“So now that I know you like Todd, tell me you’ve invited him to Carolyn’s wedding as your date.”
Sally looked up from the bowl. “He’s not going.”
“What do you mean?”
“The FBI special agents said it was too risky. He’s heading into town on Saturday before the wedding starts.”
“Where’s he going?” Annie stared at Sally until she realized where he’d be. “He’s staying with Dylan, isn’t he?”
Sally nodded. “The security around Dylan’s home is incredible. With Mitch still hiding somewhere in Montana, no one wants to take chances with anyone’s life.” Sally measured the flour and tipped it into her bowl. “After I’ve mixed this together, do you know how long I’m supposed to chill the dough for?”
“One hour should be enough. What about your safety? Who’s looking after you on Saturday?”
“Dominique and Alastair will be with me. I’m safer away from Todd.” Sally wasn’t convinced that was the case, but she wasn’t an expert on how criminal minds worked.
Annie rolled the dumplings into round balls and placed them on top of her beef casserole. “Do you think the police and FBI will ever find Mitch?”
“I don’t know.” Sally didn’t like saying that out loud. She felt as though she was letting Todd down by even thinking that Mitch Zambezi wouldn’t be caught.
An alarm on the far side of the room beeped and Sally and Annie jumped.
“It’s okay,” Annie said. “It’s Molly. She’s standing at the front door.”
Sally looked at the monitor and sighed. “I’ll be happy when all of this is over. I don’t think my stress levels can take many more weeks of being on edge.”
“It will be okay.” Annie pushed a button on the console and opened the door for Molly. “All of this will be a distant memory soon. Before you know it you’ll be walking around Bozeman without a care in the world.”
Sally didn’t think she’d ever take her life for granted again. Or the people in it. “Thanks, Annie. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Probably burn your cookies.” Annie grinned. “By the time this is over you’ll be a domestic goddess.”
“I’d settle for being able to make pancakes without lumps in them,” Sally said as the door to the kitchen opened.
Molly walked in with a smile on her face. “Guess what I’ve just done?”
Annie and Sally looked at her blankly.
“I’ve submitted a portfolio of images to a gallery. They’re considering exhibiting my work.”
When Molly told them the name of the gallery, Sally was impressed. “Dunbar and Sloane are the top gallery in Los Angeles. I did an art appreciation class last year and studied some of their artists. Their exhibitions are huge successes.”
Annie slid her casserole into one of the ovens. “We need to celebrate. Who wants a tiramisu latte?”
“It sounds as though it’s full of calories,” Sally said. “Like the kind of drink a potential bridesmaid might not like, especially if she wants to fit her dress.”
Annie laughed. “I’ll make a skinny version, just for you.”
“Sounds like a good plan.” Sally put her cookie dough in the fridge and turned to Molly. “Did you keep digital copies of the images you submitted?”
Molly pulled her laptop out of her case. “I did. I brought my computer with me,” she said proudly. “This could be the break I need to get into something other than fashion photography.”
Sally sat down beside Molly. “But you’re such a good fashion photographer. Are you sure you don’t want to go back to that industry?”
Molly turned her computer on and waited for it to start up. “There’s more to life than super skinny models and haute couture gowns. I want to photograph real people doing real things.”
“You’ve come to the right place then,” Sally said from in front of the coffee machine. “You can’t get more real than the folks from Montana.”
Sally looked at the first picture Molly opened. It was a landscape showing the barn on Todd’s ranch, the old one they’d cleaned for Carolyn’s wedding. In the photo, the sky was painted the brilliant pinks and purples of a summer sunset. A couple were standing in front of the big wooden doors, holding hands and looking into each other’s eyes. “Is that Carolyn and Wayne?”
Molly nodded. “They wanted an engagement photo. This is the one they liked the best.” She pointed at a baby goat behind Carolyn. “And that’s Todd’s latest edition. She snuck away from her mama and came across to see what we were doing.”
Sally leaned her elbows on the table and waited for the next photo. When Molly pushed the return key, Sally’s breath caught in her throat. “When did you…”
“About two weeks ago. Carolyn wanted to visualize where everything would go for her wedding. Todd suggested coming out to the ranch again.”
“He did?” Sally was surprised. Carolyn’s wedding was like a thorn in his paw. It kept rubbing him the wrong way and leaving him grumpy.
“It was a grand visit. I took his photo as we were leaving. He’s quite photogenic is your Todd.”
“He’s not my Todd,” Sally insisted. She looked down at Todd’s photo and sighed.
Molly raised her eyebrows. “Does that sound like a little loving heading in the wrong direction, Annie?”
“It sounds like a lot of loving heading nowhere,” Annie said. “Sally needs some pointers on how to impress a man.”
“I don’t think that’s her problem.” Molly tilted her head to the side and smiled at the blush on Sally’s cheeks. “I think she knows exactly what she wants and so does Todd. It’s just a matter of finding the courage to go after it.”
Annie put a frothy coffee in front of Molly and a slightly less creamy edition in front of Sally. “A cup of coffee may not be terribly courageous, but it’s a good place to start.”
Molly raised her cup. “To new dreams and happy endings.” All three coffee cups clinked softly against each other.
Sally took a sip of the sweet concoction and licked her lips. Annie had been right. The coffee tasted delicious, but it wouldn’t solve her problems.
Right at the moment she didn’t care about new dreams or happy endings. Staying alive was her number one priority.
***
“Have you got a gun?”
Sally stared at Alastair, her best buddy special agent. He was also the man she was most likely to strangle if he didn’t go back to fighting the bad guys soon.
“Does it look as though I have?” she asked sweetly.
Alastair ran a critical eye over her deep navy satin dress. “You could tie a holster to your leg and hide a gun under your skirt.”
Sally picked up her shawl and walked out of the living room. “That’s what I’ve got you for,” she muttered. After nearly two weeks of Alastair’s wonderful company, Sally was about ready to scream. Or run away.
Dominique was waiting for her in the hallway. She nodded at Sally as she opened the door. “Everything’s going to plan.”
Sally didn’t know what plan Dominique was referring to, but it most definitely wasn’t the one they’d agreed to yesterday. Somewhere between spending the morning with Annie, then heading to Molly’s apartment for lunch, things had changed. Instead of getting ready for Carolyn’s wedding with her friends, Sally had been brought home and told to stay put until the last possible moment.
The last possible moment was now. They had exactly twenty-three minutes to make a journey that would normally take thirty minutes. Otherwise, they’d arrive late for Carolyn’s wedding, have trouble finding seats, and probably cause more of a commotion than if they’d left when Annie, Tess, and Molly were leaving.
Sally waited for Alastair to unlock his SUV. It wasn’t what she imagined a run-of-the-mill special agent would rent. It was a black beast of a vehicle with more power than two trucks combined. She knew this because one of her brothers had been drooling over a manual for the same vehicle for weeks. He’d compared the
SUV of his dreams, the same one she was riding in, with the truck he could afford. There was no comparison.
Dominique slipped into the back seat beside her. The only consolation Sally could see was that both of her bodyguards had dressed for the occasion. Dominique was wearing a pair of classic black pants with a pretty, deep red jacket. Alastair, not to be outdone on the classic front, had chosen a charcoal suit with a tie that pretty much matched Dominique’s jacket.
Alastair started the engine. His eyes caught Sally’s gaze in the rearview mirror and an uneasy feeling skittered along her nerves. He wasn’t telling her something.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
Sally put her seatbelt on and nodded. “Let’s go before the wedding’s finished.”
Alastair pulled out onto the road and didn’t waste any time hitting the Interstate. “You sound as though you’re getting tired of our company?” His voice held a thread of amusement, as if he couldn’t believe anyone would get sick of being followed around for two weeks.
“I don’t mind your company,” Sally said. “Sometimes you even smile. But I don’t like feeling as if someone’s watching me the whole time.”
Dominique glanced at Alastair, then back at her. “It’s part of what we’re here to do. Why didn’t you tell us you were feeling like that?”
Sally glanced out the window. Alastair was going so fast that everything seemed to blur and fade a little around the edges. “I don’t want you to think I’m ungrateful. I’m happy you’re keeping me alive, but apart from the truck driver, no one’s been harassing me. Maybe Mitch and his gang have given up and gone back to New York?”
“He’s still here,” Dominique said slowly.
Sally looked between Dominique and Alastair. “What aren’t you telling me?”
Alastair glanced at her in the rearview mirror. “There’s nothing much to tell. Do you remember what we told you about today?”
Sally couldn’t help but remember. Dominique and Alastair had gone over and over what she needed to do. “I’ve got to have one of you with me at all times. The other agent will be watching us. If anything happens, and I get separated from you, I find somewhere safe to hide and don’t move until I hear you say the words ‘purple pumpkin’.”
Sally opened her small bag and pulled her cell phone out. “My phone is on silent. If I need help I call 9-1-1 and ask for Dan Carter at the Bozeman police department. He’ll contact everyone else. Why did you choose the safe word, purple pumpkin? Pumpkins are orange.”
“Exactly,” Alastair said.
“Was it supposed to be funny?”
Dominique shook her head. “It’s supposed to keep you alive. It’s easy to remember and no one will guess what our safe words are.”
Sally snapped her bag closed. “Do you think we’re going to need to use them?”
The flat stare Dominique sent her wasn’t reassuring. Something had happened, and Sally had a feeling she was right in the middle of it.
***
When Sally walked into the barn, the only thing she focused on was Tess’ hand waving in the air. Rachel and Annie had saved three seats for them in the back row. “Thank you,” she whispered as she side-stepped her way past the other wedding guests.
She felt relieved that they’d arrived before the bride.
“You look beautiful,” Tess said softly to her. “You made it just in time.”
Sally followed Tess’ gaze to the back of the barn. Carolyn was standing in the doorway. One of her bridesmaids was flicking the train of her dress in the air, settling it around her legs before her walk down the aisle. Molly was there, taking photos, recording the day for the rest of eternity.
“Do you like what we did with the decorating?”
Sally took a deep breath and let her gaze wander around the old wooden barn. She’d been so worried about being late that she hadn’t noticed the transformation that had taken place over the last week. Last Saturday, she’d left the barn clean and tidy. Now it looked as though Cinderella’s fairy godmother had waved her magic wand, transforming it into a magical kingdom.
A canopy of flowers decorated the front of the barn where Carolyn and Wayne would exchange their wedding vows. Along the beams and down the support poles of the entire barn, someone had strung thousands of tiny fairy lights.
Sally looked at the chairs either side of the center aisle. They were decorated with small bouquets of flowers. The white roses and soft green foliage looked so pretty against the rustic charm of the building.
If Sally hadn’t seen the barn before they’d started work on it, she never would have believed it was the same place. “It’s amazing. It must have taken ages to get it looking so beautiful.”
Tess shrugged her shoulders. “It didn’t take too long. We had plenty of strong men with tall ladders to help us.”
Sally still felt bad that she wasn’t able to help decorate the barn. For the last few days, her life had been restricted to Annie’s kitchen and her apartment. She knew that it wouldn’t last forever, but it was hard not to be part of everything that was going on.
She looked along the row of seats and frowned. In her haste to get to her seat, Sally hadn’t realized that Alastair hadn’t followed her. She leaned across to Dominique and whispered, “Where’s Alastair?”
“Outside the main doors, keeping an eye on what’s happening.”
Sally looked over her shoulder, but couldn’t see him. “Who’s out there?”
“The bridal party and the photographer,” Dominique said. She held her hand to her ear and smiled. “Alastair said to tell you that the bridesmaids’ dresses look great.”
“Tell him he can be an honorary member of The Bridesmaids Club if he moves to Bozeman.”
Dominique snorted, but relayed the message. Just as she was about to say something, a man holding a guitar stood up at the front of the barn.
“Is that…?”
Dominique’s mouth dropped open. “It is. How did the bride and groom get Ryan Evans to sing at their wedding?”
Sally wasn’t much of a country music fan, but everyone had heard of Ryan Evans. He’d hit the music charts with his first number one song about four years ago. Since then, he’d crossed the lines between country and pop so often that both fan bases claimed him as their own.
As his fingers strummed the first chords of a song, Sally sighed. Todd would be annoyed that he’d missed the biggest musical event of the year.
Ryan’s voice filled the barn. It wasn’t a song Sally had heard before, but it was simple and sweet, all of the things that made his music so easy to listen to. A few seconds passed, then Carolyn’s bridesmaids started walking slowly down the aisle. Their dresses were beautiful.
Stacey, one of Carolyn’s two sisters, wore a hot pink gown with a huge satin bow on the back. Kimberly, her other sister, had chosen a deep blue silk dress. It was a no-frills, classic design, everything their Grace Kelly Collection tried to be. Trish, Carolyn’s friend, was wearing a buttercup yellow dress. It was a pretty design with a chiffon skirt and sparkly beads stitched around the neckline. Sally was so glad The Bridesmaids Club had been able to help them.
When the chorus of the song built to a wonderful high, Carolyn began walking down the aisle. Sunlight followed her, dancing through her sheer veil and shimmering against the white satin of her gown.
By the time Ryan finished singing, there wasn’t a person in the barn who didn’t have tears in their eyes. Wayne, Carolyn’s husband-to-be, looked stunned and overwhelmed. He hugged Carolyn to his chest, then stepped back, wiping his eyes with a tissue the best man handed him.
As the minister started speaking, Sally stared wistfully at the gentle smiles on Carolyn and Wayne’s faces. She wanted to find that kind of love, the kind that could handle the best and worst that life had to offer. Her parents had found it in each other. So had Tess and Logan, and Annie and Dylan. In the face of so many happy-ever-after moments, Sally was sure there must be someone meant for her.
Her cell
phone vibrated against her leg. She quietly unzipped her bag and looked at the text. She smiled as she read Todd’s message.
Tess nudged her arm. “You’d better be careful. A smile like that can have serious consequences. Especially in the middle of a wedding.”
Sally quickly texted Todd back and put her phone away. “It was nothing.”
“The best things usually are.”
Sally ignored the grin on Tess’ face. She put it down to the happy-hormones circling the barn on Carolyn and Wayne’s special day.
Dominique put her hand to her earpiece and said something quietly into her two-way radio.
This wasn’t exactly the stress-free wedding Sally had imagined. With more at stake than a piece of gossip, Sally tried to figure out what Dominique’s hushed tone meant. It could be Alastair cracking another of his not-so-funny jokes, or maybe a gun-wielding madman was roaring down the driveway. Whatever it was, Dominique gave nothing away.
Sally studied the people around her, wondering if any of them were murderers, assassins, or drug dealers. None of them looked as though they had New York gang affiliations, but she wasn’t that knowledgeable about gangs. Abandoned animals and teaching young children were about as exciting as her life got.
Ryan Evans returned to the front of the barn as Carolyn and Wayne signed their marriage certificate. Another song, this time one she knew, carried through the barn and straight into her heart.
“Here…” Dominique passed her a tissue.
Sally took it and tried to delicately blow her nose. Ryan sang about losing someone you loved and carrying on without them. It was heart-wrenching and poignant and one of the most beautiful songs she’d ever heard.
“He wrote, Sad Time Coming for his ex-wife,” Tess whispered. “I don’t often read the gossip columns, but I did see an article about their marriage. Ryan’s ex-wife sounded like a real...”
“Cow?” Dominique added.
Tess nodded. “We must have read the same story.”
In that moment, there was a shared camaraderie between Tess, Sally, and Dominique. Regardless of what was happening, Ryan Evans had their sympathy and utter devotion.
Head Over Heels (The Bridesmaids Club Book 3) Page 13
