License to Thrill (37 page)
“Ten thousand.” She felt like an acolyte begging a Zen master for enlightenment.
Claire sucked in her breath and looked around the shabby little shop. “You really want it that badly?”
Delaney nodded, too emotionally twisted up inside to speak.
“All right.” Claire let out her breath in an audible whoosh. Her reluctance was palpable. “You may have it.”
She felt as if someone had lifted a chunk of granite off her heart.
Delaney’s breath came out on a squeak of pure joy. “Really?”
“Yes, but only under one condition,” Claire cautioned.
“Yes, yes.”
“You must swear that you will never, under any circumstances, wish upon the veil.”
“I’ll sign a waiver, a contract, whatever it takes. My friend Jillian is a lawyer; she can bear witness.”
“Delaney.” Jillian made a clucking noise. “Are you sure you want to do this? Ten thousand is a lot of money for a wedding veil.”
Defiantly she met Jillian’s eyes. “I want it, okay? Just back me up here.”
Something in her face must have telegraphed her seriousness. Delaney rarely took a stand on anything, hardly ever expressed an opinion or even a strong desire, but because of this, whenever she did take a stand, people usually listened.
Jillian held up her palms and took a step back. “Hey, if it’s what you want, I say go for it.”
“Thank you.” She turned back to Claire and reached inside her Prada handbag for her checkbook. “I promise never to wish on the veil. Now may I have it?”
Claire stuck out her hand to seal the deal. “Done.”
And that was the moment Delaney realized that although she’d managed to find the special magic she’d been aching to believe in, she had just made a solemn vow never to use it.
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Contents
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright © 2003 by Laurie Vanzura
Excerpt from
Kiss the Bride
copyright © 2013 by Laurie Vanzura
Cover copyright © 2003 by Hachette Book Group, Inc.
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ISBN 978-0-446-55333-9
