Off the Rails by Isabelle Drake Page B

sights, replied, “Don’t be stupid. What kind of emergency could I possibly have in a maternity shop?”
    Tia muttered, “Whatever,” then clicked off.
    The cute little thing who welcomed Madison into The Princess Pea did not look the least bit suspicious. In fact, she was so enthusiastic and helpful that Madison started to wonder if non-pregnant women shopping in maternity shops were a usual occurrence.
    “So.” The cute little thing smiled and stared at Madison’s flat stomach. “You looking for a whole new wardrobe? Or maybe a few pieces to get you started?” Madison scanned the expanse of racks, wall displays and mom-to-be mannequins.
    “Do you have anything that would be a sort of…?”
    “Sexy?”
    Madison blinked. “Sexy? You have sexy things in…here?”
    The salesgirl took her arm and guided Madison toward the back of the shop. “This is your first, isn’t it? Well, you’re in for a treat.” Then, as though she was revealing the long-lost secret to happiness, she said, “Just because you’re expecting, and may not be the same size, doesn’t mean you don’t want to be sexy!” She waved to a back wall of lingerie and dresses, “With any of these things, you’ll feel like your old self.”
    Horrified by the possibility that the cute, perky little thing actually thought Madison was expecting, she fought the urge to look down at ‘her old self’ just to be sure said self was still indeed the same non-expecting one it had been only hours ago when she got out of bed.
    “So! Would you like a glass of water? Do you need some crackers?” The girl frowned sympathetically. “Morning sickness is the worst, but don’t worry. It only lasts for a couple months.” Then she added with a sweet giggle, “At least that’s what people tell me.”
    Water? Crackers?
    A couple months?
    A snack was tempting, but accepting that would be the same as lying, and she’d managed not to do that so far. Out loud, anyway.
    Madison shook her head.
    “Well, then! Where do you want to start? Underpinnings? A nightgown?”
    All of a sudden Madison’s mouth went dry and her face must have gone blank—possibly even horrified.
    Obviously the cute salesgirl had seen it all. “That’s okay,” she said gently, backing away from Madison as though she were a whiny child who had to be handled with special care. “You take your time, enjoy looking through everything, and then let me know when you’d like a fitting room. Sound like a plan?”
    Madison thanked her with as much togetherness as she could muster, then started flipping through the lingerie. An array of confusingly-shaped panties and crazy strapped bras blurred past. Did those things come with user guides?
    She scooted over to a row of cocktail dresses.
    Who knew they made such things? Strapless, floor-length with a thigh-high slit, low-cut black numbers. Where were the tents? The cute corduroy jumpers?
    “Find what you’re looking for?” a moderately pregnant woman asked.
    “I…” Madison glanced hopelessly at the silky fabrics beside her, then at the woman’s nametag then back to the clothing. “Don’t you have anything…?”
    Seeing Madison’s knitted brows, the woman angled her head and waited. Clearly both of them were clueless as to what should happen next.
    Out of options, Madison tumbled ahead with her last resort, “I’m going to my high school reunion. It’s not for a while yet, and I don’t know… I mean, you can’t tell—”
    “You need this!” the woman squealed as she stuck her hand under her top and whipped out a little round pillow, then held it out for Madison, whose gaze dropped to the empty space that had been filled by the woman’s rounded tummy.
    “Strap this on and you’ll be able to see what the dress will look like in a couple months…or weeks…depending.” She brightened. “Okay? How’s that?”
    Swept up into the beautiful absurdity of the pillow thing, Madison asked, “That’ll make me look