Sleigh Belles by Beth Albright

Author:Beth Albright
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: MIRA
Published: 2013-08-17T04:00:00+00:00

26

Rehearsal ended, and Dallas made a beeline to her cell phone. She had become consumed with thoughts about this call for the entire practice. Blake had been open and genuine with her during their lunch last week, so Dallas wasn’t worried about that. It was the timing. With the play quickly approaching, she’d need help right away.

She reached for the cell in her leather faux Hermès bag.

“Hey, Blake. It’s me, Dallas.”

“Oh, hey. How are you?” Dallas was relieved by the cheery tone of Blake’s voice.

“Great, and you?”

“Just peachy. Gettin’ as big as the side of a barn, but, hey, my boy’s gonna be a football star, I’m sure, ’cause of the way he kicks all the time.”

“Oh, my gosh. You already know it’s a boy?”

“Yep, we just found out yesterday.”

“That’s wonderful. I bet Sonny is thrilled. Congratulations.”

“Thanks! So, what’s up?”

“Well, I’m calling because I have a quick question for ya. How would you feel about helping me fix a gingerbread house?”

“Sure, I love those little houses. So adorable—and delicious.”

Dallas couldn’t help but laugh. “Yeah, well, it’s...a little bigger than what you might expect.”

“How big?”

“Life-size,” Dallas replied. “It’s part of the set for the Christmas play.”

“Oh, my word. What happened to it?”

“One of the kids sat on it during practice and fell through the roof, trying to be Santa Claus,” Dallas explained.

Blake burst out laughing. “Sorry, sorry—I know that must have you feeling pretty stressed. Of course I can help. I did so much set design in college, it’ll be a snap. I’ll create a new roof and y’all can stick it right on.”

Dallas felt the weight drop from her shoulders. “Works for me,” she said happily.

“How ’bout you come by Vivi’s on Saturday? We can have lunch and fix it together. She’s got plenty of space there.”

Spending an afternoon with Vivi wasn’t exactly Dallas’s idea of a good time, but she wasn’t about to argue now. “Oh, that’s great. I’ll be there. Noon sound okay?”

“Perfect. Now let me tell you the supplies we’ll need and you can bring them.”

Dallas fumbled for a pen in her bag as Blake rattled off a list.

“Okay, got it,” Dallas said, writing the last of the items down.

“I’ll call Vivi and we’ll see you then.”

Was Dallas joining the Sassy Belle clique? She’d heard Blake talking about their little club back in high school. She and Vivi had called themselves the Sassy Belles, their motto being, “Classy, sassy and a tad smart-assy.” She’d been jealous of their friendship for as long as she could remember, and every time she’d heard Blake refer to a woman as a Sassy Belle, she’d felt a twinge of longing to be part of that circle of tight-knit women. She also knew they’d sworn never to invite her in. But here she was, being invited to Vivi’s. Maybe things were going to change.

Cal approached her just as she was hanging up.

“You handled that surprise visit well,” he said.

“Ya think? I’m not so sure.”

“Who was that woman anyway? I don’t remember seeing her on the news.

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