Roseanne sipped her coffee as she browsed through the local newspaper. She wasn't surprised that there was an article about the upcoming nuptials. Her mother's doing, no doubt.
"There you are."
Roseanne looked up, finding her mother approaching in all her usual flair. Hair and makeup done to perfection, her dress and heels matching impeccably—Roseanne wondered if she'd brought her wardrobe manager along with her.
"Good morning," she said.
"We have a fitting in ten minutes," her mother said, clapping her hands together. "What are you doing?"
"Breakfast."
"There's no time for breakfast." She looked around. "And where is Jackson's sister?"
Roseanne shrugged. "Haven't seen her this morning." She frowned. "Wait. What fitting?"
"For the dresses."
"Dresses? Oh, God. You did bring Bernie?"
"Of course I brought Bernie. Who else do you think I would trust with the dresses?"
Roseanne signed. "There are only two of us. I thought Vivianne didn't want traditional bridesmaid dresses," she said.
Her mother gave a quick smile. "She didn't. I did."
"Does she know?"
"Does it matter?"
Roseanne shook her head. "Mother, you can't keep planning everything. It's her wedding."
"Of which she has no concept of how to do things the proper way."
"No wonder she wanted to elope."
Her mother gasped. "Elope?"
Roseanne saw a familiar figure walk in. Lisa was dressed in jeans and a Colorado sweatshirt that looked brand new. Most likely she'd picked it up at the gift shop in the lobby. She motioned with her head. "That's Jackson's sister."
Lisa was headed to the bar when she saw Roseanne. She raised her eyebrows questioningly and Roseanne waved her over.
"Lisa Manoban, meet my mother, Victoria Park."
Lisa stuck her hand out. "Nice to meet you, Mrs. Park."
"Nice to finally meet you, Lisa. You and Jackson favor each other." She dropped her hand. "And please, call me Victoria."
"Thank you." Lisa glanced at Roseanne. "Have you eaten? After that burger last night, I don't think I even want breakfast."
"I know. I only had coffee and a piece of toast."
"Well, good," her mother said. "Because there's really no time for breakfast. We have a fitting. Come along, girls."
Lisa's eyebrows shot up. "A fitting?"
"For the dresses," Roseanne said as she headed after her mother.
Lisa stopped in her tracks. "Oh, no. No. No. No," she said with a shake of her head. "I don't do dresses."
Roseanne's mother spun around and stared at her. "What do you mean, you don't do dresses?"
"I don't wear dresses. Ever," she said. "Well, not since I was about twelve or so."
Roseanne hid her smile as her mother's face transformed from shock to indignation. "Twelve? You are in the wedding party. You will be in a dress like everyone else."
"No, ma'am, I won't."
Oh, well, this should throw a kink in her mother's plans, Roseanne thought. She wondered if Jackson had relayed the "no dress" rule to Vivianne.
