Finding Rory

Chapter 52: Nervous Anticipation

"I can't find anything I want to wear today!" Rory huffed from inside her closet at the pool house Monday morning. They were about to leave for Boston to celebrate the Fourth of July with Tristan's family, and Rory was more than a little nervous. She wanted to make a good impression, and nothing seemed right.

"You go in the kitchen and grab a cup of coffee and I'll find something in your closet," Tristan chuckled as he pushed her toward the bedroom door. He looked through her closet and picked out a red dress and a blue pair of ballet flats. He'd spent enough time with his sister to be able to pick out an outfit in a pinch.

Rory walked back in with her cup of coffee and looked at the outfit that he'd laid on the bed.

"No, there's no way I'm wearing that...that thing," Rory insisted.

"I'm sorry - did the dress do something to offend you?" Tristan asked with a laugh. He couldn't help but be amused by Rory this morning.

"Actually, it did. It goes in the donate pile, or in the trash, or anywhere but here."

"Do I get to know why?" Tristan asked as he picked the dress up off the bed and looked at it again.

"Remember that red dress charm that I told you about? The lucky dress?" Rory asked.

"Yeah..."

"Well, that's the dress. I didn't realize that I still had it, but there's no way I'm ever wearing it again," Rory said emphatically.

"I'm going to have to agree with you there. I know there will always be reminders of our previous relationships, but this is one that we can get rid of. Just throw on something comfortable and we'll go replace your lucky dress when we get to Boston. I was already planning to do some shopping in Quincy Market," Tristan told her.

She moved to her closet and pulled out a pair of white capris and a dark blue shirt and quickly got dressed so they could get on the road. They grabbed breakfast before leaving Hartford and then they were on their way to Massachusetts. They'd left early enough that traffic was light, and they arrived at the Four Seasons before noon.

Tristan pulled up to the valet and handed off his keys to the Maserati and then moved to take Rory's hand and lead her into the hotel. They walked over to the lobby, and Tristan couldn't help but chuckle as he watched Rory take in the luxurious decor.

"Welcome to the Four Seasons Boston. May I help you?" a gentleman whose nametag said Brandon asked.

"Yes, Brandon. We're checking into a garden suite. The reservation is under Tristan Dugrey," Tristan said as he took out his ID and credit card.

"I'll be happy to help you with that, Mr. Dugrey." Brandon checked them in and then handed over their key cards. "Your suite is on the seventh floor, Mr. Dugrey. Paul will follow you up to your suite with your luggage. Please don't hesitate to call the front desk if you need anything at all."

"I appreciate your help, Brandon," Tristan replied.

He turned and led Rory into the elevator and frowned as he noticed how quiet she was. "You okay, Mare?" he asked as he pulled her into his arms.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just still a little nervous. And maybe hungry," Rory admitted.

Tristan kissed her on the forehead and laughed. "Of course you are. We'll get settled and then head down to Quincy Market. We can grab some lunch and go shopping. It's about a mile. You okay with walking?" Tristan asked.

"Yeah, the walk will be nice," Rory said as the elevator doors opened on the seventh floor.

Tristan placed his hand on the small of Rory's back and steered her down the hallway to their room. He opened the door and smiled when he saw Rory's face light up.

"You like it?" he asked as he moved into the room behind her and held the door for the bellhop.

"It's beautiful, Tris. It looks so cozy and warm and it's just perfect," she replied, turning around to take in the entire room.

"I thought you might like it." Tristan tipped the bellhop and closed the door behind him. "Do you need to change before we leave?"

"No, let me just grab my credit card and driver's license and put them in my pocket. I really don't want to carry my purse," Rory said. She turned to pick up her wallet and Tristan reached over and stopped her.

"No, don't. It's really not a good idea to carry those in your pocket; it makes it easy for someone to steal them," he objected.

"Well, I'm not putting them in my bra," Rory joked.

"I really want to have a nice weekend with you and enjoy our time together, so please don't fight me on this, Mare. Just let me take care of things today, okay?" Tristan pleaded.

Rory looked up at him and knew that this wasn't a battle that she was willing to fight. She didn't want to muck up their weekend with a pointless disagreement either. "Alright, let's go," she conceded with a smile.

They walked the mile to Quincy Market hand-in-hand and Rory pulled him into Philadelphia Steak & Hoagie for authentic Philly cheese steak sandwiches. After eating their lunch, they took a leisurely stroll through the market, ducking in and out of shops as they browsed.

"Oh, this is one of my favorite places to look. Abby brought me in here once, and now I come anytime I'm in Boston. Let's go," Tristan said. He led her into 1630. They specialized in handmade goods and high-quality vintage pieces. They walked through the store, browsing and discussing the goods, and suddenly Tristan stopped Rory and pulled her back to where he was standing.

"Hey, what do you think of this?" he asked, pointing to an antique mahogany box with an intricately carved pattern.

"It's beautiful," Rory said as she ran her fingers over the matte wood.

"It could be our box," Tristan said softly.

Rory turned to him and smiled. "It would be perfect," she whispered.

Tristan picked up the box and they continued to browse on their way to the front. He purchased the box and make arrangements to have it sent to their hotel rather than carry it with them for the rest of their shopping trip. After walking through a few more stores, Tristan led her into Lit Boutique. "I'm pretty sure we can find a new lucky dress here," Tristan said as they walked in.

They walked through the store, browsing the racks and pulling out different articles of clothing for Rory to try on. She laughed as they both held up different dresses or rompers - it was obvious that Tristan liked the idea of her showing a bit more skin than she normally would. She immediately shot down several of his suggestions, but decided to compromise and try on some of them that covered a bit more.

She walked into the dressing room with an armful of clothes and quickly found that she needed help with zipping them up.

"Hey, Tris? Can you come help me?" she asked as she poked her head out the door.

Tristan walked into the dressing room and smiled. "Why, Mary, in here?" he teased.

"You're here for the zippers - nothing more and nothing less, Bible Boy," she said with a laugh.

She modeled several dresses and rompers and they finally settled on a grey floral lace open back dress - this was Rory's pick - and a red off-the-shoulder wrap-front romper that Tristan chose, likely because it showed just enough skin. She also picked out a white denim jacket and a pair of blue espadrille sandals. She could pair the romper with the sandals for tonight and bring the jacket along in case it got cold out on the yacht. With their shopping finished, they returned to their hotel to change before leaving to meet Tristan's family and board the yacht.