Page 92 of The Big Easy & Other Lies
Chapter 33
Twenty surreal minutes later, I had changed into a fitted black dress and red ballet flats, half-convinced I had imagined that short, beautiful moment on the runway despite the unrelenting replays from Chloe and Livvie. I fit the damask outfit onto the dress form assigned to me, and they helped me wheel it out for display.
Angelique stood in the lobby huddled with her mother and Mrs. Broussard. She looked up and fixed me with a furious glare enhanced by her red-rimmed eyes. I tried not to stare as Livvie helped me situate the dress form. A strong pair of arms scooped me into a hug, and Rhett’s chest pressed against my back. “It’s beautiful and you’re amazing,” he said into my hair.
I turned and threw my arms around him. “How did Angelique take it?”
“Worse than I expected,” he said, grinning. “I thought she was going to be sick. Aunt Cecilia is about to have a heart attack, and she’s trying to convince Mrs. Broussard not to say anything to the headmaster.”
I peeked over his shoulder. Mrs. Broussard didn’t look happy, but she jerked her head in an angry nod. Angelique’s face relaxed, but only for a second before Mrs. LeBlanc rounded on her and said something that made her blanch again. She accepted the keys her mother thrust into her outstretched hand and walked out of the front doors without stopping to talk to anyone. I didn’t see any of my Urban Renewal designs on the dress forms in the lobby.
We were supposed to stay by our design until the judges came to question us, but Amber rushed up to me. “You’re a freaking genius, and I’ll kill you if you repeat that,” she said, before darting back to her mannequin. I flashed a grin I didn’t feel as I worried over the expression I caught on Angelique’s face before she slipped out. Talk about Broken Dreams.
Smoki Branson and Aidan Helm stood at the far side of the grand foyer, deep in discussion with another designer. I had a good bit of time before they reached me.
Hoping she hadn’t left yet, I sped out of the same doors Angelique exited to the parking lot and scanned the rows for her white BMW, glimpsing it at the end of the first aisle. With no clear plan, I jogged over and tapped on her window. She jumped and then lowered it to glare at me through her tears.
“Here to gloat?” she asked.
“No,” I said, taking a step back.
“Why not? I would.” She sniffed, and it sounded so sad that for the first time ever, I pitied her.
“I’m not you,” I said. “I’ve never tried to be you. I’m not trying to take anything away from you. I don’t want anything that’s yours. I never have. I wish you knew that.”
“How can Inotknow that?” she snapped. “I could never be poor, perfect, noble Camille.” Her face crumpled and her tears poured out so fast that a few dripped off her chin before she could dash them away.
“I’m none of those things. Except poor. I’m definitely that.” I leaned down and tried to catch her eye. “I’m mostly just me. I learned it from my mom, and to have faith that it’s enough. It’s taken ten years to figure out that she was totally right.”
She sniffed again, a ragged, wounded sound. “You’re lucky, then. Because it’s never been enough for my mom, and a billion years wouldn’t change that.” She straightened and shifted the car out of park, swiping at her eyes. “For what it’s worth, your vignette deserved the standing O.” The window slid up between us, and I stepped back so she could pull out.
I watched her car until it reached the exit and then hurried back to the theater. Bran stood at the doors, jiggling his leg at hyper-speed, a nervous habit I only saw him do before big games. His face sagged in relief when he spotted me hurrying up the steps. “Where were you? The judges are almost to the fashion students. Rhett’s tearing through backstage trying to find you.”
“I had to talk to someone. Sorry,” I said, hurrying past him toward my dress form. He stopped me with a sharp tug on my elbow and then swept me into a hug.
“I’m proud of you,” he mumbled into my hair, and then went to wait with Chloe. Livvie stood near my dress, aggravation painting her face when I reached her. “Are you crazy? Why did you run off like that?”
“Longish story, but I’m good. Can you go find Rhett and tell him not to stress?” She nodded and took off. I watched Aidan and Smoki for a while, but it wore on my nerves trying to interpret the nuances in their expressions as they studied different exhibits, so I busied myself with the button necklace, fussing over each fastening.
“You ran off before I could say thanks for using my song,” Rhett said from behind me.
My hands stilled and I turned around. “You wrote that?”
“Yeah. It’s the only way I could make sure the music was exactly right.”
“Rhett...I don’t even know what to say. You’re incredible.”
“Say you forgive me.”
“I forgave you weeks ago.”
“Then say I made it right,” he said. “I’ve hated watching you go through this for the last two weeks when it was my own stupid fault.”
“No!” I said, putting my hands on his shoulders. “Don’t blame yourself for Angelique’s craziness. Nobody made her do that. And I came out with something even better.”
He smiled. “That’s a gift Angelique will regret giving you forever.”
“Sorry, are we interrupting?”
