A Promise of Forever

by M. E. Brady

  As they arrived downtown, it was Brody who first commented on the size of the town. “It’s a far cry from what you’re used to but I love it here.” What he didn’t know was that Katelyn found the quaintness of the town to be its major allure. Brody came around the side of the truck to help her out. He raised one arm in the air with a flourish. “My town is your town, my lady,” he teased.

  “I don’t know but this city girl is pretty pleased with your town. I happen to like small and intimate,” she added before jumping out of the truck, something she’d never get used to. Why anyone owned these trucks, she didn’t know. They were hard to get in and out of for someone of her stature. On the other hand, the weather changed here on a dime and a truck would probably make the most sense, especially during the snowy season.

  Brody pointed to a shop across the way. She turned to see what he was pointing at and she saw the exquisitely decorated storefront. The shop stood out on the main street but not in a bad way. It was different, but tastefully so. She couldn’t wait to go inside and take a peak.

  “You’re on your own from here. I’ don’t do ladies fashion, ever.” He closed the door behind her and smiled lovingly down at her face before locking the doors. “I hear that the woman, I think her name is Nellie or something close to that, knows her craft. I’m sure she’ll take good care of you. Be nice to the old lady, her establishment is relatively new and we’d like to keep main street thriving. She probably heard you were from New York City and is scared to death to have you in her shop.” Brody was kidding with her. He knew better than anyone that Katelyn was far from stuck-up or fashionable. “I’ll give you a couple of hours on your own and, while you’re shopping, I’ll go and see how Kevin made out in court this morning. I’ll swing by later and meet you for dinner at the restaurant, Captain’s Table,” pointing down the block to a large green overhang that jutted out from the rest of the buildings surrounding it. “You can’t miss it, that’s the Captain’s Table. If you’re running late, no need to worry, I’ll wait at the bar. We don’t need reservations on a week night so take as long as you want.”

  He saw a glint of girlish excitement in her eye as she began to cross over to the shop. As Brody walked away, Katelyn couldn’t help but notice a woman staring at them from the shop window. The woman was peeking from behind the curtain, looking in their direction. Maybe it was Brody she was looking at because any interest in her would make no sense. The woman disappeared when Brody came closer to the shop. Katelyn decided she wasn’t going to waste time trying to figure it out. She had to find a dress for this charity affair, time was running out. She would put aside the thoughts about all the men in her life and concentrate on the dress. Today was going to be all about her.

  Leave it to Katelyn to coerce me into rehashing the secret I kept buried. He had thought he had put Eleanor behind him, and now, after all this time, he was thinking about her again. Brody walked a couple of blocks in the opposite direction and headed for his office. There was a good possibility that Kevin could still be in court; if that were the case, he’d just go ahead and start on his case load for Monday. Anything rather than think about Eleanor Mulaney Calder.

  The little bell on the door above her head sounded as she walked into the shop. During those first few seconds, Katelyn was totally alone. She wasn’t sure if she was in the right place; it looked more like she was in someone’s living room rather than a dress shop. She glanced around the room until she heard a woman’s voice call out from behind the curtain.

  Katelyn sat down on the sofa and wondered what to do next. It was obvious that this wasn’t a buy off-the-rack sort of place. The woman called out to her, “Have some tea and cookies while you wait. If you like, you could skim through the albums on the table.” The albums were lying on the coffee table; she helped herself as she skimmed through the pages one by one. The designs were magnificent; they were made for all different shapes and sizes and the colors and styles were breathtaking. Katelyn was no expert but Nellie, whoever she was, belonged in New York City or Paris.

  Katelyn skipped to the section marked wedding dresses and it was there that she saw it, the dress she had always dreamed about wearing when she married Gianfranco. She tried to describe it to a New York seamstress many years ago when she thought for sure he was going to propose. It was just as well that the designer never understood her vision because the proposal never came. Katelyn stared long and hard at the dress as she pictured herself in it. It was perfect for her. Maybe she was meant to walk into this shop after all.

  Nellie watched from behind the curtain as the stranger stared at the pale pink dress she had designed so long ago, wondering whether she was going to purchase it and, in conjunction, break her heart. The dress itself was so pale it looked more white than the pink it actually was. It was a strapless gown with a delicate piece of expensive antique lace wrapped around the top of the dress, while the rest of the silky material flowed down toward the ankle. It was beautiful and Katelyn couldn’t stop admiring it.

  She knew that this dress was everything she had ever dreamed of wearing on her wedding day. The more she thought about it, the more she convinced herself to throw caution to the wind and purchase it. She was getting married, after all. She could, at the very least, have the dress she wanted, since it looked very unlikely that she’d get the loving husband to go with that fantasy.

  “I’m sorry, I’ve kept you waiting. I didn’t mean to take so long but I was putting the finishing touches on a dress. With this charity event coming up, I’m getting backlogged.” Nellie held out her hand to introduce herself and Katelyn graciously accepted the hand offered.

  Nellie wasn’t the old lady Brody thought her to be; she was young and as beautiful as the clothes she designed. She looked vaguely familiar though Katelyn couldn’t remember where she’d seen her before. Since she wasn’t one to follow the fashion scene, it hadn’t surprised her that her memory was lacking on the subject. The woman was dressed impeccably and the clothes she wore were obviously of her own design, one of a kind. Katelyn picked up the album from the table and smiled as she opened the book. “I have to tell you, I’m really impressed with your designs. Are they all yours?” she asked.

  “Yes, I’m proud of them. Was there anything in particular that you’re interested in?” Nellie hoped that the wedding dress from the portfolio hadn’t intrigued her new customer because she had witnessed for herself the way Brody had looked at the woman and it might mean that he had moved on. She regretted adding that particular dress to the portfolio this morning.

  “I work for a magazine in New York and I have to tell you these dresses are better than some of the designs that I’ve seen on our ad pages. I’m no expert but these look great. Have you ever tried marketing your designs on a grander scale?” Katelyn asked curiously.

  “I had a dream once to launch my designs all over the international world of fashion and, for a while, I did quite well but it wasn’t what I wanted in the end. You know what they say, be careful what you wish for. Sometimes you get everything you wanted and find out it wasn’t what you expected after all,” Nellie responded with a note of regret in her voice.

  Nellie is turning out to be a mystery as well. What is it with me that everyone who surrounds me these days has a secret to tell? It doesn’t take a super genius to figure out that Nellie gave up something near and dear to chase a dream only to find out it cost too much in the end. Katelyn also felt that, for whatever reason, Nellie wasn’t taking a liking to her.

  “I was admiring this dress and I was wondering if I could try it on? I’m getting married soon and I haven’t had a chance to look for a dress. Oh, I’ll also need a dress for the charity event. I hate to cause you so much trouble but my brother neglected to tell me about the charity ball until after I arrived from New York.” Katelyn could see that Nellie’s reaction to the news of her impending wedding was upsetting, for some unknown reason. She couldn’t, for the life of her, figure out why.

  She began to wonder if th
ere was any way that Nellie knew Gianfranco. She guessed it was a possibility and the way her luck ran these days, it was very probable. But until two minutes ago, they had never met, so Nellie wouldn’t be aware of Gianfranco. Although she wasn’t sure she was ready for the answer, she asked the question that seemed to be suffocating them both. “My fiancé will be arriving from New York in another day or two and I’d like to surprise him by telling him that I’ve found a dress. I don’t suppose you could put a rush order on the alterations and hope for the best?” she asked, hoping Nellie would ask for the name of her fiancé.

  Nellie’s demeanor mysteriously changed; she looked confused but definitely happier about something she heard her say. “Your fiancé is not in town?” she quizzed.

  Katelyn realized that she had been right with her first assumption and started to put two and two together. It was Brody that Nellie was looking at as they crossed the street and it was Brody she was interested in. Katelyn wondered if Brody was even aware that he was being admired from afar.

  “My future husband, I’m afraid, is tied up in New York on business. I don’t think you would know him but you might have met him in passing; he’s been here on occasion to visit my brother, Kevin Donavan. My fiancé is Gianfranco Broccolini.” Nellie almost choked when she heard his name.

  “Gianfranco Broccolini is getting married? I’m very happy for you both. Don’t get me wrong but I have to tell you I’m shocked by your news. I actually met Gianfranco in Milan years ago. He was at my first fashion show. I believe he, indirectly, helped to launch my international brand. He was there with a friend and let me tell you, he was very generous. I think his investment in my clothes for that woman created a whirlwind of speculation from buyers all over the world. They wanted what he wanted and he wanted plenty.” Nellie exclaimed with excitement.

  In her enthusiasm she hadn’t realized she hurt Katelyn by her revelation. “I didn’t mean any disrespect when I said I was shocked that he was settling down. I’m sure he was waiting for the right woman.” Nellie led Katelyn to a room at the back of the store where she could try on the dresses she selected.

  There were dresses everywhere and Nellie had a story for every piece she created. She stopped at a rack of dresses in the center of the room and found what she had been searching for. The sound of the zipper startled Katelyn, from her own thoughts. She couldn’t help but wonder who the mystery friend was who accompanied Gianfranco to the fashion show. Nellie took the dress out of its protective carrier and showed it to Katelyn. This is the dress. She couldn’t believe her eyes; it was exactly as she had pictured it in her dreams. The attention to detail was amazing. She took the gown from Nellie and held it against her body. As she looked at her reflection, she was almost brought to tears.

  Nellie looked pleased with herself. Nothing made her more excited than one of her designs on the right body and she knew Katelyn was meant to wear this dress. “The dressing room is right over there.” Nellie said pointing to the room behind them.

  Without hesitation, Katelyn went and tried it on. As she slid the gown down over her body, she stared shockingly at her reflection. The gown was everything she’d hoped it would be. The neckline of the gown showed cleavage that she only acquired after becoming a mother. Fortunately, she had retained her some of her fuller breasts after giving birth.

  Nellie joined her in the fitting room and saw the tears in Katelyn’s eyes. They both stood silently staring at the image in the mirror and it was Nellie that broke the silence first. “It was made for you. When I designed that dress, I had no idea it would look as beautiful as it does on you. You were meant to wear it,” she added with compassion.

  For a brief and wonderful moment, Katelyn fantasized about a very happy and willing Gianfranco, waiting at the altar. He would be smiling, looking only at her and everyone would see for themselves that the infamous Gianfranco Broccolini had fallen deeply in love. This was her dream, after all.

  “The alterations I have to do on this dress are minimal; so I could have it ready whenever you need it. I also have an ideal choice for the other dress you need. Another dress, I think, will wow you. Gianfranco will take one look at you in it and it will be an image that will be burned into his memory forever. I’m still working on it but it will definitely be ready by the time you need it. Do you like the color red?” she asked as she moved to another rack of dresses in the corner of the room.

  Katelyn loved the color red and, other than the dress that she had worn to shock Adam the other night, she hadn’t owned anything red before. She thought the color would draw attention to her, and, up until now, she wanted to be invisible. She had avoided the color red at all costs because of the attention she might’ve received. Rosa is right, it’s time for me to come out of my shell and start living again. If the color red pops on me and brings attention, so be it. Her husband was going to have to learn to deal with the sudden competition.

  Once again, Katelyn was moved by Nellie’s ability to design. When she tried on the red gown, she saw that it was tightly gathered around the middle to emphasize her small waist. The shoulders were bare; she had no doubt that her bare neck was enough to give her an edge over Gianfranco, should he decide to come to the charity event at all. She knew if he saw her in this dress that he would have a very hard time controlling his desire. It was a perfect fit and as Nellie had said it was almost complete. Katelyn could see how much attention Nellie paid to detail because the dress looked perfect as it was to her untrained eye.

  Nellie went over to her workbench and came back with two long strips of fabric that had tiny silver beads hand-sewn into the fabric; she took one strip and pinned it around the top of the dress and the other around her waist. Katelyn couldn’t believe what she was seeing. The silver beads were reflecting the red color of the dress. That small detail completed the dress, making the dress even more alluring than before.

  “You’re amazing Nellie, the dress is beautiful. Tell me something, I don’t mean to pry, but is there something going on between you and Brody?” She asked.

  Nellie didn’t say anything at first. It was as though she were weighing whether she should share her past with Katelyn at all. For whatever reason, the two of them seemed to have connected more in their short visit than Nellie had with anyone else since returning to Montana and so Nellie chose to confide in her. Katelyn couldn’t believe how close to the truth her hypothesis had been. Nellie was, in fact, the well-known fashion designer, Eleanor Mulaney, who had disappeared a year earlier.

  It was a big story a year ago. Eleanor Mulaney had disappeared the year before at the peak of her professional career. It was as though she had clawed her way to the top in no time at all and then disappeared just as quickly. However, Nellie must have left Brody long before then because Kevin and Sylvia were never aware of Brody having a wife. Nellie told Katelyn that she had lived in Montana years ago with Brody. They had dated all through college and later when Brody went on to law school. It wasn’t until they eloped that things changed between them. Brody wanted a family and she wanted to pursue her career. She loved designing clothes and she thought that he would support the career she trained so hard to achieve, just as she supported him with law school. When her work required her to travel more and more, he gave her an ultimatum, their marriage or her career.

  He wanted her to come home and raise a family but she wouldn’t leave Milan until she achieved what she had set out to do. At that time, Nellie thought she had made the right decision but she found out the hard way that the life she had with Brody was the path she should have chosen. Still, she had no regrets for achieving what she did but she had always hoped that Brody would have supported her career.

  “No matter how rich and famous I became, it was never enough. I wasn’t happy. It took years to figure out what was missing. It was because Brody was no longer a part of my life. It didn’t matter if that life was in Paris, New York or Milan; without Brody in my life, I was pretty lonely. My career was no longer filling the void left
by Brody.”

  “I must have changed a lot over the years or Brody’s rich friends simply never cared about me at all because I realized when I came back that I wasn’t recognized by his wealthy friends. Brody was the popular jock back in the day, dating the girl from the other side of the tracks. Women I had met in previous years through Brody would come into the shop and not know who I was. I thought if none of them recognized me that I could keep my presence hidden from Brody as well. I came up with this silly idea of how to approach him again. I wanted to finish a dress design that Brody had helped me with years ago. I thought that if Brody saw me in this perfect dress, it would be the best way to win my husband back. Is that silly?” she asked as she opened another wardrobe bag hanging on the mobile rack.

  When Nellie opened the wardrobe bag, Katelyn was awestruck once again. There were definitely two sides of Nellie Mulaney. This dress was white and very plain, at first glance, but when Nellie slipped it on the mannequin and turned it around, Katelyn saw what she was hoping Brody would see and admire. The deep plunging line of the dress reached all the way down the back and just barely tapped the derriere of its wearer. Brody would have to be dead not to react. She grinned as she gave her approval.

  Nellie smiled and turned her mannequin around. “Just like its intended, there are two sides to the dress, a contrast between the front and the back and innocence and sex,” she said.

  “How long did this take you?” Katelyn asked as she once again admired the dress up close.

  “I think I’ve been working on this design for years. Subconsciously, I knew that without Brody in my life, I could never finish it,” Nellie added with a soft smirk.

  “I’m meeting Brody for dinner in a few minutes, would you like to go instead of me?” Katelyn asked.