Sealed With a Kiss (6 page)

Bella looked up at Rachel, a hopeful look in
her eyes. “Where are we going to stand?”

“We’ll go to the front.”

A grin as big as the moon filled Bella’s
face. John didn’t know where Rachel would have normally stood, or
if she would have been there at all. But he was grateful for her
thoughtfulness.

“I guess I’d better get a move on, then.”
Annie gathered the skirt of her dress in her hands and stood up.
She leaned down and whispered something in Bella’s ear.

Bella tugged on Rachel’s hand and whispered
something in her ear. Rachel nodded, then looked at him. “We’ll be
back soon.”

John watched them move toward the dance
floor. He picked up the blanket and Bella’s half-full cup of hot
chocolate. Tonight hadn’t been as stress-free as he’d imagined.

Most weddings had moments when something
didn’t go to plan. But in his case, if something didn’t go to plan
it could be deadly.

***

The next afternoon, Rachel passed Tess an
envelope. They were sitting in Tess and Logan’s loft, the space
that had become the official Bridesmaids Club headquarters. “This
letter arrived last week. Can we help the bride?”

Tess read the letter and nodded. “The bride
lives in Bozeman and can come in next week for a fitting. The only
thing I’m not sure about are the bridesmaids’ dresses that she
wants. I’ve got a feeling the Cinderella Collection dress went to
another bridesmaid last Thursday.”

While Tess checked their database, Rachel
walked over to a rack of dresses. They’d divided the bridesmaids’
dresses into four different collections. The Cinderella, Grace
Kelly, Exotic, and Winter Romance Collections filled the room to
overflowing with color and sparkle.

Of all of the collections, the Cinderella
dresses were Rachel’s favorites. With big, puffy skirts and pretty
beads, the bridesmaids’ dresses were everything Rachel had dreamed
about since she’d been a little girl.

She pulled one of the dresses off the rack
and sighed. “When Sally gets married I’m wearing this dress.” Sally
was one of their friends and another Bridesmaids Club organizer.
Her wedding was supposed to be before Christmas, but they’d
postponed it until March of the following year.

Tess looked up from her computer. “Isn’t that
the dress that arrived two weeks ago?”

Rachel nodded. The dress was made from a deep
blue-green silk. With a full skirt and the loveliest sweetheart
neckline Rachel had ever seen, it was romantic without being too
gushy, feminine without being frilly.

Tess walked across the room and touched one
of the sleeves. “It would look amazing on you. Why don’t you take
it home so that it doesn’t get taken by someone else?”

Rachel shook her head. “It wouldn’t feel
right. What if someone else wants it?”

“We’ve got plenty of dresses for other
bridesmaids to choose. You might as well take it home in case it
someone else takes it.”

Rachel bit her bottom lip. “Are you sure no
one else will mind?”

“Of course they won’t.”

“I’ll bring it back after the wedding.”
Rachel held the dress in front of her and looked in the full-length
mirror. Everything about the dress was so perfect that she couldn’t
believe she’d be wearing it.

Tess pulled another dress off the rack. “You
don’t need to bring it back. We’ve got too many dresses as it is.
And speaking of options - here’s the dress one of our Bozeman
bridesmaid’s wants to wear.”

Rachel draped her dress over a chair and
headed back to the letter they’d been reading. “I’ll find the other
dresses and put them in the closet for their fitting.”

The next dress was from their Winter Romance
Collection. Everyone had been happy when the weather turned cold
and more bridesmaids wanted dresses from this collection. Fur trim,
capes, and full, heavy skirts were part of this collection’s
design. There was only so much room in Tess and Logan’s loft, and
these dresses would have taken up most of the racks if they put
everything out.

While Rachel looked for the next dress on the
list, Tess hunted through the Grace Kelly Collection.

“Tell me how it felt to catch Annie’s
bouquet?”

Rachel ignored the teasing note in Tess’
voice. She looked for the next dress, determined not to spoil a
perfectly good day by thinking about John Fletcher.

“I didn’t catch the bouquet. Bella did.”

“You were holding her in your arms. I’d say
it was a combined effort.”

“Maybe, but the bouquet never touched my
hands.” She lifted a dress off the rack and put it over her arm.
After they’d caught the bouquet, Annie had made a big fuss about
her catching it with Bella. What Annie didn’t bother telling
everyone, was that she’d told them to stand under the chandelier.
The bouquet had been aimed straight at them, cruising at supersonic
speed toward Bella’s outstretched hands.

Rachel glanced at the rack of dresses,
looking for gown number forty-six. “Bella was happy.”

“Was her dad?”

Rachel didn’t know if John had been happy or
not. She’d felt his eyes on her the whole time she’d been with
Bella. She’d met parents who were overprotective of their children,
but he took it to a whole new level. “Do you think it was odd that
he kept Bella so close to him the whole day?”

Tess pulled another dress out of the Grace
Kelly Collection. “I didn’t notice what he was doing. But it’s
winter and it’s been snowing. Bella was lucky you went outside.
Otherwise, she might have been in trouble. While we’re talking
about last night, why did you go outside in the first place? It was
freezing.”

“Jeremy wanted to get away from his
ex-girlfriend.” Rachel picked up the dresses they’d taken off the
racks and walked into their changing area. She hated stretching the
truth, even if it was half true. But there was no way she’d tell
Tess the other reason she’d been on the balcony.

Keeping her distance from John wasn’t exactly
a sensible and mature thing to do. Bella seemed happy around her
dad. He looked after her, made sure she was okay. It was easy to
see that they were close. If Bella was lonely, it didn’t show. Her
dad, on the other hand, was an entirely different matter. Rachel
didn’t know what to make of him.

By the time she left the changing area, Tess
had put another two dresses aside. “Has Logan told you anything
about John Fletcher?” Rachel asked.

Tess picked up a pen and started crossing
numbers off the list in front of her. “Only that he’s incredibly
wealthy.” She put the pen down and looked at Rachel. “We don’t need
Logan to tell us about John.”

“What do you mean?”

Tess walked across to her computer and
started tapping on the keyboard. “John Fletcher is rich and
gorgeous. There has got to be something about him on the
Internet.”

Rachel stood beside Tess and watched pages
open and close in quick succession. “You know what you’re
doing.”

“I was a model. I used to live and breathe
the media. The girls I lived with were obsessed with making sure
their photos were spread across as many sites as possible.” Tess
pointed to the page she’d downloaded. “Here you go. It looks as
though John Fletcher’s been busy. He received the Businessman of
the Year Award in New York last month.”

Rachel read the news article. “His wife died
in a car accident? That must have been terrible.”

“It’s probably why he left the military,”
Tess said quietly. “Bella would have been a baby.”

Rachel read the rest of the story. Her heart
felt sad when she thought about what he must have gone through.
“How did he manage to raise Bella and start a company?”

“With a lot of hard work and help from other
people. Did you know that he’s looking for a tutor for Bella?”

“And you’re telling me this, because…?”

Tess rolled her eyes. “You’re working odd
hours as a substitute teacher. Your full-time contract doesn’t
start for a couple of months. I’d bet you anything that John will
be paying a better hourly rate than Bozeman Elementary School.”

“I like my job. Even if he is paying more,
money isn’t everything.”

“What about the deposit you’re saving for
your first home? You could put a lot more money in the bank if you
worked for John. Besides, you like Bella. What’s not to like about
the job?”

“I’m not working for John Fletcher,” Rachel
said firmly. “He could choose anyone he wants to teach Bella. I
don’t even think he likes me.”

Tess' eyebrows shot up. “Are you kidding? He
didn’t take his eyes off you when you were holding Bella on the
dance floor.”

“He was watching Bella.” Rachel picked up the
two dresses Tess had put aside. “Just because you’ve found your
happy-ever-after moment with Logan, it doesn’t mean that the first
man who looks at me is my happy-ever-after man.

Rachel knew that something would have come
second in John’s life while he was building his company. That
something must have been his daughter. “I’m not interested in
someone who thinks money is more important than family.”

“You don’t know if that’s true. He could be a
good guy.”

Rachel looked at the dresses in her arms.
“There’s more chance that he isn’t.”

“What about Bella? If she’s as unhappy as you
think she is, then maybe you could help her?”

“I don’t think she’s unhappy. And even if she
is, the only person that can help her is her father.”

Tess sat back in her chair. “Are you
sure?”

Rachel knew that The Bridesmaids Club had
helped women with more than dresses. They’d changed people’s lives
with a little kindness and a helping hand. Bella was worried about
her dad. The only person that could help Bella was John. A teacher
with a soft spot for big brown eyes wouldn’t be able to solve
Bella’s problems and neither would The Bridesmaids Club.

Rachel held the dresses tighter. “John needs
to talk to Bella. I can’t help them.”

Tess picked up the list in front of her. “I
think you’re being stubborn. Bella asked for our help and you’re
the best person for the job.”

Rachel’s eyes narrowed. “If you’re worried
about Bella, you could always help her yourself.”

Tess smiled. “Nice try, Ms. McReedy, but I’m
not a teacher. If anyone can help Bella, it’s you. John Fletcher
isn’t the only person that needs to work out what’s important.”

Tess ignored the glare that Rachel sent her
way. Bella might be looking for a bride for her father, but Rachel
wouldn’t be helping her.

John Fletcher wasn’t looking for a wife. He
was trying to conquer his habit of frowning to make his daughter
happy. The only other thing he needed to do was slide a teaching
contract under someone’s nose. With the money he’d be offering he
could afford the best teacher in the whole country.

Before he knew it, he’d have a happy
daughter, the perfect tutor, and a face that didn’t get premature
wrinkles.

It was a win-win situation for everyone.

***

John slowly lifted himself off the edge of
Bella’s bed and looked down at his daughter. Her long, dark lashes
fluttered against her cheeks. She turned in her sleep, cuddling her
favorite soft toy close to her chest.

They’d spent the day with his brother,
sliding down one of the hills on his ranch, making snowmen and
Christmas angels, and anything else had Bella wanted to do. After
more than one game of Scrabble and a dinner of homemade pizza,
Bella had arrived home tired, but happy. She’d put her pajamas on
and crawled into bed, ready for the beginning of her favorite
book.

John had read
Anne of Green Gables
so
many times that he could almost recite the whole story
word-for-word. They’d only just made it to the end of chapter four
before Bella fell into a deep sleep. He kissed the top of her head,
pulled her blankets up so that she didn’t get cold during the
night, and tiptoed out of her room.

Halfway along the hallway, he reached down
and turned the night-light on. The soft pink glow lit the way to
the bathroom. It gave Bella a sense of security, an independence
she wouldn’t have had without it.

He looked at the book in his hand, then back
at Bella’s room. He didn’t want to risk waking her up, so he took
it into the living room and left it on the coffee table.

It was eight-thirty on Sunday night. Snow had
been falling for the last four hours, coating everything with a
deceptive picture-perfect veneer. Regardless of what they’d have to
do tomorrow to dig their way out, it was the kind of evening that
he’d always enjoyed.

Part of that enjoyment came from his parents.
He’d grown up in a Scrabble-crazy house. On nights like this, he’d
played Scrabble with his mom, dad, and brother until they were
ready for bed. They’d test each other’s word-building abilities,
double-check his mom’s creative use of words with their favorite
dictionary, and groan their way through the hundreds of three
letter words their dad could make.

But that was more than half a lifetime ago.
If he’d been able to look into a crystal ball and see what was in
store for his family, he might have treasured those times more than
he had.

He walked into the kitchen, poured himself a
coffee, and looked out of the window. Pitch black nothingness
stared back. He turned the radio on, listened to the latest weather
forecast, then turned it off when someone started singing about
falling in love.

As he walked past the kitchen table, he
picked up his new house plans. For the last twelve months, he’d
been renting the home they were living in. He could have stayed
with Grant in their parents’ old home while he decided where he
wanted to live. But he had a business to run and living forty
minutes from town wouldn’t have worked.

A month ago he’d bought a parcel of land
overlooking Emerald Lake. With its amazing lakefront views, the
mountains surrounding them, and the open fields in front of the
building site, it was one of the most incredible places he’d ever
seen. The three thousand acre development was split evenly between
four owners. With only one house allowed per property, it was the
kind of place that he’d dreamed about for years.