Dante's Angel (8 page)

Earlier, Zoe’s
stomach had rebelled against the thought of food, but now she found she was
actually hungry. “I could eat.”

“Good. Let’s
move this party to the kitchen.”

Zoe picked up
her wine glass and followed after Nikita. Her smile faltered and she blew out a
long breath. “Niki, what I’m running from…people have died trying to protect
me. It’s not fair for me to put anyone else at risk if—”

 
A dangerous light gleamed in Nikita’s violet
eyes. “I fucking dare them to come after you. If they do, they won’t make it
out of Breakers alive. That’s a guarantee.”

“That’s
sweet…and slightly scary.”

But for the
first time in longer than she could remember, Zoe felt hope.

Chapter Five

Spring struggled
to retain its hold over Texas, but the current haze of heat gave a small preview
to a summer that was sure to be brutal. The humidity made the air thick, and a
sheen of sweat had coated Zoe’s skin on the ride into Houston.

She parked her
BMW motorcycle next to Evie Beaumont’s SUV in the parking lot of the shopping
center. Kalista Redford had made an appointment at one of the most exclusive
bridal salons in Houston. The boutique offered a variety of dresses, from the
affordable to one-of-a-kind couture masterpieces. Personally, Zoe thought Kali
could wear just about anything and her fiancé, Hammer, would still look at her
like she were the most beautiful woman in the world.

It was enough
to make a woman damn envious.

Zoe took off
her helmet, securing it to the back of her bike. She loved the thrill and speed
of riding on the open road, and she’d taken advantage of the solitary time to
think and plan before pushing aside her own worries to focus on her friend’s
big day.

She’d spent
the night at Nikita’s place, passing out on the couch after they’d finished
another bottle of wine. It had been a good night. Zoe had relaxed after their conversation
had turned to more benign subjects. She enjoyed Nikita’s company, and would
have loved to ask more questions about the mysterious woman, but she knew
better than to pry.

Kali and Becca
Nuria—Nikita’s twin sister—got out of Evie’s car as Francesca and Madeline
Savante exited the other side. With the same black hair and stunning violet
eyes as her sister, Becca was a softer version of her twin, but the
similarities were still a little disconcerting. Unlike her tougher sister,
Becca was an assistant at Kali’s bakery. Recently, she’d started specializing
in custom cakes, which would also include Kali’s wedding cake the following
month.

“I still don’t
get why you enjoy riding around on that thing,” Becca said as she joined Zoe.

“It’s fun,”
Zoe replied with a grin. “You should try it.”

“Hell, no. I
like doors around me whenever I’m traveling at high rates of speed.”

Another
motorcycle pulled up in the parking spot next to them, and they looked over as
Samantha Kane turned off her ride. Sam was a physical therapist at Fight Hard,
and was actually the one who’d kicked Hammer’s ass back into shape after he’d
suffered a knee injury that had ended his professional fighting career. She’d
been a fighter pilot in the Air Force until she had been shot down on a
mission. After she’d made it home, she’d retired from the military and had use
her training to beat people back into shape.

Sam took off
her helmet and shook out her light-brown hair. With eyes the same shade, her
features should have blended in with her light, golden skin, but the whole
package only made her look slightly exotic. Sam had a fierce frown on her face
as she secured her helmet on her bike.

“This fucking
place better serve alcohol.”

“Wow, you’re
in a cheerful mood,” Becca said with a laugh, linking her arm through Sam’s, as
if stopping the other woman from making a run for it. “Come on, let’s get out
of this heat.”

Zoe fell into
step next to Kali behind the other women as they made their way to the bridal
salon. She looked over to find Kali looking at her with a serious expression
that immediately put her on guard. “What?”

“Since you
weren’t in the car with us, you missed the discussion about bridesmaid
dresses.”

“Thank God,”
Zoe said with feeling, making Kali laugh.

“Well, I’ve
decided to change my colors, and the other ladies loved my idea. I think you
guys will look amazing in hot pink dresses. You know, something that matches
the colors of my bakery. It will really make a statement.”

“That’s…” Zoe
didn’t know what to say that wouldn’t sound insulting. Kali had chosen a bright
pink with black and white for the logo of Sinfully Sweet, and just the thought
of wearing such a shocking shade made Zoe’s stomach hurt.

Kali blinked
up at her innocently. “It’s going to be hard to find matching flowers, but…”
She burst out laughing, gripping her stomach as she bent over at the waist. “Oh
my God! Your face! I couldn’t keep it going.”

“You’re an
evil bitch.”

“That was so
funny!” Kali took a few deep breaths to try to calm down, but the grin remained
on her face. Seeing Zoe’s reaction helped settle some of her nerves. Since
she’d woken up, Kali had felt like a million butterflies were fluttering around
in her stomach. Her mind was cluttered with so many worries that she feared
that she wouldn’t be able to focus on finding the right dress. She desperately
wanted to look perfect when she married Jared, but she wasn’t sure that was
possible at the moment.

“Actually, I’m
sticking with the pink and silver, but I picked a strawberry soufflé shade.”

“You always
think in food terms. What the hell does that mean?”

“It’s a light,
pale-pink. I think it will look lovely with the silver, white and black, and be
perfect for a late spring, early summer wedding.”

“Fine. Good.
Anything is better than florescent pink.”

“I wouldn’t do
that to you. Actually, that was Anna’s one request, since she couldn’t come
today. No hot pink.”

“Oh, yeah,”
Zoe said, glancing at the group. “I thought she’d be here.”

“I asked her
to come, but she insisted on staying at the bakery while Becca and I took off. Since
it’s spring break this week, Nate said he would stay at the shop with Anna and
the others. It was very sweet for him to give up an entire day of his vacation.
I absolutely love that kid. If he and Shane weren’t Anna’s nephews, I swear I
would fight her for them.”

“They’re good
kids. Ouch!” Zoe winced as the large bag Kali was carrying slammed into her
side. “Damn girl, what the hell do you have in that thing?”

“Three pairs
of shoes and my wedding binder. It includes all the information I’ve gathered
for the wedding. I’ve turned into psycho bride trying to put this wedding
together in such a short amount of time.”

“Is psycho
bride worst than bridezilla?”

“Way worse.
It’s just that Jared doesn’t want to wait to get married. I don’t either, but
this is all a little stressful,” Kali said with a slightly hysterical little laugh.

Sensing Kali’s
nerves, Zoe flung an arm around her shoulders and squeezed. “We’ll find you the
most beautiful dress today for you to marry the love of your life in. And if
you cross over into psycho bride territory, I’ll tell you.”

“Thanks.” Ahead
of them, Madeline Savante laughed at something Sam said, and the cheerful sound
made Kali smile. “I’m so glad Maddie came today. We’ve gotten so close in the
last few months. Having Jared’s mom here means more to me than if my own mother
had come.”

Zoe didn’t say
that everyone was grateful that Kali’s nightmare of a mother wasn’t here, but
it was the truth. “So…where is your mom today?”

“She couldn’t
make it, thank God. I’m a horrible person, but I’m so damn glad she had some
charity function today and I won’t have to deal with her. She called yesterday to
say she hopes I don’t pick out a dress that makes my hips look bigger than they
already are.”

“Your mom’s a vicious
bitch.” The words were out before Zoe could hold them back.

Kali laughed.
“Some people may forgive and forget, but I’m not one of them. I’ve known how
emotionally stunted my parents are since I was old enough to walk. All they
care about is money and social standing. They’re my parents, but that doesn’t
mean I have to like them.”

“Well, I
promise I’ll lock them in a closet if they upset you on your wedding day.”

“Which is why
I love you.”

Zoe’s relief
at escaping bridesmaid hell only lasted until they entered the bridal salon. The
store was opulent, with a color scheme of white and gold, mixed with touches of
the palest shade of pink. A few couture dresses made of rich fabrics were prominently
on display, along with several elaborate wedding gowns that looked like
something out of a fairy tale.

In another
life, she had visited store like this to have dresses made for her
performances. The elegance of the place brought an uncomfortable remembrance to
the forefront of her mind. She also felt a sharp pang in her heart since she
would never share this type of experience with her own mother. Pushing those
thoughts aside, Zoe focused on a graceful woman in a smart black suit walking
over to them with a soft smile of welcome on her face.

“Hello, welcome
to Clara Kay Couture. How can I help you?”

“We have an
appointment,” Kali said, stepping forward.

“Kalista Redford?”
At Kali’s nod, the woman beamed at her. “I’m Jolene. We have a room set up for
you and your party in the back. I pulled some of the options that you sent me
pictures of in your last email, but I’ve also chosen a few more I think you
might like. Because your wedding is so soon, we don’t have time to make a
custom dress for you, so we’ll be looking at the samples that we have in stock.
I think we should start with your dress first. Once you find your perfect gown,
we can move on to the bridesmaid dresses. Please, come with me.”

The group was
led through several rooms as they made their way toward the back, and Zoe couldn’t
help but be slightly overwhelmed. It was like being submerged in a sea of gold
and white. Looking at all the different style dresses by various designers, Zoe
wondered how the hell anyone ever found what they were looking for.

“Are we going
to have to block the exits from you and Sam?” Francesca asked as she sidled up
next to Zoe. Her dark, curly hair was wound into a haphazard bun on the top of
her head, but several corkscrew curls hung down, framing her pretty face.

Zoe shook her
head. “No. Actually, I’m looking forward to seeing Kali in the dresses. But I
was just thinking about how glad I am that she has a general idea of what she’s
looking for already. If not, we’d be here all day.”

Francesca’s
hazel eyes sparkled with amusement. “I think Sam would stage a rebellion if
that happened. Honestly, I don’t think it’s going to take Kali too long to find
what she’s looking for. It’ll be nice to see her in a few dresses before she
decides, though. I tried to get Nikita to come with us right before we left,
but she just hung up on me.”

Zoe laughed. “I’m
not surprised. She was pretty adamant about not being involved in this.”

“Well, I
thought I would give it one last shot.”

“I told you it
was useless,” Evie said as she bumped hips with her cousin. “Still, it just
doesn’t seem fair that whatever dress Kali chooses for us to wear, Nikita will
probably look fabulous in it.”

“So you say,
Ms. Fashionista.” Zoe glanced at her friend. With long, blonde hair and deep
blue eyes, Evie had a classic beauty with was undeniable. “I don’t think you
could look bad even if you wore a paper bag. A girl could learn to hate you for
that.”

“Please. With
all the crap you eat, I think you must have made a pact with the devil or
something to stay that thin.”

“It’s just good
metabolism,” Zoe said with a cheeky grin.

“Okay, I hate
you even more now.”

Zoe chuckled
as they took a seat on the couches centered around a three-way mirror with a
circular platform in front of it. Jolene led Kali out of the room while another
woman came in carrying a tray of glasses and a bottle of champagne.

“Now, this is
what I’m talking about,” Sam muttered before she gulped down some of champagne
after she was handed a glass. Turning to Evie, she glared. “Why aren’t you
looking for dresses, too? Please tell me we aren’t we going to have to come
back here again. Can’t we just do a two-for-one deal?”

Evie shook her
head. “Actually, I already have my dress.”

Madeline
gasped. “You do?”

Evie paused to
take a sip from her own glass before answering. “Hunter found my mother’s dress
in the attic at Beaumont Manor a few days ago.”

The room went
silent.

Evie could see
the sympathy on her friends’ faces. Her cousin, Hunter, lived in the house she’d
grown up in before her parents had been murdered, which she now ran as a
sanctuary for visiting service men and women just home from overseas, as well
as patients going through extended rehabilitation at Fight Hard. She’d
forgotten about the boxes she’d stored in the attic—not willing to part with
her parents’ possessions—but when Hunter had given her the large box, she’d
instantly known what was in it.

She’d hidden
the box from her fiancé, Daryk, not wanting him to see the dress before she
wore it when she married him, but he’d held her that night as she wept all over
him. Trying the dress on alone in her bedroom had been extremely emotional.
She’s looked just like her mother had all those years ago when she’d married
the man who owned her heart, and staring in the mirror had been like looking at
the photo of her parents on their wedding day that she kept in her office on
her desk.