Selling it? The one-two punch pushed the air from his lungs. Words failed him at that point. He wanted to tell her not to do that, but if she wasn't interested in a relationship with him, then it made sense that she would want to sell it. Given who she was, she didn't have to do it for the money, so it must mean that it was one more lose end she wanted to tie up.
He took a deep breath as she turned from him and opened the back door of her car. She leaned in and laid the bag across the back seat. When she shut the door, she gave him a small smile. "Gotta keep going. Have a few errands I need to finish up today."
Nate nodded and stepped up onto the sidewalk in front of the strip mall. "See you around."
As her car backed out of the spot, he turned and walked to where his truck was parked. Well, now what did he do? He had hoped he'd have some time to get a handle on exactly where she was emotionally. If she might be willing to reconsider a relationship with him. Some of the vibes she was sending out could easily be taken either way, but her dismissal of him the other night at the manor was a hard one to take. And now she was going to sell her wedding dress? The one she'd bought to marry him in?
Nate knew he had to step things up and give it one final push. If she said no, he would accept that and move on as best he could. But maybe...just maybe...she could see that he'd changed and would give him a second chance.
~*~*~
Lily laid the bag out on the bed. It had been three years since she'd last seen it. Would she still love it as much now as she had that day she'd tried it on? With slow movements sheunzipped the bag and pushed the sides to open it. She ran her fingers over the tulle that made up the skirt of the soft blush-colored gown. No one had ever seen the dress except her and the women in the bridal shop.
Her family had already been asking about the wedding date once they were engaged. Lily had been afraid that they'd think her foolish for buying a dress without a firm date. She really hadn't planned to buy one when she'd gone in that day to try on dresses. But it had been just perfect. All the women in the shop had agreed. And it wasn't like she hadn't had the money. So she'd ended up with a wedding dress and no wedding.
She'd told Nate she was going to sell it, but as she looked at it there on her bed, she just couldn't imagine letting it go to another bride. Reaching in, she pulled the hanger out and carefully freed the dress from the bag. Her breath caught as she once again saw it in all its beauty. It was all she'd remembered and more. Part of her wanted to try it on, but she knew that there was no way she could do it on her own. Instead she hung it up on a hook on the door leading to the bathroom then sat back down on the bed and stared at it.
She couldn't believe she'd run into Nate right at that moment. He'd looked shocked when she'd told him what it was and what she intended to do with it. Did he still have the ring he'd given her? Or had that been burned in the fire along with the rest of his things?
A knock on her door sent her scrambling off the bed. She was relieved to see Julia standing in the doorway. "Mom said to tell you supper's ready."
"Thanks, sweetie. I'll be right down."
With one last glance at the dress, Lily headed down to join her family. Decisions about the dress could be made later. There was no rush.
"Nate's here."
Lily looked up from her laptop at Amy's words. She'd been working to get caught up on the blog she wrote as well as the emails she received as a result of it. After she'd come to accept what was happening to her, she had found writing blog posts had helped to channel her fears, frustrations and other emotions. As people discovered it, the blog had grown in popularity. Unfortunately, she'd neglected it since her move from London.
"Is he here to see me?" Lily asked as she set her laptop on the bed beside her and unfolded her legs.
"Yep. Asked if you were around."
"Okay. Just give me a second. I'll be right down."
Once Amy had left her, Lily stood and went to the bathroom to make sure she looked presentable. Curiosity had her moving a little more quickly than usual. It had been a couple of days since they'd met up on the sidewalk in front of the bridal shop. Could their encounter there have brought about this visit?
"He's in the library," Amy told her when she walked into the kitchen.
Spinning on her heel, Lily made her way to the library and found Nate standing at the bay window looking out across the driveway.
"Hi, Nate. Amy said you wanted to see me."
He swung around and for a moment, just stared at her. She drank in the sight of him, too. The light sprinkling of gray that had just started to show when she'd left was more pronounced now. Early gray had run in his family, but Lily knew it was likely due to stress as well. In her eyes it had just made him more handsome.
"Yes. Sorry to show up without calling." He pulled his hand from his pocket and gestured to the desk. "I was hoping you'd be willing to help me out again."
"Sure." Lily tried to quell the disappointment that welledup within her. This was about business. "I did offer, right?"
Nate nodded. "But if you've changed your mind, I understand."
Lily watched as he pulled the laptop from the bag and opened it up. She moved to stand on the other side of the desk. When he glanced up at her, she said, "I heard you went to talk to Dr. Bennett."
One of his eyebrows lifted as he reached for the cable of the monitor that was still there from the last time she'd worked on his paperwork. "He called you?"
"No, I had an appointment with him yesterday. He mentioned that they had spoken with you."
Nate's movements stilled. "Is everything okay?"
