experience at the dress shop, however, had been a whole other animal. The elderly woman who greeted her at the door had been excited to see Tierra, rushing to the back room for the Monique Lhuillier gown that was hidden beneath the protective dress bag.
Tierra’s eyes had widened in horror, the large orbs misting with tears. Before the woman could think to unzip the bag and expose the dress, Tierra had begun to cry.
Travis had explained the situation as best he could as Tierra had stood there sobbing uncontrollably.
“I’m so sorry, dear!” the old woman had exclaimed, clucking her tongue and shaking her head.
“So you see,” Travis continued, “Ms. Braddy needs to cancel her dress order.”
“Oh, my!” The woman’s facial expression changed. “I wish we could help you, but the dress is already here. As I explained when we placed your order, your gown is not returnable once it’s delivered, and there can be no refunds.”
“But what am I going to do with it?” Tierra finally gushed. “I don’t need a wedding gown!”
Their sales clerk nodded her understanding. “You understood when you placed the order, Ms. Braddy, that all sales are final. Perhaps you can put it away and save it for a rainy day?”
“A rainy day!” Aghast, Tierra stared at the woman with dismay. “Are you out of your—”
Travis interjected. “I’m sure we’ll be able to find another use for the thing,” he said, trying to lighten the moment.
“It’s not a thing,” Tierra shouted. “It’s my wedding gown! Do you even have a clue?”
Travis shrugged. “Can I see it?” he asked, gesturing to the sales woman to draw down the zipper.
Tierra’s eyes widened in horror as she suddenly rushed between him and the gown. “You can’t!” she exclaimed frantically. “You can’t look at it.”
“Why?” Travis’s expression was curious.
“Because you’re not supposed to see it before the wedding! A groom is supposed to see the bride’s gown for the first time when she’s walking down the aisle wearing it!”
Travis had raised a questioning eyebrow. A slight smile pulled at his mouth as his head nodded above his thick neck. “Whatever you say,” he said softly. He took a step in Tierra’s direction, wrapping his arms around her torso. For a split second he felt her body stiffen ever so slightly, and then she slumped against him in defeat, her forehead falling into his chest.
“I don’t know why I’m mentioning that stupid custom. My wedding is off,” she said, sobbing into his shirt. Over her shoulder, he nodded at the woman who was watching the two of them curiously.
“Thank you,” he said. “If it won’t be a problem, we’ll come back later for the dress.”
“No problem at all,” the woman answered. “We have to do one more fitting, so whenever Ms. Braddy is ready just let us know.”
Maneuvering the teary-eyed woman out the door and to her car, Travis helped her into the passenger seat, taking over behind the wheel. They’d probably traveled ten miles before Tierra’s sobs had transitioned to dry heaves and stale air sighing through her lips. Another ten miles and the woman had grown completely quiet, staring off into the distance as she gnawed on her fingernails.
Travis heaved a very deep sigh, still staring into space after Tierra. She hadn’t spoken one word to him on the ride home. But even as the two of them had ridden back across town in silence, Travis couldn’t help but wonder just how exquisite Ms. Tierra Braddy might look in her dream wedding gown, walking down a chapel aisle in his direction.
After throwing the length of her body across the king-size bed, Tierra grabbed one of the plush pillows from beneath the bed’s down comforter and pulled it to her chest. Rolling onto her side, she hugged the pillow as she drew her knees upward, curling her body tightly around its form.
She felt like crying again but didn’t have any tears left to shed. And she simply refused to shed another drop for a man who hadn’t been worth the time of day, let alone her love. If she cried again anytime soon it definitely wouldn’t be for Damien Porter, she professed to herself.
Tierra squeezed the pillow tighter, digging her nails into the cotton fabric. She took a deep breath and then another, drawing as much air into her lungs as she could.
It was suddenly warmer than she would have liked it to be. She could still feel the heat from Travis Stallion’s body against her own. The man had held her too close, his body feeling so good and so right against her own that Tierra was certain there had to be something seriously wrong with him doing it, and with her for having enjoyed it as much as she had.
“What is wrong with me?” Tierra questioned out loud. She rolled from one side to the other, conflicted by what she was feeling and what she thought she should be feeling. None of it was making an ounce of sense to her.
But she had thoroughly enjoyed being in that man’s arms. He had held her and she had felt safe and secure, her heartache lifted by the sheer warmth of his touch. Right then, in that moment, she would have given almost anything to feel his arms around her one more time.
She hadn’t wanted to enjoy anything about their time together, and she hadn’t wanted to like Travis as much as she found herself liking him. Especially while she was trying so hard to be angry at her ex-fiancé. But Staff Sergeant Travis Stallion had incredible presence. Tierra liked how he commanded attention without an ounce of effort. He carried himself with an air of confidence that only a few men possessed.
He’d taken full control as they’d moved from bridal venue to bridal venue. Each time Tierra had fallen apart, pieces of her spirit unraveling at the counter in front of a sales clerk, Travis had picked her up and put her back together again. He’d done so without hesitation, knowing not a thing about her.
Tierra also liked that he was slightly cocky but not in an unflattering way. He was self-assured just enough that it couldn’t be misinterpreted as arrogance. Tierra imagined that was what made him such an exceptional leader, the reason his soldiers looked up to him.
With no clue to how long she’d been lying there tossing and turning as she thought about Travis, Tierra couldn’t shake the sensation of his hands gently stroking her back as his broad chest had easily kissed the curves of her torso. Even with his hands long gone, his touch still burned too hot for comfort. Tossing her legs off the side of the bed, Tierra lifted herself up and headed for the bathroom, desperately hoping a cold shower would wash the heat away.
The decadent smell of barbecued meat wafted through the late afternoon air. Travis took a deep breath as he moved past the large black smokers positioned on the home’s rear patio. His cousin Luke; Luke’s fiancée, Joanne Lake; his cousin Mark; and Mark’s wife, Michelle, were debating the relevance of Facebook versus Twitter as a marketing tool. Travis hadn’t bothered to throw in his two cents, personally having no preference for one over the other. They both kept him in contact with folks he needed to stay in touch with.
He’d been waiting for Tierra, hoping that she could move herself past her hurt and anger to join them, but there had been no sign of her. His patience had worn thin, and now he was just anxious to see and spend time with the exquisite woman.
Excusing
