Page 146 of The Perfect Spiral
“Okay, who am I driving and which car are we taking?” I ask, sliding my aviators onto my face. Heads swivel in my direction, and I find Knox leaning against the wall, his gaze meeting mine.
Damn, he looks good today. I can feel the heat creeping into my cheeks. His tan is accentuated by blue shorts and a crisp white t-shirt, paired with black vans.
“You’re driving the seven-seater G-Wagon,” comes the reply. “Kyle, Andy, Hannah, Ben, Wes, and Knox are going with you. I’m going with mom and Eric. The others have already left, so they’ll meet you there.”
Just what I wanted to hear.
“Shotgun!” Andy yells, her arm shooting into the air. A chorus of curses follows, particularly from Kyle. We all head towards the car, waving goodbye to our parents, Sam, and Tyson.
“Why are the boys coming?” I ask Hannah, who’s walking alongside Ben and me.
“Tyson didn’t want to be the only guy there, and Sam insisted he come along to give his ‘opinion’,” she explains, making air quotes and rolling her eyes.
“Your sister is one scary woman,” Ben shudders, his gaze drifting off into the distance. We all pile into the car, Andy up front with me, and Hannah in the back with Ben.
The other three—Kyle, Wes, and Knox—are in the middle row, looking less than thrilled about their seating arrangement. I can’t help but laugh at their sulking faces.
Knox is in the middle, and I catch his eyes in the rearview mirror more times than I’d like to admit. Memories of last night keep flashing through my mind.
That tongue working wonders down low for me. Focus on the road, Alex!
The drive to the shop takes about half an hour, so Andy takes over as DJ, plugging her phone into the aux cable.
“Let’s play a good girly song—one of Alex’s favorites!” She smirks, scrolling through her phone. I know whatever song she chooses will be anything but girly, so I roll down my window.
You better check yo self before you wreck yo self
“Alex! Get out here now so they can tailor you, and I want to see it! I haven’t seen the dresses on people yet!” Sam’s voice echoes through the room.
“Someone’s a little impatient,” I mutter under my breath, earning a chuckle from the woman behind me. I step out onto the platform, the dress swishing around my ankles. The room falls silent.
Oh no, they don’t like it.
“Wow, Alex! You look—” Andy begins, his voice trailing off.
“Beautiful.” The deep voice behind me sends a shiver down my spine. I glance in the mirror to see Knox, his gaze locked on mine.
My heart races. He thinks I’m beautiful. Or is it just the dress? It must be the dress.
I run my hands over the fabric, looking at my reflection. “The dress is beautiful, isn’t it?”
I turn to the side, catching Kyle’s eye. “The dress is pretty, but you look beautiful, sis.” I see heads nodding in agreement, mouths hanging open in surprise.
“Damn, am I marrying the wrong sister?” Tyson teases, earning a smack from Sam.
I turn to face Sam. After all, it’s her wedding. If she doesn’t like the dress, I won’t be wearing it. I hold out the dress, looking down at myself. “Well? What do you think? Do you like it?” Hereyes scan me, a critical look on her face. Please like it. Please like it.
“No, I don’t like it…” My heart sinks. Back to square one. I start to lift the dress to step down from the platform when she continues, “I love it.”
She rushes over, hugging me tightly. “You look so beautiful, Alex. You’ve left a few boys speechless in this room.” She grins, sitting next to my mom who’s crying on the sofa. I laugh, rolling my eyes as I walk over to her. “Alex, you look so beautiful,” she whispers, her fingers covering her mouth.
“Beautiful is an understatement,” Delilah adds, her eyes welling up with tears.
They both start crying harder, and I see Knox making his way over to his mom, a smile on his face. “Mom, stop crying, will you?” He’s trying not to laugh, biting his lip.
But his smile brings back memories of last night, his blue eyes filled with an emotion I couldn’t quite decipher.
Once they’ve composed themselves, I start to head back to the changing room. But before I can get far, Knox touches my arm. “Can I talk to you?”
