“The dress you’ve always dreamed about?” the other woman asked.
“I’m not a dress-dreamer kind of person, but it looks wonderful.”
“Your mother’s ready. Come see what she picked out.”
Shannon picked up the heavy skirt and made her way to the main viewing area. Cindy was already up on the dais, in a more fitted, off-the-shoulder gown that looked as if it had been made from spun silver. The simple style accentuated her height and her figure and made her look like a queen.
“Oh, Mom, you’re so beautiful. Is that the dress you tried on before? It looks fantastic on you. The pictures you sent me didn’t tell the whole story.”
Cindy rushed toward her, eyes filling with tears. “Oh, my baby girl. Look at you!” They hugged. “This is what I wanted,” her mother continued. “We’ve always done everything together and now we’re trying on dresses.”
She took the tissue Angelina handed her, then sniffed. “All right. I’m done being emotional. Now get up on the dais and let me see you.”
“Mom, you go first. You’re the bride.”
“All right. I’m so happy. I’ll try on a few other dresses just to be sure, but I can’t imagine any of them looking better than this one.”
Cindy stepped up in front of the half circle of tall mirrors. Joy radiated from her as she moved and preened and smiled. Everything about the dress worked, Shannon thought, pleased for her mom. She looked amazing, she was happy and the style would suit the low-key wedding her mom wanted. There was no bad here.
When it was her turn, Shannon stepped up in front of the mirrors. Angelina brought her a pair of heels to try with the dress. Cindy fussed with the skirt a little, then pressed her hands together.
“You look perfect.”
Shannon stared at herself, trying to figure out why she didn’t look as happy as her mother had. She was engaged to the man of her dreams and trying on a wedding dress that looked great on her. Shouldn’t this be a seminal moment in her life? Only she couldn’t help thinking she didn’t want the big fuss of the kind of wedding this dress would require. In her mind, she saw herself married to Aaron, not getting married to him. When she thought about the ceremony, it was outdoors, somewhere pretty, and she was wearing the dress she saw on Amazon. There was no event, no caterer, no hundreds of guests watching. The irony of the moment wasn’t lost on her. She didn’t know what to do about her career and couldn’t seem to find the courage to tell her mom about the engagement, but she knew what she wanted her wedding to be, down to the lack of formality and absence of Save the Date cards.
Without wanting to, she remembered Ava’s harsh question about what she brought to the table in her relationship with Aaron. He had his life planned out. He had his business, and he wanted to marry her. Eventually they would start a family and grow old together. While she agreed with the latter, she wasn’t clear on the rest of it. What did she want for herself beyond marrying him? And if she didn’t know, was she really doing the right thing in accepting his proposal? Didn’t Aaron deserve someone who was clear on where they were going? And if he did, where exactly did that leave her?
23
“Last time I was here, I was too freaked out to notice all the changes you’d made,” Cindy said as she followed Ava into the large kitchen. “But you made a few. The foyer is different, and the kitchen configuration changed.”
They moved to the island where Ava had put out all the samples her decorator had left with her.
“How can you possibly remember what the house was like twenty-four years ago?” she asked with a laugh. “I don’t.”
Cindy laughed. “It’s burned into my brain. This was the nicest house I’d ever been in. I remember everything.” She sighed. “When I spent the night, you put me in a beautiful guest room with that huge bathroom. I used to pretend I really lived here and imagined my clothes in the closet, my things in the drawers.”
Ava had had no idea. Yes, she knew that Cindy had grown up in a fairly modest house, but she hadn’t realized her home with Milton was so memorable. Of course Cindy had been all of seventeen, so perhaps her holding on to the memories made sense.
“Do you still have your father’s house or did you move somewhere else?” she asked as they sat at the island.
“I’m still there. Once Luis and I are married, I’ll move in with him. We’re going fix up my place and rent it out.”
“A smart investment.” The old house would be long paid for, and real estate in Los Angeles was always valuable.
Ava smiled at the other woman. “I remember your garden out back and how I killed the strawberries. I’m afraid I’ve never been much of a gardener.”
“It’s nice you have a flaw or two.”
“Or several,” Ava said. “What can I get you to drink? Iced tea? Soda?”
“Iced tea would be nice. Thank you.”
Ava collected glasses and poured tea from the pitcher. When she was seated again, she said, “Did Shannon tell you about her cinematography adventure? Apparently that’s not her passion, but at least she made the effort.” She paused, glanced at Cindy. “Did I overstep by getting her into the seminar?”
“What? Of course not.” Cindy hesitated. “I understand why you want to get to know her. If circumstances had been different, she would have been your daughter.”
Ava watched her carefully. “I’m hearing hesitation in your voice.”
