his girlfriend work during these events?”
I did not expect the silence or the confused expression that followed my question. Maddie was staring at me like I had three heads. Until slowly, realization passed over her face, and a smile tugged at the corner of her lips.
“You think Cole and I are dating?”
My skin pricked from embarrassment. Had I gotten this all wrong? “You’re not?” was all I could muster.
Maddie shook her head. “Oh no. No, we’re not. I’m his assistant, that’s all.” She pressed her hand to her mouth for a moment before she let it fall.
“Oh.” That was all I could say. The emotions that flooded my body confused me, and there was no way I wanted to sort through those feelings right there and then. I needed space and quiet if I was going to process the fact that Cole was single and maybe, just maybe, the signs that I’d been picking up on had been real.
Was there a chance that he could like me?
Maddie was studying me when I finally brought my attention back to her. “So, should we go find you a dress?” she asked.
