by Sadie Grubor
Circling the block three times, we finally got a parking spot only one block from the bridal shop. We both ran down the sidewalk, dodging bodies walking the opposite direction and giggling at each other. Bursting into the bridal shop laughing heartily, Miranda stood from a white and pink floral pattern couch.
"Finally," Miranda exclaimed with a large smile. She engulfed me in a large hug. "It feels like I haven't seen you in forever, and you," she turned to Victoria and pulled her into a hug, "did you grow a foot or what?" Victoria giggled and shook her head. Miranda grabbed my hand and pulled me through a set of heavy, dark red, velvet curtains.
"The dress is in that room, just put it on, and then come out here so we fit it to your body."
"Ay-aye captain," I saluted her before walking into the small dressing room, closing the white door behind me.
On the back of the door hung a light pink, knee length dress, with scalloped neckline, wide shoulder straps, and long satin bow attached directly below the left breast. Pink was not my color.
"Pink, Rand? Really?" I yelled out to her.
"Shut it Sophia and put on the dress," she shouted back.
I slipped out of my clothes and into the dress. There was a pearl choker necklace on the hanger, so I put it on as well. After I was dressed I stepped out of the dressing room.
"Oh, it's so pretty!" Victoria had her hands clamped together and sat bouncing on a white couch.
"It looks great on you and it looks like it fits." Miranda smiled and motioned for me to step up on a small raised portion of the floor.
I stepped up and was engulfed in three reflections of myself. Yes, the dress seemed to fit well, the pink color wasn't as bad as I thought, but I still felt ridiculous in it.
A small tanned skinned woman appeared, quickly prodded and pinched at me and the dress. She inserted a few pins in places before motioning for me to follow her into the dressing room.
Once in the room she shut the door and began to help me out of the dress. Apparently she thought I would dislodge her pins if left to undress on my own. When it was off, she flipped it inside out and put it back on the hanger with a slip of paper. Redressing quickly I stepped out of the room.
"Where's Victoria?" I scanned the room and felt my heart thud rapidly.
"She's trying on her dress." Rand smiled at me smugly.
"You asked her to be in the wedding?" I couldn't fight back the smile now plastered on my face. Miranda nodded. "You just may be her favorite person ever," I laughed and plopped down on the couch next to her.
"No way, that spot is completely reserved for you." Rand bumped shoulders with me. "I have to admit I'm jealous." I looked at her confused. "I had her for three years and she didn't love me the way she does you."
"Rand –"
She cut me off with a smile and a hand on my leg.
"I'm just teasing you. I mean, yeah I'm a little jealous, but I'm happier she has taken so well to you."
"Thanks, I do love that little munchkin." I laughed.
"I know you do." Miranda smiled at me warmly, but with a hint of something I couldn't place. She quickly changed the subject.
"Lucas has been asking about you," she smirked at me, "says you haven't returned his calls."
I groaned.
"I've text him, but he wants to be more than friends." I looked at Rand quickly. "I don't."
She laughed. "I figured as much, but I should warn you that he is in the wedding too."
I shrugged.
"I think I can handle him for the night. Plus I'll have Victoria to keep me preoccupied." I winked at her.
Victoria emerged from her dressing room. She had on a similar shaped gown, but it was a very light green and the satin bow was in the back.
"You look fabulous," I shouted.
"It looks lovely on you," Miranda gushed.
Victoria did a twirl and then danced over to the mirrors. She stood there with the largest grin on her face while the small tanned skin woman once again appeared and pinned the dress.
We finished up at the dress shop and climbed into our car to drive to a small restaurant. After placing our lunch orders we sat around the table talking about the wedding.
"So, what are you going to dance to first?" I sat back into my chair and sipped my lemon water.
"Can you believe we are still undecided?" Miranda shook her head. "We can't agree on a song."
"Okay, well, what food are you serving? That's the most important thing to me." I winked at her.
She chuckled and rattled off a large sit down menu. Then we talked about seating arrangements and the rehearsal. The rehearsal was in three weeks, the wedding in four.
"What about the bachelorette party?" I wiggled my eyebrows at her.
"That would be after the rehearsal, but we won't be getting wild." She gave me a stern look.
"What?" I asked innocently.
"It won't be wild or crazy. Just a sleepover with food, drinks, and movies, I really just need a night to unwind from everything." She sighed heavily.
Our food arrived and we continued talking about the wedding, Miranda talked to Victoria about going back to school, and how her summer vacation went. I cringed, thinking about all of the things that had occurred and the things she could tell Rand about.
So color me surprised when she didn't mention those things at all.
Kisses and hugs went on for a lifetime, none of us really wanting to say goodbye, but Rand needed to get home to Benji and we needed to let her go. A few more goodbye hugs and we went our separate ways. Miranda climbed into a taxi, while Victoria and I walked hand in hand back to the car.
When we walked into the house we were greeted by Connor.
"Well, hello there ladies," he bowed to Victoria.
Victoria curtsied and giggled before she ran into his arms. "Hi Grandpa."
"What did you do today?" He asked, still kneeling down in front of her.
"I get to be in Miranda's wedding," she exclaimed while she bounced on her toes.
Connor stood up.
"That sounds exciting." His gaze shifted to me and a small smile seemed to be fighting at the side of his mouth. "Sophia," he nodded.
"Connor," I nodded back. "How has your day been?"
"Pretty…well, it's been interesting." He quickly turned back to Victoria. "How about we have some ice cream?"
"Definitely," she stated firmly and started toward the kitchen.
"Not too much. We just ate lunch and you need to be hungry when it's time for dinner. I'm making your favorite." Both of them turned quickly and I smiled.
"Spaghetti?" Victoria's eyes widened.
"With meatballs," I answered with a sly smile.
"That sounds wonderful." Connor blurted out. I could tell by the look on his face he hadn't meant actually verbalize.
"I already told you that you are invited." I stated with a smile, pulling my hair back into a ponytail. I passed them on my way to the kitchen to begin making the meatballs.
I was browning the meatballs and listening to Victoria while she talked about her junior bridesmaid dress. Then she brought up the pink dress I would be wearing.
"It's like a pink princess dress, it's so pretty." She gushed to Connor who seemed to thoroughly enjoy listening to his granddaughter talk nonstop.
"What is so pretty?" His icy tone immediately caused me to straighten my posture.
"Oh daddy, I get to be in Miranda's wedding! She asked me to wear this pretty green dress, which is really pretty, but Sophia gets to wear pink and that's my favorite color. It is so pretty." Clearly the ice cream and chocolate syrup were making her hyper.
"I wasn't aware you were in her wedding." The coldness in his voice wasn't his normal tone. There was a hint of something else. Connor cut me off before I could speak.
"Apparently, she was just asked today."
I glanced over my shoulder. Connor was cleaning up the ice cream bowls before getting up from the table.
As I drained the meatballs and beg
an to transfer them to the pot full of sauce, I felt his closeness.
"So, what are we having for dinner this evening?" His breath on the back of my neck caused Goosebumps to form on my skin. He moved closer toward my right ear. I bit my lip and tensed up.
"I know what I will be having for desert." The tip of his tongue grazed my earlobe.
I almost dropped the pan out of my hand.
Chapter Nineteen
"These are soooo good," Victoria hummed as she took another bite of meatball.
"I agree," was Connor's food muffled response. I smiled at him.
"Grandpa, you aren't supposed to talk with your mouth full," Victoria lectured after she swallowed her most recent bite.
I covered my mouth when the loud laugh tried to erupt. I could hear Dr. Bishop's chuckle on my right. We were congregated around the small kitchen table that was finally receiving some regular usage.
Once everyone was finished with dinner, Victoria and Connor cleared the table while I loaded the dishwasher. I noticed the table was clear, so I sent Victoria on her way to wash her sauce covered face.
"He's not really as 'stiff' as he seems." I jerked my head to Connor while loading the last dish into the dishwasher.
"I'm sorry?" Confusion filled me and my words.
"Collin," he smirked. "He's not really as cold as he often appears to be."
I smiled small, but remained silent; not really knowing how to respond. Did he know about –?
"He was the only child that was completely raised by Ilene, for the most part." Connor had a small tinge of regret in his voice.
"Oh," I said, starting to feel uncomfortable with the conversation.
"When Max was born we hired Juliet, but by that time Ilene had Collin completely 'trained' as she wanted." He furrowed his brow and spoke with a little venom in his words. "I tried to get him into other things," he sighed, "but I was always so consumed with the hospital that I wasn't around nearly enough."
I knew a look of sympathy was painting my features. "Connor, everything will work out fine. Allison will, hopefully, come to terms with everything and –"
"You're good for him, for Victoria," then he chuckled at my shocked expression. "Hell, you might be good for all of us." After taking a breath, he continued. "My dear it's not hard to see the way he is with you since the beginning."
I furrowed my brow.
"But he was just cold and –"
Connor shaking his head stopped me from continuing.
"The way he would, and still does, watch everything you and Victoria did, his incessant need to constantly correct what you're doing, etcetera. It's all a façade. It's also when he acts most like his mother. You've thrown him for a loop." Connor chuckled again. "Your free spirit and your, how should I put this, your way with words." I raised an eyebrow at him. He laughed, "You don't take his shit."
I smiled sheepishly and looked at the counter. His heavy sigh brought my eyes back to his face.
"Don't be afraid." Connor leaned forward, kissed my forehead, and left me alone in the kitchen. I just stood there with my mind churning.
Did he tell his father about us? Did Connor just figure it out? Oh god, was it that easy to figure out? I groaned and headed up to Victoria's room.
Victoria was sitting at her desk drawing so I let her be and went to my room. Once inside, I sat down at my desk and fired up the laptop. I was just getting to page four hundred and fifteen when a small knock pulled me away from my writing. Victoria stuck her head into the room with a smile.
"Hey you, what's up?"
"What are you doing?" She plopped onto my couch and looked at me expectantly.
"I was writing, what are you up to?" I closed my laptop and turned my body toward her.
"Nothing," she shrugged.
Grabbing the remote on my way, I stood and walked over the couch. I sat down next to her and kicked my feet up onto the coffee table. She sat back and leaned into my side. We sat that way and watched the Disney Channel. When I looked over at the clock, I realized we had sat that way for much longer than it had felt like. I nudged Victoria's side.
"You need to get ready for bed, its nine thirty, little miss."
She groaned.
"Come on, get up." I nudged her again.
"Can't I just finish this show?" She looked up at me with pleading eyes.
I narrowed my eyes on her. "Fine, but this is it." We both smiled and settled back into our previous comfortable position.
Fifteen minutes later the door to my room opened and Dr. Bishop entered in his pajamas. I had to admit, blue plaid had never looked so freaking hot before.
"Hi, Daddy," Victoria yawned, still leaning against my side.
"It's pretty late, don't you think?" He raised one lick-able eyebrow at her.
"No," she yawned again. I laughed.
Dr. Bishop began to walk toward us, stepping over my propped up legs, and settling into the couch next to Victoria.
"What are we watching?"
Both Victoria's and my faces were staring at him blankly. He was joining us? Just sitting and watching TV like a real person.
"Is someone going to answer me?" His cold demanding tone appeared. Hah, there's the antichrist.
"It's called 'The Wizards of Waverly Place'." Victoria spoke quickly in response.
"Wizards?" he questioned her.
She nodded with a large smile and launched into the entire premise of the show, her favorite characters, and her 'most favorite' episode she had ever watched. He had a crooked smile on his face the whole time she rambled. Only once did he look up and catch me watching him. He winked at me and looked back to Victoria. I was never going to get used to him winking, never.
The show ended and it took me a couple of efforts to get Victoria up off the couch. My first attempt was foiled, when she curled into Dr. Bishop's side. He froze for a moment, but responded with wrapping his arms around her. My second attempt was met with a bottom lip being stuck out, which I easily grabbed onto and began to gently tug her off the couch, teasing her that I would rip it off.
Once she caved in, we both headed toward her room. Dr. Bishop didn't move. Victoria exited my room and I looked back at him quickly. He smiled as he stood from the couch and walked into my bedroom. His words from the kitchen ran through my head. 'I know what I will be having for dessert.' It took a moment to shake off the thoughts and focus on getting Victoria ready for bed. I read her a quick story before leaving her to slumber.
Inhaling a deep calming breath before entering the room, I released it before going in. I shut off the television and the living room light on my way to my bedroom.
Once inside my bedroom door, I was greeted by an empty bed. My brow furrowed in confusion, but assumed he had decided to go to his room instead of wait on me. As soon as I had resolved on that conclusion and disappointment set in, the bathroom door opened. He stepped out. A large smile spread on his face and he made quick strides to reach me. Instinctively, I took a step back from his quick approach.
His hand quickly reached out and cupped the back of my neck, pulling me to him. When his mouth met mine, he moaned against my lips. Never once breaking contact with my lips, I heard the door click shut and the sound of him locking it.
Pulling back from the kiss I felt lightheaded and tried to clear the lusty fog in my head. There was something I wanted to talk to him about, what the hell was…oh god that feels good.
His moved to my neck as he walked us toward the bed. Laying us down, he was hovering over me. For a split second my mind cleared and my palms shot out to press against his chest.
"Stop," I murmured against his mouth. He pulled back with confusion in his eyes.
"Side table," I pointed with command in my tone.
His brow furrowed and he looked at the table and then back to me.
"The drawer," I elaborated.
Dr. Bishop reached over and pulled the drawer open. It took him a moment, but then it registered what he was looking for and pulled out the
small box of condoms.
"I despise these things," he informed me, looking at the box with disdain.
"Too bad," I quipped. His head snapped down to me with a look of amusement.
"I assure you I'm perfectly safe."
"You haven't been the last times." It was almost a whisper, but he heard me. The look on his face was one of realization.
"I apologize, I didn't realize that—"
"I know. It wasn't exactly the first thing I thought about either." Then I mumbled, "Talk about the total cliché."
"What?" His brow furrowed at me.
"Nothing," I mumbled again.
"Did you just say you were a—?"
Pulling his face to mine and capturing his lips cut off the conversation. He didn't complain or speak. However, he did moan when I took his bottom lip between my lips and sucked.
Did I just initiate this? I think I did. Cue internal high five to self.
Our lips molded together, our tongues battled for domination, and our clothes were quickly disappearing from limbs. The last piece of clothing between us was my underwear.
Dr. Bishop's long, gifted fingers hooked into the sides and he slowly slid them off of me. His mouth moved down my body, stopping to take my left nipple between his lips before continuing his downward path. Gliding his tongue in the crease of my thigh and pubic mound, he tossed my underwear away.
"Dessert," he whispered against the inside of my thigh. Then he sucked. My hands grabbed at his bronze locks and a moan reverberated from my chest.
"I love the sounds you make," he growled.
Gasping and gripping his hair tighter, his tongue parted my lips and delved inside. My hips jutted toward his face reflexively and his tongue made appreciative movements from entrance to clit.
I needed more, wanted more, wantonly writhing against his. When his index finger slid inside of me, there was no holding back the groan of ecstasy.
"Oh god," his tongue paid extra attention to my clit, quickly sending me into full orgasmic paradise. "Oh Collin," My back arched from the bed.
"Roll over," he commanded.
