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Authors: Brooke Moss
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greeting, the sunlight that poured through the windows glimmered on her ring.
“Hi.” My voice came out entirely too noisy, and I cleared my throat. “Er, hi.”
“Did you have trouble finding the place? I told Gabriel to give you directions.” Alicia was sitting at a long table, with four girls sitting at either side. “We ordered a mimosa for you.”
“Thanks.” I took a deep breath, flustered by the jog. “Sorry, I had to jump a few buses to get here.”
The girl to Alicia’s left wrinkled her nose. “You’re a bus person?”
I nodded. “No need to pay for gas when there is only parking for one-third of the cars in the city.”
Alicia’s green eyes sparkled. I swear she could do it on command, and I hated that about her. “I know. I’m always after Gabe about how much it costs to run our car.”
I swallowed the urge to point out that the car she was referring to was Gabe’s car. Not hers. He and I bickered over the fact that he bought a gas-guzzling all-terrain vehicle after receiving his last raise, instead of the economically earth-friendly smart car I was pushing him toward.
“I would be way too nervous to ride the bus everywhere.” She giggled, flipping her red hair back. She looked great, as usual, and it made me want to bang my head on the tabletop. “You’re much braver than I am, Violet.”
I cleared my throat. “Well, sometimes the bums smell bad, but they tell a hell of a good story, too.”
“Girls, this is Violet Murphy,” Alicia explained. “She is going to be Gabriel’s best man. Violet, let me introduce you to my bridesmaids.”
I looked around the table at the four girls surrounding Alicia. It was like an ad for the United Colors of Benetton. All four pairs of eyes reeled to my face at once, and I immediately sensed scrutiny. My hair, my face, and my outfit were assessed as Alicia rattled off each of their names.
To her left there was a thin Asian girl, Rose, who I was sure I’d seen in an ad in Seattle Metro Magazine before. To her right, there was an African American woman, Shawn, whose long, braided hair shone like a licorice rope down her back. Next to her was Alicia’s cousin, Marissa, who was equally as beautiful as Alicia, which was incredibly annoying. Last but not least, there was a brunette, Kate, who glared at me while fingering a BlackBerry. Each one of the girls was at least three sizes smaller than me, and though in any other situation I would have been proud of my curves, in this group I wanted to hunch over to hide my breasts and tug at my shirt to disguise my tummy.
I waved at them, my jewelry clunking together. After slipping my bracelets off underneath the table, I dropped them into my purse and unfolded my napkin onto my lap. “Thank you so much for inviting me. I’ve never eaten here.”
Alicia sipped her mimosa. “Gabriel and I come here often. It’s one of our favorites.”
I looked around at the other women. “Wow, with these girls as your bridesmaids, and you for a bride, your wedding party will be stunning.”
“Well, I have to look at these pictures for the rest of my life,” Alicia joked, patting Marissa on the hand sweetly.
Rose snickered under her breath. “Hope the best man doesn’t plan on wearing that hat.”
I glared at her. “So…how do each of you know the bride?”
Kate spoke first. “I’m her agent. I work for Puget Model Management. So I’ve known her since she signed on with us…oh, how long ago was that?”
Alicia’s hand went to her chest, and I waited for her to say a number of years. “Eight months.”
My eyes bounced between the two of them, who were obviously sharing a tender moment. Did she just say months? Confused, I moved on to Rose, who offered me what could only be described as a grimace intended to be a smile. “I’ve been her roommate for a year now.”
“We did our first nudes together.” Shawn grinned. “That was two years ago. I hadn’t heard from her in a year, but here I
“Hi.” My voice came out entirely too noisy, and I cleared my throat. “Er, hi.”
“Did you have trouble finding the place? I told Gabriel to give you directions.” Alicia was sitting at a long table, with four girls sitting at either side. “We ordered a mimosa for you.”
“Thanks.” I took a deep breath, flustered by the jog. “Sorry, I had to jump a few buses to get here.”
The girl to Alicia’s left wrinkled her nose. “You’re a bus person?”
I nodded. “No need to pay for gas when there is only parking for one-third of the cars in the city.”
Alicia’s green eyes sparkled. I swear she could do it on command, and I hated that about her. “I know. I’m always after Gabe about how much it costs to run our car.”
I swallowed the urge to point out that the car she was referring to was Gabe’s car. Not hers. He and I bickered over the fact that he bought a gas-guzzling all-terrain vehicle after receiving his last raise, instead of the economically earth-friendly smart car I was pushing him toward.
“I would be way too nervous to ride the bus everywhere.” She giggled, flipping her red hair back. She looked great, as usual, and it made me want to bang my head on the tabletop. “You’re much braver than I am, Violet.”
I cleared my throat. “Well, sometimes the bums smell bad, but they tell a hell of a good story, too.”
“Girls, this is Violet Murphy,” Alicia explained. “She is going to be Gabriel’s best man. Violet, let me introduce you to my bridesmaids.”
I looked around the table at the four girls surrounding Alicia. It was like an ad for the United Colors of Benetton. All four pairs of eyes reeled to my face at once, and I immediately sensed scrutiny. My hair, my face, and my outfit were assessed as Alicia rattled off each of their names.
To her left there was a thin Asian girl, Rose, who I was sure I’d seen in an ad in Seattle Metro Magazine before. To her right, there was an African American woman, Shawn, whose long, braided hair shone like a licorice rope down her back. Next to her was Alicia’s cousin, Marissa, who was equally as beautiful as Alicia, which was incredibly annoying. Last but not least, there was a brunette, Kate, who glared at me while fingering a BlackBerry. Each one of the girls was at least three sizes smaller than me, and though in any other situation I would have been proud of my curves, in this group I wanted to hunch over to hide my breasts and tug at my shirt to disguise my tummy.
I waved at them, my jewelry clunking together. After slipping my bracelets off underneath the table, I dropped them into my purse and unfolded my napkin onto my lap. “Thank you so much for inviting me. I’ve never eaten here.”
Alicia sipped her mimosa. “Gabriel and I come here often. It’s one of our favorites.”
I looked around at the other women. “Wow, with these girls as your bridesmaids, and you for a bride, your wedding party will be stunning.”
“Well, I have to look at these pictures for the rest of my life,” Alicia joked, patting Marissa on the hand sweetly.
Rose snickered under her breath. “Hope the best man doesn’t plan on wearing that hat.”
I glared at her. “So…how do each of you know the bride?”
Kate spoke first. “I’m her agent. I work for Puget Model Management. So I’ve known her since she signed on with us…oh, how long ago was that?”
Alicia’s hand went to her chest, and I waited for her to say a number of years. “Eight months.”
My eyes bounced between the two of them, who were obviously sharing a tender moment. Did she just say months? Confused, I moved on to Rose, who offered me what could only be described as a grimace intended to be a smile. “I’ve been her roommate for a year now.”
“We did our first nudes together.” Shawn grinned. “That was two years ago. I hadn’t heard from her in a year, but here I
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