If only she knew how to do that.
Oh, damn, why didn’t I bring something sexy to wear?
Danielle smoothed her skirt, eyeing the simple round neckline and the shape that did nothing to show off her figure, despite the belted waist. She remembered the lovely dress boutique around the corner from the hotel with the stunning black dress in the window.
She glanced at the clock on the bedside table. 2:20 P.M.
Oh well. Nothing I can do about it now.
She ran a brush through her hair one more time, then pulled her light knit wrap around her shoulders and picked up her evening bag. A few minutes later, she stepped from the elevator to the bustling hotel lobby. She walked toward the front door, intending to ask the doorman to find her a cab.
“Well, hello, stranger.”
Danielle glanced around at the familiar male voice. There stood Cole Grant, with his black, wavy hair skimming his collar, and a glint in his charcoal gray eyes.
She smiled warmly. “Cole. How nice to see you.”
“Is that all I get? How about a hug?”
She opened her arms and hugged him, a little rigid at first, but melting into the warmth of his friendly embrace. She and Cole and Harmony had spent a lot of time together in their first year of college, becoming the closest thing to friends Danielle had ever known. But she had been there only one year before she’d transferred to Northeastern University in Boston, and over ten more years had passed since then. She was surprised that Cole even remembered her.
He grinned, then released her. “You are as gorgeous as ever.”
The doorman opened the door as they approached, and she stepped outside into the warm June sunshine, Cole behind her.
“You want to share a cab to the wedding?” asked Cole.
“That would be nice.”
Cole gestured to the doorman, and within a few moments a cab pulled up in front of them and Cole opened the door. Danielle slid into the backseat and Cole settled in beside her. He told the driver the name of the church, and then the car pulled into the early-afternoon traffic.
“So it’s nice that Harmony’s getting married. Have you met the groom?” Danielle asked.
“Yes, I’ve met Aiden, and he’s a great guy. Perfect for her. I’m sure he’ll make her very happy.”
“And what about you? Is there someone special in your life?”
He stared out the window wistfully. “No, not yet, but I haven’t given up on finding the perfect woman yet. How about you?”
“I don’t date women.” She grinned and he laughed at her obvious sidestep maneuver.
“And Mr. Right? Is he hanging around back home waiting for your return?”
“If he was, do you think I’d be going to a wedding dateless?”
“Ah, the perpetual search for love. Life never makes it easy.”
He’d certainly said a mouthful. Life had never made anything easy for Danielle. Not from the time she’d been dropped off into foster care when she was a toddler. Actually, foster care was a step up from living with her mother . . . a woman with severe emotional problems who simply saw her as a huge inconvenience, and didn’t care what happened to her.
Danielle had lived her whole life with the pain of knowing that the one person who should love her no matter what . . . her mother . . . didn’t want her. She knew her mother faced a lot of demons—being in and out of mental hospitals and drug rehab facilities for most of her life. Even so, if Danielle couldn’t win the love of her own mother, why did she think she’d ever win the love of a man?
The cab pulled up in front of a lovely stone church with a beautiful stained-glass window over its huge arched doors. Danielle placed her hand on the arm Cole offered as they walked up the steps to the doors, then stepped into the church. The usher led them to a pew on the left side of the aisle, about five rows from the front. The sweet scent of fresh flowers filled the air.
As more people drifted into the church, she glanced around and saw a few faces she vaguely remembered. A few moments later, she saw Jake and Trey arrive. The pew Danielle and Cole sat in had filled up—a young couple with three children—and so had the couple of rows behind them, so Trey and Jake sat several rows back. They didn’t notice Danielle as they sat down, both looking exceptionally handsome in their dark, well-tailored suits.
“Ah, there’s Trey and Jake,” said Cole.
“I saw them checking into the hotel yesterday, but I didn’t get a chance to say hello. Have you seen them since college?”
“Oh, I see them from time to time.”
“Are they still together?”
Before Cole got a chance to respond, the organ music began, signaling the bride’s arrival.
A lovely bridesmaid in a soft violet dress proceeded up the aisle, followed by another, then another, then another. Danielle sighed. They were so beautiful. Their dresses, snug in the bodice, the skirts flowing in a softly draping fabric, flattered their graceful figures, and they carried pretty bouquets of soft pink roses.
The organ music paused, then the wedding march began. Harmony glowed as she walked up the aisle, luminous in a beaded, fitted bodice with a sweetheart neckline and a full-length skirt. Her veil flowed to the ground, a light froth over the train that swept along behind her in delicate waves of white beaded satin. She carried a lovely bouquet of roses in soft pink, dark rose, and lavender, interspersed with baby’s breath.
As Danielle watched Harmony approach the man waiting for her at the front of the church, her heart swelled at the amazing look of love on the handsome man’s face. His brown eyes glowed with warmth as he smiled at her, revealing a charming dimple in his cheek and
