That's Amore (Weddings by Bella Book #4): A Novel

  “I have an idea he’d be a lot further along in his career,” D.J. said. “Might be interesting to find out one of these days.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Oh, nothing.” D.J. snapped back to attention. “What time are you meeting your friends for the spa day thing?”

  “Oh!” I glanced at my phone. “Soon! I have to be there at ten. Could you make sure my parents can find their way to Tres’s school? Or better yet, could you pick him up and get him to them?”

  “Of course.” He laughed. “You just go and relax. We have a big day coming up.”

  “I know, we do!”

  I left the facility to meet up with Jenna at her place, and we shifted to her car. She took off down the road and I questioned her all the way.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “It’s a new spa in Kingwood. Supposed to be top of the line. Jasmine and Lily couldn’t say enough about it.”

  “Sounds great. The other girls are going to meet us there?”

  “Yeah.” She shrugged. “I kind of wish it could’ve just been the two of us, but I understand everyone wanting to come.”

  “Aw.” I felt bad but didn’t know how to respond.

  “I’m gonna miss you, Bella. You’re going back home and I’m not.”

  “I know. Promise you’ll come back to the island . . . a lot?” I said.

  She nodded and then changed the direction of the conversation. We landed at the Kingwood Spa minutes later and met the other ladies, who were giddy with excitement. A short time later we were all inside, enjoying our massages.

  Jenna and I shared a room with our tables just a few feet apart. Her massage therapist was a petite little thing, but mine looked like she could wrestle a bear and come out on top. Yet she took special care with me. I had to lie on my side, not my stomach, and she could only work on my neck, shoulders, and back. Nothing below the waist, due to my condition, as she called it. I could live with that.

  She worked the tension out of my neck and shoulders and kneaded them into submission. The knots in my upper back disappeared too. Felt wonderful, especially the hot rocks. Mmm. Delicious.

  Afterward, the therapists left us alone in the semidark room with instructions to rest awhile. With lovely instrumental music playing in the background, I almost fell asleep. Almost.

  “You awake over there?” Jenna’s voice sounded groggy.

  “Mm-hmm.”

  “This was great, wasn’t it.”

  “Definitely. I can’t thank you enough.” For whatever reason, tears sprang to my eyes. “Jenna, can I tell you something?”

  “Sure.” She sat up with the sheet over her. “Do you mind if I get dressed while you talk?”

  “Not at all. I just wanted to say . . . you’re my best friend.”

  “Well, thank you. You’ve always been my best friend too. For as long as I can remember.” She reached for her clothing and started dressing.

  I turned my head to give her some privacy. “Same here. I-I really mean it. I have a lot of people in my circle and I love them all. But when it comes right down to it, you’ve always had my back. You’re the one I call first when I have something on my mind. After D.J., anyway.”

  I glanced her way and noticed that her eyes filled with tears.

  “I’m not saying I really doubted your friendship, Bella, but there have been times—especially since you’ve gotten closer to Scarlet and Hannah and the others—that I wondered where I fit in.”

  “I’m sorry about that.” A little sigh followed. “I wasn’t really cheating on you, you know. Things change. We don’t see as much of each other as we used to. But that doesn’t change the fact that you’re my BFF. Always will be.”

  “I’m just so sad right now, Bella.” Her voice choked up. “When you go back to Galveston, I’ll see even less of you.” A lone tear trickled down her cheek.

  “Are you regretting your decision to move here?” I sat up on the table and swung my legs over the side.

  She bit her lip and then shrugged. “Can I answer that in a few years?”

  “Yes.” I stood and reached for my clothes, still tightly wrapped in the sheet.

  “Honestly, I’m happy to be in Splendora, for the most part.” Jenna continued to get dressed as she talked. “I needed a break from Parma John’s. And I’m thrilled to get to know Jasmine and Lily. Having them close by will help a lot. I can see myself enjoying life out here with the new restaurant.”

  “You and Bubba are going to be rich. And I’ll still see you. Lots of brides will use him for catering, especially for the country-western weddings.”

  “I’m counting on that.” She released a little sigh. “I just thought we’d always live close to each other. That our kids would grow up together.”

  “They will. Let’s make a pact.”

  And so we did. Right then and there in the spa, with the miniature waterfall offering a soothing backdrop and the instrumental music wooing us to a peaceful state of mind. We would be BFFs forever, and nothing and no one would ever change that.

  22

  I Cross My Heart

  Country music is three chords and the truth.

  Harlan Howard

  After a wonderful day with my friends, I was exhausted. Still, the girls wouldn’t take no for an answer. We were going to have a bachelorette evening if it killed us. I had a feeling it might. Well, it might kill me, anyway.

  “You ready for a night out with the girls, Bella?” Jenna, Sophia, Hannah, Scarlet, Gabi, and Cassia all looked my way. “We’ve got big plans, and then we’re headed back to Lily and Jasmine’s place.”

  “I-I think so.”

  For whatever reason, the babies felt like a heavier-than-usual load tonight. What I wanted to do was put my swollen feet up and read a book. Or sleep. Blissful, glorious sleep. But from the look of anticipation on my friends’ faces, I couldn’t let them down. They had something special planned.

  “We’re going to do the tame version of a bachelorette party,” Lily explained. “Nothing weird. Or risqué.”

  “We’re all married girls,” Jenna said. She glanced at the twins.

  “Well, most of us, anyway,” Sophia added.

  I saw a look of pain cross Jasmine’s face, but she said nothing.

  Lily’s cheeks flushed pink. “Could we change the subject, please? I don’t think you need to drive a nail in my coffin just yet, okay? And by the way, some of us prefer to be single.”

  “Oh, not me.” Scarlet giggled. “I’m loving married life. Armando and I are still in the ooh-la-la phase.”

  “Still in the honeymoon phase at our house too.” Hannah reached down to pick up baby Bridget from her carrier. “But Gabi here is the true honeymooner.”

  Gabi’s face flushed at this proclamation. “I’m so not going to discuss my private life, no matter how much you pry. Let’s change the subject, okay?”

  “Please,” I said. “So, what are the plans tonight?”

  Lily clasped her hands together. “First we’re going out to dinner at Italiano’s, about ten miles south, in Humble.”

  “Italiano’s?”

  “It’s the best Italian restaurant in town. Closest thing we have to what you’re used to in Galveston. Very quaint with fantastic Italian food. Great pasta and salad and yummy desserts. I’ve already told them we’re coming. Then we’re coming back here for some fun games.”

  “Games?” I yawned and imagined what it would be like to stay in this evening. Skip dinner. Take a bubble bath. Instead, we headed south to Humble, where I ate the yummiest fettuccine Alfredo I’d had since leaving Galveston Island. Then we drove north again to Splendora, landing at the Rigas home. I’d already packed my bag with my comfiest jammies, so I changed into them as soon as we arrived back at the house.

  “You look cozy.” Jenna smiled.

  “That massage got me really relaxed,” I said. “Feel like I could fall asleep right now.”

  “We’re not going to bed just yet,” L
ily said.

  “And when we do, we’re not exactly sleeping in beds,” Jasmine added. She explained that they had set up air mattresses to accommodate the crowd.

  “We’re sleeping on air mattresses?” Hannah looked a little put off by this idea. I wondered about it too. In my current condition, I could barely get in and out of a real bed.

  “Don’t fret, Bella,” Lily said. She pointed at her four-poster, queen-sized bed. “You’ll sleep here, like a queen. The rest of us will gather around like your ladies-in-waiting.”

  This prompted a chuckle from Jasmine, the first I’d seen in a while. “I’m still waiting, all right.”

  Scarlet clapped her hands to get our attention. “Okay, everyone. Meet me in the kitchen.”

  We all trudged down the stairs, past Mr. and Mrs. Rigas, who were watching television in the living room, and into the kitchen, where Scarlet showed off the not-yet-put-together wedding cake.

  “Whoa.” I’d seen some beauties in my day, but nothing like this. Four individual tiers. Rough, messy frosting with a burlap ribbon around each tier and amazing edible flowers on top of the smallest one. Yum. Just exactly how I’d pictured it. Radically different from the one at my first wedding and perfect for a small-town event. “It’s fabulous, Scarlet.”

  She grinned. “I’m so glad you like it. It’s shabby chic. I know that’s what you were going for. I hope you don’t mind that I added a wee bit of sparkle to it. It’s almost Christmas, you know.”

  “Right.” I’d almost forgotten about Christmas, what with everything else whirling around me. Good grief. I’d have to get busy shopping for presents—and soon. After I got married, anyway. And moved back to Galveston. And got a good night’s sleep.

  Scarlet presented a tray filled with mini cupcakes in a variety of flavors. “Eat up, ladies!”

  I had to admit they looked great, but at this point I just wanted to sleep. Eating sugar would probably send me off into a comatose state. As crazy as it sounded, I just wanted to climb into that goofy double bed at the double-wide, curl up next to my husband, and fall into a deep sleep. I did not care to eat cupcakes, laugh with the girls, or talk about ooh-la-la honeymoons.

  And yet . . .

  The look of anticipation on Scarlet’s face wooed me. I reached for a cupcake and took a nibble. Mmm. Italian cream cake. I loved the texture of nuts and coconut with the sweet cream cheese frosting. Yep. I’d definitely end up on a sugar high or passed out cold in the bed.

  After we nibbled on cupcakes, Lily had a list of games in mind for the evening’s festivities, but none of them sounded like much fun to me. Dressing the bride-to-be in toilet paper? What?

  “You would need three rolls just to cover my belly,” I grumbled.

  “Fine, fine. Then let’s do the scavenger hunt.”

  “I just don’t think I have it in me to go door-to-door in my condition,” I explained.

  “Technically, it’s a scavenger hunt from room to room in our house, but I guess it’s a little late for that. My parents are already sleeping.”

  “No we’re not.” Her mother’s voice rang out from the hallway. “I’ve been wishing I could join you girls.”

  “C’mon in, Mrs. Rigas,” Gabi called out.

  We spent the next several minutes scouring the house, looking for items on the list. Some of them were pretty embarrassing, and I was a little stunned to see that Mrs. Rigas not only played along, she also provided some of the items from her personal stash. Ew.

  “Okay, now we’re going to play the Post-its game,” Lily said when we finished with the hunt.

  “How does that one work?” Hannah took a seat on a barstool.

  Lily passed around a little stack of Post-it notes. “We all write down memories of Bella and then share them.”

  The girls spent the next few minutes writing down memories they’d had with me. I did my best to stay awake as they scribbled away, but I found myself dozing off on the sofa.

  “Stay awake over there, Bella,” Mrs. Rigas hollered out. “This is going to be fun.”

  “Mm-hmm.”

  Minutes later, the girls finished writing and handed me their notes. As I read each one aloud, as I thought about the heartfelt things my friends had shared, I felt overcome with love for these women. Scarlet shared about the time I’d walked her through a rough patch with her aunt. Hannah wrote down the story of the time we’d both attended an Irish-themed party at her parents’ home. Gabi shared her gratefulness that I’d brought her on as a vendor at Club Wed, and Cassia wrote down a note of thanks for forgiving her father after he stirred up a feud with Uncle Laz. Jenna cried as I read her words about the years we’d spent as BFFs. Lily and Jasmine shared gushing thanks for asking them to help out at the new facility. Sophia surprised me the most. Her beautiful note offered profuse thanks for allowing her the privilege of working at Club Wed in my absence. From what I could gather, she adored wedding planning and credited me with much of that. Who knew?

  All in all these notes were precious and dear to my heart.

  “You can save them all, Bella,” Lily explained. “Put them in a keepsake book.”

  “I will.” I gathered them up and smiled at the ladies.

  “Let’s go back into the kitchen,” Jasmine said. “I’m going to finish up the candies for the reception. We can visit in there.”

  “I don’t know, Jasmine.” Hannah yawned. “The old ladies are getting tired.”

  “Yeah, I wouldn’t mind getting some shut-eye,” Scarlet said.

  “I’ll stay up awhile and visit.” Cassia offered a shrug.

  “Not me. I’m wiped out.” Gabi rose and followed Hannah and Scarlet to the staircase. Jenna and Sophia continued to gab in the living room but eventually parted ways, heading to bed. Lily led the sleepy ones to their various air mattresses, and Cassia followed Jasmine into the kitchen. I knew I should go to bed, but the sugar had—surprise—zinged me back to life. I found myself wide awake. Go figure.

  I took a seat on a barstool and looked on as Jasmine taught Cassia how to mold chocolates. I marveled as I watched these two. They would be sisters-in-law soon. Cassia’s wedding was just a few weeks away, after all.

  About twenty minutes into the candy making, Jasmine stopped working and groaned. “I don’t believe it.”

  “What?” Cassia gave her a curious look.

  “I’m totally out of almond extract and I need it to make the white chocolate miniature wedding cake candies. Shoot.”

  “It’s okay,” I said. “Just use something else.”

  “No, you don’t understand. I can’t finish up without it.” She glanced at the clock. “Guess I’ll have to run to the Piggly Wiggly and grab some. I think I can just make it if I hurry.”

  “You need to stay here and finish.” Cassia yawned. “I’ll go to the store for you.”

  “You’re half asleep,” Jasmine argued. “Besides, you don’t really know your way around Splendora yet, so I’ll go.”

  “No, I’ll go.” I couldn’t believe I’d actually said those words aloud. “To be honest, I could use a few minutes to think through how tomorrow is going to play out. So it makes sense for me to go.”

  “There’s not a chance in the world I’m going to let you go out this late in your condition,” Cassia said. She yawned again. “Besides, you’re already in your pajamas.”

  “Yeah, you can forget that.” Jasmine started to untie her apron. “I’ll go.”

  “No, seriously, I really want to.” And I did. I stood, the weight of my belly more cumbersome than usual. Too much of the fettuccine and cupcakes, no doubt. Getting out and walking would do me a world of good.

  “If you’re absolutely sure.” Cassia rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. “I’m going up to bed.”

  I grabbed my purse and keys and headed to the front door. As I stepped outside, my phone rang. I saw my mother’s name on the screen and answered it at once.

  “I can only talk for a minute, Mama, because I’m headed out to t
he car.”

  “At this time of night?” She sounded stunned.

  “Yes, I have to make a quick run to the store to pick up something for Jasmine.”

  “Well, be safe. These back roads are dangerous.”

  “How are the kiddos?” I asked. “Everything okay?”

  “They’ve been a dream.” She paused. “Well, mostly. Just a couple of little squabbles, but nothing we couldn’t handle.”

  “Good. Hey, how do you like the cabins at the B and B?”

  “Ooh, they’re perfect, Bella. We love them. Thank you for suggesting this place. It’s so peaceful.” She paused as my father hollered something in the background. “The heater wasn’t working, but your father kicked it and it came right on.”

  “That’s nice.” I slipped the truck into reverse. “But I really have to go now, Mama. It’s too dangerous to talk and drive on these roads in the dark. Sorry.”

  “Where did you say you’re going again? You do know it’s almost eleven, right?”

  “To the Piggly Wiggly.”

  “But for heaven’s sake, why?”

  “Because Jasmine is in the middle of a candy project for tomorrow and she can’t leave the house right now.”

  “I could drive over there and go with you.” Mama yawned.

  “No. It would take you a good fifteen minutes just to get here, and by that time the store would be closing. Please just go on to bed. Someone has to be awake in the morning.” I chuckled. “Jasmine’s planning to be up most of the night working, and if she’s banging around in the kitchen I’ll probably stay awake too. The Piggly Wiggly is just up the road. Won’t take me long. And I know right where the extracts are. I’ll snatch what I need and head back out.”

  “Are you still in your fancy dress?” she asked. “The one you wore out with the girls?”

  I hated to confess this, but I couldn’t lie when she’d asked a pointed question. “I’m wearing my pajamas, but they look like clothes.” Capri-length stretchy pants and a T-shirt did look like clothes. Sort of. “But don’t worry, Mama. I seriously doubt anyone will notice.”