Page 12 of First Date: Divorce
“What?”
“Close your eyes.I want you to be surprised by the dress when it’s all done.”
“Isn’t the superstition that the groom shouldn’t see the dress beforehand?Never heard anything about the bride being surprised.”
“It is the tradition that the groom not see the dress.”Ellyn’s slight emphasis on the wordtraditiongently reproved K.D.use ofsuperstition.“But I think Rebecca’s right this time.”
“Of course I am.Face this way, K.D., and let me start pinning.”
K.D.realizedthis wayprovided the only angle in the room where she couldn’t see her image.
“Why are you all doing this?”she asked abruptly.
“To make it more fun,” Rebecca said.“It’s a bit shorter, especially with heels, but that’s flirty.”
“I think K.D.was asking about putting on the wedding, rather than making the dress a surprise for her.”Ellyn turned to her.“Or, perhaps, you mean us looking into Marriage-Save?”
She’d surprised herself by asking the question.Once asked, she wanted the answer — answers.“Both.”
“You could look at it as a practical matter and say it’s bad for business,” Ellyn said.“If Far Hills becomes associated with marriages that fail, who’d want to use us as a wedding venue?”
Rebecca made a sound that might have resulted from trying topfftaround a mouthful of pins.
“Okay,” Ellyn conceded.“It’s not an important business for Far Hills.More like something we do now and then to help people.But we still don’t believe couples trying to make their marriages work should be taken advantage of.And all for money.We’re fortunate, all of us,” she added, “to have found love here at Far Hills Ranch.We’re not prepared to see others lose it, if we can help it.”
“Yes,weare fortunate and, yes,wedo want to help.”Rebecca turned to address her next words to K.D.“But Ellyn’s the leader.Even with being that pregnant, she’s working like crazy to set this all up.”
Ellyn sent the other woman a mock frown.“Don’t you have more pinning to do?”
“No.All done.Besides, it’s time for dinner, I can smell the guys cooking steaks.Help me get K.D.out of this dress — carefully!Don’t hurt the dress.”
Ellyn grinned.“Or hurt K.D.”
K.D.hardly noticed the pinpricks.She wondered why Eric Larkin got involved in this.Considering he’d said he was divorced it was highly unlikely he’d say he’d gotten lucky in love.And he’d only been here a year, so he didn’t have the emotional tie the Far Hills folks did.So, why?
She wanted to know because it could affect how he responded to things.
*
Ellyn and Rebecca hugged her when she left Far Hills Ranch after dinner.
Tal Bennett drove.At Cully Grainger’s insistence, she sat in the front passenger seat.
He spread his long frame across the back seat, then spent the first part of the drive back to Bardville on the phone, checking in with his office, deputies, and others whose roles were harder to pin down.
Neither she nor Tal Bennett said anything.
“Done,” Grainger announced.“Now, let’s give you the drill, K.D.First, Tal will drop me off at the sheriff’s office and I’ll drive your vehicle to a B&B ranch, where we’re meeting Tal’s associate with the rental you’ll use.Nobody’ll think anything of me drivin’ a strange vehicle and nobody’ll think anything of a vehicle with Montana plates being at the ranch, could belong to guests.
“Now, you might think this is a lot of work when the rental will have Montana plates, too — but they’ll be rental plates, easy enough to spot if someone’s looking.Anyone nosing around wouldn’t find anything in the rental to associate you with any other life than being Eric’s estranged wife from Chicago.”
“It’s a wonderful city,” she said with warmth and enthusiasm.
Grainger nodded.“Great.You knowin’ the city’ll help—”
“Never been there.”
Tal Bennett laughed.“Good job, K.D.You’ll do fine.”
