Designing Abigail Kilton's Dress - #1 The Wedding Dress

Chapter 11 - Three's a Crowd, Four's a Party

"Kayleigh!" Abigail called out as she sashayed her way between the mannequins and rolls of silk.

Kayleigh couldn't help but notice how perfect she looked. Her long blond locks were tied up in a bouncy ponytail. Her white, frilly shirt was tucked into a pencil skirt so tight it would have had Kayleigh flat on her face in five steps.

"What are you doing?" she demanded as she reached Kay's desk.

The photo she'd passed on to her on Friday was taped to her sketch pad. Her desk was littered with various crumpled bits of sketch paper. Kayleigh saw the concern in the bride's blue eyes as the AK put two and two together.

"I'll make it work somehow, Ms Kilton. I just need to play around with it a bit more."

Abigail studied her for a moment and then her face broke into a relieved smile. "I know you will. And call me Abi! By the way, I was just with Herman. He told me he'll be working with you to make sure everything is in line with the new theme." Kayleigh gave her a hesitant smile, unsure where the conversation was heading. "It was you, wasn't it? You talked him into amending the designs."

"I... Uh... Well, when we saw the-"

The rest of her words never made it out of Kayleigh's mouth as Abigail threw her arms around her shoulders.

"Thank you!" she cried. "Herman Rolf is a genius but he's so stubborn! I'm glad you two are working together. We're cutting it pretty close and I know we shouldn't be changing designs at the last minute, but it's going to be fantastic."

Kayleigh's cheeks were red by the time Abigail let go of her. "Are you hungry?" she went on. "I hate going to lunch by myself and Mark has a business meeting. I was wondering if you would join me."

She took in Abi's hopeful look and wondered if anybody ever said no to her. She had the perfect excuse though. The wedding day was looming ever closer and Kayleigh was still far away from even a rough concept design for the headpiece and veil. Moreover, Celine told her they were just about done sorting the dismantled crystals from Jean Luc's dress, so she needed to finish the patterns for the seamstresses to start stitching them into the gown.

And yet, despite all this, something in her expression must have suggested she wouldn't dream of doing anything else since Abigail Kilton grinned broadly and said, "Great! I know the perfect place!"

#

Kayleigh stepped out of the car and found herself all but running to keep up with Abigail's long strides.

"Kayleigh, you are going to love this place. They have the best salmon rolls in the city," Abigail sang over her shoulder as the elevator took them up to the renowned Japanese restaurant.

A nervous titter escaped Kay's lips. She wasn't one for raw fish. Nana Bitsy tried to convince her, Leon and Marcus to try smoked salmon many times, and on all occasions, Keiko, her jet-black cat enjoyed a luxurious meal.

Kayleigh was surprised to see that the place was packed, especially as it was a Monday. There was an open kitchen in the middle of the spacious restaurant, and plenty of men and women in corporate wear were sitting around the bar, admiring the six chefs working very fast with their knives. Sleek booths lined the perimeter where patrons sat sipping their colourful drinks and soaking up the rare sunlight flooding the windows.

The head waiter greeted them at the door with a warm smile that reached his black eyes. "Good afternoon, Ms Kilton. Looking beautiful as always," he welcomed with a soft bow. "Would you like us to set up your usual table or will you be joining your betrothed?"

What?

"What?" Abi questioned, echoing Kayleigh's thoughts. "Mark is here?"

Marcus.