Rachel's Rebellion (Moss Bayou) (2 page)

Rachel
glanced toward the group gathered in front of the large, full length mirror
situated on the far wall. Everyone jockeyed for position to check hair,
dresses, and make up. Everyone looked like they had just stepped out of a
fashion shoot for a bridal magazine. The dresses they each wore were beautiful.
The strapless gowns were stunning on each woman she saw before her. From the
silvery shimmer of the full skirt to the beaded bodice, they were elegant. It
didn’t matter if the gown was worn by a blonde or a brunette or a fair or
tanned complexion, the style and color was perfect for each woman. Plus, they
weren’t the usual bridesmaid’s dress that made you cringe. They were pretty
dresses. Paige had chosen well.

Rachel’s
eyes moved over the group. Hope Jensen’s long dark hair had been stylishly
braided into a single fancy braid that fell down her back. Lily’s blonde hair
had been romantically styled in an artfully designed pile atop her head.
Nikolette Williams looked absolutely stunning with her dark hair hanging sleek
and elegant as she stood beside Heather Jensen, also looking gorgeous with her
long blonde hair styled glamorously half up and half down. The effect was
beautiful.

Her hand
went to her own dark hair. She loved what Terri Gautreaux had done. Styled in a
loose chignon at her nape, she felt beautiful and romantic.  She loved the
little whispers of hair Terri had placed at the temple, too. When she had
finally been turned to face the mirror, Rachel had been amazed to see a
glamorous woman staring back at her instead of just the girl next door.
Suddenly, she wished Deke could see her. The wish made her feel lonesome in the
room full of women. She forced the feelings aside.

Scanning the
women once more, she smiled. These were very strong women. Each had been dealt
tragedies and traumas and each had stood up to the test. A hint of sadness hit
her as her eyes found Heather Jensen. Though she tried to hide it all from the
world, Rachel knew that things still tore at Heather’s heart. Heather was still
trying to find her own footing in the world without Daisy Anderson. Daisy was
murdered last October by the horrible Kurt Fowler, Paige’s ex-husband. The blow
of her best friend’s murder was still something Heather dealt with daily. Now
that she and Heather shared many shifts at the hospital, they had spent time
talking and Heather had begun to climb away from the sadness. Rachel understood
the loss Heather felt with Daisy Anderson’s death and knew it wouldn’t be a
quick healing process.

Leslie
Anderson appeared at the door and stepped aside to open the door wider. Paige
Conner walked into the room to a collective sigh. She was beautiful. Her gown
was truly fit for a fairy tale princess. The beautiful strapless, white ball
gown hugged her gorgeous figure. Her red hair was lovely, styled to trail down
one shoulder in loose curls. She had chosen sprays of baby’s breath and tiny
white roses instead of a veil and the flowers were strategically woven into her
gorgeous hair. Paige’s taste provided an elegant picture of a happy bride and
Rachel thought the entire wedding was going to be the picture of elegance. The
silver and deep purple color choices not only worked for the bridal party but
the church and PJ Nites looked fantastic, too.

Behind
Paige, Rachel watched as Sharon Conner, the mother of the bride entered. The
woman was well groomed for the occasion in a pale lavender gown but she looked
… stoic. No smile, no animation, just there. There seemed to be something on
the woman’s mind. Paige had told them all her mother might be difficult because
it seemed Sharon Conner was still a bit perturbed about what Rachel and the
others called the Kurt Fowler incident. How could a woman be more concerned
about what the public thought than her daughter’s safety and happiness? Sharon
Conner’s hand went to her perfectly styled short red hair. The woman’s eyes darted
to and fro before coming to rest on what appeared to be the hem of Paige’s
gown. Where was the warmth of the moment? Rachel knew that she and her own
mother would not be this distant when her own wedding day arrived.

Paige’s
sister Caroline entered the room. Caroline, another red head like her mother
and sister, wore a silver dress like the other bridesmaids. Caroline’s demeanor
seemed timid, but then the couple of other times Rachel had met the woman, she
had seemed timid then, too. Caroline’s husband and small son also seemed to be
of the same nature. She figured a shouting match in their house was really a
loud whisper. Considering the way Sharon Conner presented herself to the world,
she realized the two daughters had to either be timid and mousy or, in Paige’s
case, run like hell. Without any signs of happiness and celebration from
Paige’s mother and sister, they each looked like they were in line for a root
canal.

“Are you
thinking of my sister?” Leslie Anderson’s voice cut through her thoughts.

Rachel
pulled her attention away from the others and focused on Leslie as she spoke to
Heather.

Nodding, she
smiled. “I admit, Daisy has been on my mind today,” Heather admitted.

“Mine, too. But
she wouldn’t want us to be sad today.” Leslie gave her a brief hug.

“You’re
right. Only happy thoughts,” Heather vowed.

“I’ve got to
get back to work,” Leslie told her as she gave her another quick hug. Heather
nodded and Leslie returned to the challenge of running a large wedding party
smoothly.

 “I
can’t believe this day is finally here,” Lily said as everyone moved in around
Paige. “Do you know how hard it was not to wear this gorgeous dress before
now?”

“Don’t
forget the gorgeous shoes,” Hope added as she raised the hem of her dress to
display the strappy, high heeled sandal.

“We get to
do this all over again with more weddings,” Paige reminded them.

“Yes, if Nik
and Tanner can ever agree on what kind of wedding to have,” she threw in.

“We’re
trying,” Nik said with a laugh. “I’m not very good at this, you know.”

“Maybe
Leslie will be next,” Hope said. “You and Charlie working on those wedding
plans?”

Leslie
laughed. “Charlie and I have a few ideas.”

“But you’re
not sharing, right?” Lily gave Leslie a look and Leslie smiled wider in
response.

“So, Leslie
and Charlie are keeping secrets,” Paige told them. “Nik and Tanner are trying
to agree on things. Well, that leaves one other bride to be.”

Heather’s
face flushed as Rachel and the rest of the group focused in on her.

“I’m not
engaged,” Heather nervously laughed. “I’m not even sure if Luke and I are
dating. We just seem to sort of…be…”

“Just
details,” Lily replied.

“We’ll
wait,” Hope said.

“You love
Luke,” Rachel told her. “It’s obvious to anyone who looks at you.”

Heather
smiled. “If anyone seems to have any clues written all over her face it’s you,
Rachel Emerson. Is Phillip Latini the one?”

 “They
do seem to be spending a lot of time together,” Lily said with a grin. “That
tall, dark, and sexy man is definitely an option, Rachel.”

Rachel’s
thoughts went to the man responsible for the feelings churning deep inside her.
It wasn’t Phillip Latini’s face that materialized in her thoughts. It was Deke
Johnson’s. She quickly looked from face to face. Did they expect answers?
Truthfully, she wasn’t ready to share anything with them yet, so she just
smiled.

“She’s not
sharing,” Hope said with mock exasperation.

“So, we’ll
kidnap Barney and see if you’re trying to steal him from Tellie,” Nik teased.

Rachel looked
at Nik and she gave a slight wink. Nik was obviously trying to steer the
questions away. While she hadn’t told Nik anything, she had spoken
“hypothetically” with her. Nik Williams was anything but clueless. Nik’s eyes
said it all. She knew.

“It’s time
ladies.” Leslie’s words cut through any further thoughts.

Leslie began
handing out bouquets of white roses and deep purple violets to each of the
bridesmaids. After each bridesmaid received her bouquet, Leslie lined them up
in order. The six women quickly formed a line with Lily Quinn leading the way.
With Heather moving in behind Lily, she, Nik and Hope filed in behind her.
Paige’s sister Caroline, as Matron of Honor, finished the line. Paige would
remain in the room until the signal for her entrance.

Rachel could
feel her nerves begin to kick a little as the women left the room and made
their way down a side hall toward the double doors that led into the sanctuary.
She could hear the soft music playing and could see the ushers seating Celeste
Quinn and then Paige’s mother. A tuxedo-clad Barney Mimms stood to the side
waiting for his part of the ceremony. The change in music happened at that
moment. The music piped in over the church’s system stopped and the pianist
began to play as the double doors leading into the sanctuary were shut by the
ushers. Leslie gave her charges one last look, smiled with satisfaction that
all was well, and nodded. The ushers opened the double doors and stood sentry
on each side. One by one, Leslie allowed a bridesmaid to appear in the doorway
and begin the walk down the long aisle. Midway to the altar, a handsome
groomsman met the bridesmaid and together they walked toward the altar. She
took a deep breath. She was after Heather. Dex Greer met Lily at the midway
point, offered his arm, and escorted Lily the rest of the way. Heather began
her walk down the aisle. As Heather was met by Luke at the designated mark, she
felt Leslie’s nudge. It was her turn.

Taking the
first step, Rachel began the walk that would take her down the aisle. Charlie
Jensen moved toward the midway point looking handsome in the black tuxedo. Her
mind imagined Deke in Charlie’s place. The thought sent a shock through her.
Did she feel that way about Deke? Imaginary Deke smiled and his dark eyes
locked with hers. Her heart skipped a beat as Charlie’s face reappeared and his
arm came out for hers. Grabbing hold, together they walked toward the
beautifully decorated altar. Father Mike, standing front and center, watched
the procession with a smile on his face. Somehow, after she and Charlie split
off as they reached where Father Mike stood, she found her place next to
Heather. She stood there as Nik and Tanner made their way toward the altar.
They looked as happy as any bride and groom. Did she and Deke have a look? She
wondered what the others would say if they saw her and Deke together. Nik
joined them and the four of them stood together as Hope and Brody made the
journey down the aisle.

Another jolt
of longing stole through her. Nik, Hope, and Heather had all been paired with
the loves of their lives as they journeyed down the aisle. Rachel took in a
breath as she longed to be with Deke. Knowing she wouldn’t see him for another
three hours or so, she made sure her smile was in place as the procession
continued.

Caroline, as
Matron of Honor was escorted down the aisle by Sheldon Quinn. Jesse had asked
his father to serve as Best Man. Sheldon Quinn beamed with pride and Paige’s
sister seemed to just perform her duties. It was a strange sight. Rachel
shrugged the thoughts away as the music changed to signal the bride’s entrance.
Taking an excited breath, she cast her eyes to the double doors that had been
closed once more.

The
congregation stood, the music scored the reopening of the double doors by the
ushers and there stood Paige, a vision of beauty and happiness. Barney Mimms,
beaming proudly, stood ready to escort her down the aisle to Jesse. Barney had
been surprised and honored when Paige had asked him to give her away. Now, he
beamed proudly as they slowly made the journey toward Jesse. Her eyes went to
Jesse Quinn. He didn’t look like a bad boy rebel tonight. He stood straight and
tall, a broad smile across his handsome face. No, he didn’t resemble the bad
boy tonight. He looked like a man in love.

Did
Deke
look like a man in love? Deke was so different from her
life and her friends. He even seemed to worry about their age difference. Yes,
she was twenty-three, but that didn’t mean his being thirty-one mattered to
her. All she cared about was him, not how old either of them were or the
differences in their backgrounds. Yes, there could be a few problems when
secrets were revealed but…

Where are
these thoughts coming from?

She focused
her attention on the bride and groom standing before Father Mike. They actually
beamed. Again, Deke’s image worked its way into her thoughts. Trying
desperately to pay attention to the wedding, Rachel shifted her eyes to glance
at the crowded church. She found Phillip sitting with his family. He smiled at
her. Thank you God, for Phillip Latini. Without Phillip, the past few weeks
wouldn’t have run as smoothly. The only problem? Her family, her friends, and
all of Moss Bayou now thought she and Phillip were on the verge of commitment.
The town was probably already planning the wedding.

Before
Rachel had time to process it all, the ceremony concluded and the wedding party
was following the newly married couple out of the church. The waiting
limousines drove them to PJ Nites where it seemed the amount of pictures taken
by the photographer had been endless. Her cheeks hurt from so much smiling.
Finally, the party had begun and now she found herself on the dance floor with
Phillip.