My mom looks around with a critical eye. “Yes, it is quite nice, isn’t it?” She adjusts her purse in the crook of her elbow before looking at me. “I heard about this place from Meryl Johnson. You remember her, right? She and her husband used to be members of the Country Club. When your father and I ran into them at dinner and I mentioned you were now engaged, she recommended this place. I guess her daughter, Charlotte, found a very nice dress here.”
“I remember Charlotte.” Leaning closer to Mel, I whisper, “She was a massive bitch.” Mel does her best to cover her snicker, but my mom catches it, her lips pursing. Thankfully our attendant arrives before she can chastise us.
"Such lovely ladies! Welcome to Contour Bridal Boutique. My name is Cecelia and I’ll be helping you find the perfect dress for your big day.” Cecilia is a lovely woman with short, bobbed hair dressed in all black. “Now, which one of you is the blushing bride?”
“That would be me.” Smiling softly, I lift my champagne flute towards her. “I’m Kate, this is my mom Charlene, and my soon-to-be sister-in-law Melissa.” I gesture to the two women beside me, and Cecilia nods her head in acknowledgment.
“How lovely.” Cecilia has a wide smile that makes me think she’s being genuine and not at all putting on a show. “Why don’t we take a look at some of our gowns and discuss what it is you’re looking for.”
There are so many choices that I’m starting to feel overwhelmed. Lace or satin? White or cream? Buttons or corset? Ballgown or fitted? You would think years of shopping for fancy dresses would have prepared me, but I’m not sure anything can prepare someone for this.
After looking at the ridiculous number of options and giving Cecilia an idea of what I’m looking for, we take a seat in the parlor and wait for her to pull out items that fit my vision.
“So, what’s the game plan here? Do I need to run interference or whatever?” Mel scooches closer until she’s right next to me when my mom gets up to scour for her version of the perfect dress.
“That would be perfect,” I sigh. This whole experience is making me anxious and a tad bit overwhelmed and Mel being a voice of reason would be helpful. “Oh, and don’t forget to send a picture of each contender to Millie. Here,” leaning down I fish my phone out of my purse and hold it out to her. “She’s on my phone under ‘Bad Bitch'.”
Mel snorts a laugh and takes the outstretched phone. “That’s amazing. I should come up with something for Gabe. What would one put their best friend slash hunky firefighter boyfriend on their phone as?” Tapping our chins, we both rummage through our brains for a good idea.
“Oh, I’ve got one!” Mel sits straight up, turning towards me with a naughty grin. “Hot and Spicy. Hot because he’s a firefighter and spicy because...” Instead of finishing her sentence, Mel raises both eyebrows and winks.
“Oh my gosh,” I laugh. “That’s perfect.”
By the time Cecilia is ready for me to try on dresses, Mel and I are rolling with laughter and mascara threatens to run down my face. My mom, of course, looks on disapprovingly from across the room.
Dress after dress piles up on the “hell no” side of the dressing room. Nothing has stood out enough or screams ‘this is the one’.
Cecelia helps me step into the next gown, one picked out by my mother who insisted this dress be next. She’s that mom that you see on TLC’sSay Yes To The Dressthat combs through the racks and gives the poor associate a dress that doesn’t fit the bride’s aesthetic.
“This one is a size eight, but don’t worry, I’ve got a slip of fabric that will cover your back and clamps to keep the dress upright.” Leave it to my mother to grab a dress too small for me to even wear properly. I specifically told her I’m a size ten, but she must not pay attention to that.
We both work to tug the fabric over my hips. The dress is form fitting cream-colored lace with a high neckline and a sleek button-back. It trumpets out around my knees, and I can already tell it’s going to be a bitch to try to walk in.
It’s a beautiful dress, really, but it’s not what I want for my wedding day. Sucking in a tight breath, I open the door to the dressing room and walk across the gallery floor. Mom immediately stands when she sees me coming and her hands go straight to her mouth. Tears are welling in her eyes and I’m not even on the pedestal yet.
“Oh, Kate,” her voice wavers with emotion. “This dress is stunning on you.” Mel plucks a Kleenex from the side table and offers it to her. “My baby’s getting married.” She dabs the tissue under her eyes and sniffles loudly.
“You always look gorgeous Kate. But how do you feel?”
Thank God for Mel. She’s doing the lord's work right now. Reaching down I adjust the skirt and straighten up to look at myself in the mirror. “Um…” Honestly, I look like a busted can of biscuits in this too-small dress. How in the world could this thing bring mom to tears? “It’s nice. A little too tight.”
“Semantics,” Mom brushes off with a wave. “It’s the most beautiful dress, don’t you think?”
She’s so thrilled by this that I’m having trouble finding the words to let her down softly. Mel must see the panicked look on my face and steps up and blessedly steals the attention.
“Picture time!” She launches herself off the couch and stands in front of me to snap a picture to send to Millie. The smile on my face is forced and I know Millie will be able to pinpoint why.
Mom walks up behind me, placing her hands on my hips and admiring me in the mirror. “Well, honey, is this the dress?”
Oh god, why? How do I put this?
“I like it, but I still want to see what else Cecilia has for me to try on. We’ve got two more, right?” Turning to the kind woman, she smiles.
“Yes, just a couple more. I saved the best for last.”
Holy shit was she right. This dress is perfect. It’sthe dress.The dress I’m going to marry Tanner in. It fits me like a glove and hugs all my best parts and shows off some of Tanner’s favorites.
“There’s the look,” Cecelia croons. “That’s what I’ve been waiting for.” The dress has barely been fastened and tears are already pooling in my eyes.
