My First - Jason & Katie by Melanie Shawn Page A

down and rushed herself into the lavender sheath. She was just about to walk out when Aunt Wendy threw the curtain back yet again.
    “Buttercup, what is taking you so dad-blamed long? All the girls are done and dressed and ready to head over for some yummy Italian eatin’!
    “Again,” Katie intoned dryly, “Could've been naked in here.”
    Aunt Wendy swatted away this sentiment as if she were swatting at a pesky gnat. Her attention had been focused elsewhere the instant she had laid eyes on the voluminous dress hanging on Katie's thin frame.
    “Oh, sweetie, you’re swimmin' in that dress! You might as well be doing the backstroke!” Aunt Wendy fretted, and then yelled, “MONA!”
    Katie looked down and realized that Aunt Wendy was right. The dress fit pretty well around the chest, but she definitely did not fill out the rest of it. It would need quite a few adjustments. Katie felt a wave of nausea as anxiety overtook her. It was Thursday – the wedding was on Saturday. Would there even be time for adjustments?
    “I’m here. I’m here,” Mona said as she shuffled around the corner. When she spied Katie, she cried, “Oh dear, honey! I am going to have to take that in.”
    “I know, but do you think that there is enough time?” Katie worried, twisting and turning in front of the mirror to try to get a better look at herself, “I mean...it’s not that big. Is it?”
    “Yes and YES,” Mona said firmly as she began taking pins from her pin cushion and sticking them into Katie’s dress.
    Katie stood perfectly still as the dress she was wearing was tugged and pulled and pinned. Aunt Wendy's phone began to chime the notes of “Sweet Home Alabama” and Wendy hustled outside to take the call, looking at the screen and muttering something about a flower emergency and getting better reception outside.
    When Wendy passed the front door, Katie was, for all intents and purposes, alone. Mona was there, but she was laser focused on her tailoring work. Katie took the opportunity to take one more cleansing breath and steel herself for this weekend. It looked like it was going to be one hell of a ride!

    --- ~ ---

    Jason walked into Mona’s Bridal and immediately saw Sophie, his soon to be sister-in-law. God, she looked gorgeous. It was still hard for him to see her as a grown woman sometimes, and not the impish little kid that he had always known – but not at that moment. She was beautiful.
    As he pointed that out to her, he saw a flash of long blonde hair rush into a dressing room out of the corner of his eye. He shook his head, suddenly feeling a little impish himself. Oh, Kit Kat, he thought with an indulgent half-smile growing across his face. You can run but you can’t hide.
    As he walked next door to Richard’s, he decided to set the whole idea of Katie aside. He would deal with that situation later. Right now, he needed to just focus on his brother and being there for him. He was the best man, and he took that role seriously.
    The fitting went quickly and all of the guys were in and out in less than 20 minutes. Jason smiled. Those ladies had still been there an hour after their fitting had started. It was good to be a guy.
    Taking a look at his schedule, Jason was pleased to note that he had some free time to kill until his next obligation. It was a good chance, he decided, to stop by the Slater St. building site and finish up some paperwork that he needed buttoned down before he took off for the weekend.
    Just as he shut the door of his truck with a satisfying slam, he saw Aunt Wendy waving him down from across the parking lot, in front of Mona’s. He pulled his truck out of the space it was parked in and swung over to her, pulling up beside her and rolling down the driver's side window.
    “Hey, Wendy. What’s up?” he asked affably.
    “Well, Romeo, I have a huge favor to ask. Everyone else has already left to go get ready for the luncheon. I just got a call from the florist and it seems like someone has