Page 12 of Crossing the Line

“And you act like my question is violent.” Damien tsked in mock disappointment. “I think you’ve been watching too many of those horror movies.”

I loved the playful tone of his voice. This was the side of Damien that made me fall for him in the first place. As we kept the game going, the scenarios getting more and more outlandish while we ate breakfast together, I allowed myself to pretend that everything was as it always had been.

It felt good for a while.

“Are you going to the beach with us today?” Damien asked just as I shoved the last bite of my breakfast into my mouth. He grinned as I rolled my eyes at him for waiting until my mouth was full to ask a question.

Just as I swallowed my food, Leanne came rushing up to our table before I could answer him. Her eyes were red, and her mouth was turned down in a deep frown.

“You won’t believe what happened this morning!” She looked like she was about to burst into tears, so I held back the urge to make a snarky comment about her dramatic entrance into the breakfast room.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“My veil…” She held up the delicate lace material that I didn’t even realize she was holding. “There was an accident this morning. The resort said that I could start putting my things in the bridal suite since ours is the only wedding here this week. I was moving my dress into the room when the veil snagged on a loose nail.”

My jaw dropped. “There was a loose nail in the bridal suite? That’s just an accident waiting to happen.”

“That’s what I told them.” Leanne’s chin quivered and her eyes got glassy. It looked like this was the thing that broke through her calm and cool attitude about the wedding. “They apologized and promised to make sure the nail is removed, but that doesn’t help me with this.”

She thrust the veil into my hands, and I saw it. The veil was ripped on the side, and it wasn’t a small tear. There was no way she could use this.

“Okay, okay. Don’t panic.” I glanced at Damien and then at my empty plate and coffee mug. He nodded with an understanding smile, and I knew he’d take care of the dishes. Standing, I placed an arm around Leanne and led her out of the room. “What does your mom say?”

Aunt Cathy was a problem solver, and I was sure she’d have some idea of what we should do about this.

“I can’t tell her!” Leanne’s voice was a high-pitched squeak that made me wince. “She’s stressed enough about making sure everything comes together the way it’s supposed to. I don’t want to dump this in her lap. I have to find a solution myself.”

There was a frenzied panic about her. Apparently, when she finally lost her cool about all of this wedding stuff, she did it in a big way.

“Alright,” I said. “We’ll take care of it ourselves. I know there’s a small town here on the island. Maybe there’s a talented seamstress here.”

Leanne held up the veil again. “Look at this! There’s no way it can be repaired.”

“Then, we’ll try to find a store that sells them.”

I was being pretty optimistic here. The island was small, and the town probably didn’t consist of much. But we had to try.

There were shuttles that regularly left the resort throughout the day, taking guests to various attractions on the island. We’d taken one of them to the winery yesterday, but that was booked in advance. Today, we got lucky, and one of those shuttles was leaving just as we stepped out front.

I could feel the anxiety radiating from Leanne as we rode on the crowded shuttle, and I was sure that the noise level didn’t help. There were two families with young kids present, and it seemed like they were having a competition to see who could be louder.

I didn’t mind, but Leanne was on edge. She was looking out the window, so I couldn’t see her face, but she was rubbing a thumb over the pulse point in her wrist over and over again, tension bunching up her shoulders.

Considering how calm she’d been throughout the whole wedding planning process, I figured she was due a little freak out, but I hoped we’d resolve the issue quickly.

The town was bustling with activity when the shuttle dropped us off. It was different from the relaxed winery that we visited yesterday or the resort where we were staying. Those places were built to impress, but this town was home to the people who lived on the island. There was chipped paint on the sun-bleached buildings and laundry lines strung between balconies. Reggae music played from within a barbershop nearby and a local street vendor chopped the tops off coconuts. Children laughed as they chased each other around the town square. It was vibrant and charming.

It was also very simple. I immediately started to worry that my plan to find a replacement veil was going to fail, but I forced a bright smile as I turned to Leanne.

“Let’s walk around a bit and see if they have a nice boutique or something.”

It quickly became clear that this town did not have a boutique that sold formal clothing. But there was an outdoor market on the edge of the town square. It was a labyrinth of stalls under brightly colored fabric canopies. While it was cooler in the shade, the humidity still clung to our skin as we walked around. Locals and tourists crowded the space, making it loud and vibrant.

Leanne stayed close to my side as we passed stalls selling heaps of fresh fruit, handwoven baskets, and jewelry made of things like small seashells and coral. Someone offered us a sample of pork straight off a grill, juices dripping down the stick and making a mess of my fingers. But it was absolutely delicious.

“This is hopeless,” Leanne said in a dejected voice when we stopped at a stall selling cotton sundresses with floral patterns. They were lovely, but not right for a formal wedding and there was nothing like a veil in sight. Leanne’s mouth turned down in a deep frown, and her eyes got glassy. “I know it might not seem like a big deal, but I really wanted to look perfect. I wanted him to see me and just… lose his breath, you know? Like I’m the woman of his dreams. I wanted to feel like that. Like a princess.”

I put an arm around her shoulders as we kept walking, although with much less enthusiasm than when we started. “First of all, you are the woman of his dreams. Ryan’s going to go nuts when he sees you. Yes, the veil was beautiful, but your dress is still a masterpiece, and don’t they say that brides glow with happiness?”