Tomorrow Will Be Too Late (7 page)

‘Well, I asked them to make a dress in your size, so that was
planned
.
’
Alice
smiled impishly, her
dark curls bouncing around her heart
-
shaped face. ‘You said you would be coming home about
three
weeks before
the wedding, so it left me with
plenty of ti
me for
getting things ready
. And Thomas’
s
b
est man
is also just about back in town. He spent his last year in Africa
,
so you guys can swap stories at the reception.’ She grinned and eyed Kate’s tanned arms, sighing again. ‘I wonder if he is as tanned as you are, sis. If so
,
you’ll make a fabulous couple, no doubt.’

She got up from the bed, her eyes darting away as she confessed, her voice hurried
.
‘
B
y
the way, we thought that it would be good for the two of you to get together before the whole circus starts with
last moment
rehe
arsals and such. It was Tom’s
idea really, so don
’t try biting off
my
head
,
ok?’ S
he looked at
Kate
,
who sat resigned on the chair, her eyes doubtful.
‘T
homas
really likes him. They haven’t been in touch lately because of
his
trip and all, but now that he
’
s back things will change most likely.
So,
’ she took a deep breath and
Kate
knew what was coming, even before she heard it spoken out loud
,
‘
we
gave him your number, so he can call you and discuss whatever
it
is that
the
best man
and
maid of honor
should
talk about.’

‘Alice, if this is another of your attempts to hook me up with someone, I will positively strangle you
,
’
Kate
said
, recalling
a
few other instances where her older sister
had tried
to make her meet men. She was
twenty-eight
,
not
sixty
-
eight
,
and she had plenty of time to meet someone without her family butting in, she fumed, her good mood gone.

‘No way, don’t worry
.
’ Alice shook her head decisively. ‘
He
isn’t even remotely interested,
Kate
. Had
some bad experiences in the
past and
has
signed off the whole dating business for a while. That’s what
Thomas
said, anyway. So you see, I couldn’t have found you a better partner, sis. Admit it already
.’ S
he looked so hopeful and happy with her scheming that Kate had no heart to disappoint her.

T
he man sounded lovely, she thought with self
-
deprecating humor, as she bid her good
-
byes and left
. S
he promised very
solemnly
and official
ly
to not spook him in case he did actually call.

She had to smile
to herself
as she
sat in her car, her key already in
the
ignition. They would make a grand couple for sure
—t
he mystery man with emotional scars and her with her burnt
-
feet attitude. A perfect recipe for a romance, no doubt.

She was still smiling when she reached her house,
a
handsome
townhouse
with red
brick façade and dark
-
framed windows and doors. She had rented it out to a friend when she moved to Australia and dreaded returning to its four walls almost all t
he way on her return flight
home. But to her immense surprise and even bigger relief
,
the house welcomed her with open arms,
and she settled
back in much easier than she anticipated. Or maybe it was the fact that her sister loved cleaning almost as much as
she
liked gardening
.
B
oth her home and the little back garden that went with it
were
immaculate and perfect.

She opened the door, making a mental note to remember
to
talk to
Mrs.
Markowitz from next door. The older lady was overjoyed when
her young neighbor
moved back in
.
She
told her just this very morning
,
as
Kate
was rushing away
,
that she had some forms for
her
to fill out.
If Kate didn’t mind
,
she would drop by her place to make sure she really received them. Which translated into her making sure Kate didn’t just dispose of the precious memos from the
townhouse
complex
board meetings.
Either way, she could hardly reject the offer, knowing that the older lady was dying with curiosity
about
what she
had done
with her place so far.
The
townhouse
was part of a housing community with shared responsibilities and meetings.

She would attend to
the memos
o
nce
Mrs.
Markowitz
brought them over. It could happen at any moment, since the older lady was certai
n to have seen her walk
in.
She had
no time to waste, Kate decided
,
dropping her bag with the bridesmaid dress in her bedroom. First things first, she mused as she started browsing the
Internet
, checking her emails. She was still in touch with
her friends
in
Sidney, her input and advice sought by her followers. She didn’t mind doing a bit of counseling from here, the sense of belonging and tight
-
knit community she had been a part of not something easily shaken off.

Yet
,
after a moment
,
she realized that she couldn’t properly concentrate. The image of the dress still folded in the bag
disrupted her to the point where
she had to get up and march back into her bedroom, her hands pulling on the closet doors with more energy
than
the task really needed. That was the danger of hanging out too much around her sister, she told herself, as she reached for a clothes hanger and carefully draped the silky fabric that shimmered bluish and greenish in the
sun of the late afternoon.
Alice
made her worry about things she usually didn’t pay attention to, like putting things away instantly or making sure that everything was in its exact place. Not that she was a real slob.
It was just
that her artistic nature and love of the new and unexpected kept her
aware
of what mattered most to her.

Well, what do you know, she thought minutes later as she made herself a cup of tea and carried it into her living room
, the scent of vanilla chai lingering deliciously in the air. She
felt better after having cleaned
it up, didn’t she? But wouldn’t it be
even
better to make sure it did fit her after all? True, they would still have rehearsals and enough time to
tuck
it here or let it out there, if needed. But she was curious what it
would
look like on her, even though she wouldn’t admit it to Alice if her life depended on it.

She sipped her tea, fighting the urge to try on
the dress
for as long as she could. Finally she relented and marched back into her bedroom, the closet door still temptingly open. The dress was hanging right there, a scrap of silk.

She took it out carefully, spreading it on her bed. She had to smile as she remembered Alice’s perfect room. She would shower quickly before she tried
it
on, her body still sticky from the
unusual
wave of hot weather that seemed to be lingering over the city. It was warm and humid, leaving people with clammy skin and droplets of sweat all over. Not something one wanted to have on a dress like that, she mused a moment later, as she stepped from under the cold, invigorating shower, the white bath towel wrapped securely around her body.
Her
skin was still burning from the icy needles that left her shivering and cold. But it was worth it, she decided, her
previous
feeling of tiredness completely gone.

She looked at herself in the
full-length
mirror in her bedroom and had to admit that Alice was right to tease her about her tan. She was impossibly brown,
the whiteness of the bath towel bringing it out even more. Well, it was a testament to all the great times she had with her Australian friends, she decided, shaking her long, dark hair free of the clip she used to keep it dry in the shower. She might have to cut it a bit for the wedding, she thought as it fell to her shoulders and lower, reaching her mid
-
back in cascades of brown silk. She hadn’t had a proper haircut in a while, reluctant to part with her tresses.

The dress fit beautifully. She pulled it over her head gently, the spaghetti straps and tight bodice not allowing for a bra. Which was fine with her, she thought as she pulled it in place, the skirt falling around her slim tanned legs and skimming her knees. Thank god Alice didn’t decide on something more
risqué
, she thought as she surveyed her reflection in the mirror, not entirely displeased. It
was
the perfect length
,
and the A
-
shaped skirt counterbalanced the tight bodice and rather skimpy upper part
beautifully
. She didn’t want to try on the shoes that went with it, but felt that it was necessary. Since she
had
already started the whole
thing
, she might as well finish it, she decided, bending down to pick them out of their box.

That was when she heard the doorbell.
It was the
solemn sound of Canterbury bells, another gift from her sister. She insisted that
Kate’s
old
short, generic
sound didn’t go with the
place that looked
as
British
as it gets.

‘
Coming
right away
.
’
She
knew who it was
,
she thought. Mrs
.
Markowitz
had been trying to talk to her before and most probably noticed her coming in right now.
The woman
did spend most of the time at the window, registering
the entire
coming
s
and going
s
with her perceptive eyes.

‘I
’
m so sorry I couldn’t stay longer before
. I hope you didn’t mind me running off so fast.
’ S
he pulled the front door open, her smile dying on her lips as she realized her mistake.

She stared speechless at the man leaning against the
doorframe
, his tall well
-
built silhouette deceptively calm. He could have been a statue carved out of stone, hard and cold. Her eyes went over his dark, shortly cropped hair, skipping his face and moving on to the broad chest and narrow hips, only to finally rest on his long, lean legs. He was dressed casually in a black
t-shirt
and jeans, his tanned forearms folded in front of his chest in a leisurely gesture.
She
didn’t want to look in
to
his face, she thought miserably, knowing that it was unavoidable.

Her gaze lifted to his eyes
,
and she bit her lip to stop it from trembling, the contempt in the depth of his stare sending frissons of fear down her spine.

‘I think that the
judgment
on that one is still out, Muriel
,
’
he
answered silkily, her distracted mind taking a second to connect it to her careless statement for
Mrs.
Markowitz. Her cheeks
heated,
as she finally understood what he meant, his
ice-cold
voice continuing.
‘
Or
would you
rather
I call you Kate?
Which one is it
that you prefer
, really?’