this is a short chapter, so i figured i'd post it now so chapter 15 can be posted sooner than i initially would have.
the pic is the girls' bridesmaids/maid of honor dresses for zoe's wedding. vera's is the last two pics front + back.
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Chapter 14
City Girl's POV:
"Vera. . . Are you crying?"
Rufus's concerned tone prompted me to sit up with a slight gasp, throwing me right back into reality as my eyes flickered to the man sitting across from me, brows pulled together in worry. Bringing my left hand up, I realized that I was, in fact, crying as I hastily wiped away the tears that had rolled down my cheeks—all the while silently praising myself for not forgetting to put on setting spray after I had done my makeup this morning.
Sniffling, I offered an embarrassed smile as I closed the manuscript I had just finished reading. "Maybe," I pathetically responded, although the answer was quite clear. At the quirk of Rufus's brow, I let out a deep sigh as I continued, "The main character's love interest—who is literally his soul mate—just died at the end of this book and I think my heart died with it."
My co-worker stared at me for a few moments before chuckling, shaking his head as the worry washed away and was replaced by amusement. I pouted at his reaction, to which he said, "If it got you to cry during work, then it's safe to say that the story is worth being published."
I vigorously nodded my head, leaning back in my leather chair as I pulled out a tissue and dabbed under my eyes, breathing in deeply to rid of myself with the intense feelings this draft of a manuscript brought upon. If one of the beginning copies moved me so much, I can't even imagine what the final work is going to do. It was one of the main things I loved about my job; being able to discover new stories and find the potential in some, as well as knowing that I was a part of a book that would one day become someone else's favorite piece of writing.
Putting away the manuscript that moved me to tears in my drawer, I glanced at the clock and released a sigh of relief, realizing I had just ten minutes left of work. By the time those few minutes were up, I had packed up my things and was ready to head out, walking out of the office with a few other coworkers as we all filed into the elevator that took us downstairs. Bidding goodbye to the others, I broke off from the group and made my way towards the Uber I had called, seeing as I had to go to a bridal dress shop in SoHo so Zoe could pick out a wedding dress and the rest of us could see and try on our wedding party dresses. I don't expect anything to be finalized by the end of the day, but I was more than excited to get started on the process.
Once I got there, I thanked the driver and quickly made my way inside the bridal boutique, where a lady dressed sharply in a navy blue business dress approached me in six inch heels. "May I help you?"
"Yes, hi, I'm here with the Zoe Bishop party," I informed her, shoving my headphones in my purse as I did so.
Brief realization dawned on the redhead's face as she nodded with a smile. "Oh, yes, follow me. They've been waiting for you," she stated, before turning around and walking past various racks of wedding dresses, myself following behind her as I looked around. Holy shit, there were so many types of dresses—this was gonna take a while, I'm sure.
Reaching the back of the room, I caught sight of Zoe, her mother Quinn, Peyton, Sabine, and Willow sitting on the cream colored couches as they each nursed their flutes of Champaign. Zoe, who had been in the middle of taking a sip of her drink, spotted me from over the rim of her glass before exclaiming, "Oh! My Maid of Honor's here!" She happily made her way over to me, giving me a hug and I briefly wondered if she was tipsy after one glass of Champaign. "Let's get this show on the road, ladies!"
And so, the same lady who had greeted me in the boutique, who introduced herself as Astrid, led us—minus Zoe—to where the dressing rooms were where each of our respective dresses were waiting to be tried on. As I entered the dressing room, my eyes landed on my Maid of Honor dress, already liking the way it looked as it hung from a hook. It was a long number, solid in a pretty maroon color. As I tried it on, I noticed the area that covered my collarbone was lace as well as the very short sleeves. The back was a deep V, revealing the skin of my back, and a silk belt wrapped around the waist that tied in the back. All in all, the dress fit perfectly and was gorgeous—Zoe had done a good job in picking it out.
Once I was in the dress, I stepped out and walked back to where Zoe, her mom, and Astrid were waiting. Peyton, Willow, and Sabine were already there, twirling in their dresses and expressing how much they loved it. Their dresses were the same color as mine, and the only difference was that they didn't have the lace upper half—theirs was just strapless. Simple and elegant.
"Oh, my God," Zoe gasped, hands clasped in front of her as she brought them up to press against her lips. "You guys look so gorgeous!"
I grinned, and I could see the tears that were already welling up in her eyes as she gazed at us, and I couldn't help but giggle lightly. "Why are you crying? Wait till you find your perfect dress—that's when you're supposed to cry."
Everyone else laughed as Zoe scoffed, waving me off as her dark eyes looked over all of us. "It's just exciting, okay? Let me live."
"It's going to be even more exciting when we find you that perfect dress," Zoe's mom, Quinn, smiled as she grasped her daughter's shoulders from behind her, kissing her temple.
And so, the girls and I quickly changed out of the dresses, after telling Astrid of any adjustments that had to be made. Once we did so, we joined rejoined the group as Zoe described to Astrid the type of dress she was looking for and with her assistant, Astrid went to find some choices. The girls and I looked around as well, Champaign glasses in our hands as we sipped and searched.
Astrid and her assistant, Jody, then returned with both having several dresses covered in plastic hung on their arms, telling Zoe that hopefully at least one of them fit her taste as they ushered her into the main dressing room reserved for the brides. The girls and I joined Quinn on the couch, eagerly waiting as we sipped our drinks and murmured in excitement to see Zoe in the first dress she would try on.
Soon enough she emerged, wearing a gown with a slit to reveal her leg while the upper half was lace, the neckline running along her collarbones. It was a beautiful dress, and although Zoe was smiling as she stood up on the stool in front of the three mirrors, I could just tell that it wasn't the dress she wanted to wear on her big day. So she said she liked it, but then added on that the slit wasn't something she wanted in her dress, before proceeding to get off the stool and head back to try on the second dress.
This continued for a while, with Zoe trying on one dress after another, each prettier than the last. Some received a hard-press no from the bride, while some went into the maybe pile. But Zoe had yet to fall in love with a dress that she could see herself wearing on her wedding. Dress after dress were tried on, and I think I was on my fifth glass of Champaign when Zoe finally walked out in a dress, a big smile on her face as she looked absolutely radiant. We were silent in awe as she stood on the stool, staring at her reflection as she smoothed down the skirt of the dress.
And finally, after hours of searching, she grinned and said, "This is it."