The Grace Kelly Dress by Brenda Janowitz

Author:Brenda Janowitz
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Graydon House Books
Published: 2019-12-30T16:12:06+00:00

PART THREE:

MAKE THE FIRST CUT

“This step is not for the faint of heart. There is no going back. It is time to make the first cut. Are you sure you have made all the right choices? Are you pleased with your plan? Do not make your first cut until you are absolutely, positively sure.”

—Excerpted from Creating the Illusion by Madame Michel,

Paris, 1954

Thirty-Four

The bride

Brooklyn, 2020

“Mexican?” Rocky asked, holding up the Seamless app on her iPhone.

“Whatever you want,” Drew said, his eyes glued to his own phone. He’d walked into the apartment that way—glued to his phone. Rocky knew not to press; Drew often brought his work home with him, but this seemed different. Usually he could answer emails on his phone while holding a conversation with Rocky, but today, he was distracted.

“Thai?”

“Whatever you want,” Drew said again, agitation rising in his voice.

“I’m sorry, am I bothering you?” Rocky had meant it to sound flirty, the way Amanda could get away with things by smiling and tilting her head just so, but it didn’t work. When Rocky said it, it came out entirely differently. From her lips, it wasn’t flirtatious banter—it was a challenge.

Drew looked up from his phone and regarded Rocky. “No,” he said, his voice even, “you’re not. But would you mind picking what we have for dinner for tonight? I can’t think about that right now.”

“So, we’ll do Mexican,” Rocky said. “Your usual?”

“That’s fine.” Drew’s face already back in his phone. He was sitting right there on the couch, but he was in another place entirely.

Rocky considered what Amanda would do in this situation. Well, that was easy. She’d slink right next to Drew and shower him with kisses until he was interested in another activity altogether.

Bad comparison. What would her mother do? Joan would probably ditch the Seamless app and set about cooking a delicious dinner from scratch, counting on the seductive smells of roasted garlic and browned onions to bring Drew back to the present. Back to her. Back home.

Rocky opened the fridge to see what ingredients they had. But it didn’t matter. Rocky couldn’t cook. What would her Grand-mère do? That one was a little tougher. She wasn’t sure what her grandmother would do here, really. Her grandmother was always filled with surprises. But there was one thing she knew about her grandmother—she always acted with kindness and with honesty. Perhaps that was the right tack here?

Rocky put her phone down on the kitchen counter and slowly walked over to the couch. She perched down next to Drew and took a deep, calming breath. “Is there something you want to talk about?” she asked him.

“I don’t really want to talk.”

Rocky didn’t know how to respond. Without thinking: “But I’m your fiancée.”

“I know that,” he quietly said. He did not look up to meet her eyes.

“Is it the Macdonell deal again?” She tried to keep her voice light, upbeat. “I can take a peek at the memo and give some thoughts.”

“It’s not the Macdonell deal,” Drew said.

“Talk to me.

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