Stuart opened his mouth, but the door opened, and Jai, Joan, and another sister came in—not Jos—all three carrying trays of food and paper plates.

“We come bearing sustenance!” Jai shouted, triumphant.

“Jos is passed out already,” Joan explained.

“I’m Julia, by the way,” the other woman said to Ryann. “We met downstairs, but it was really loud. You must be Ryann.”

“Yes, thanks. Nice to meet you.”

Everyone stood up to gather food, Stuart almost running away from her. Exhaustion was weighing on her, but her temper died down once she got in line for a plate. She decided to let it drop. After all, she was in it this far. What difference did it make what she wore to the wedding?

Stuart, as if sensing her thoughts, glanced back at her, a plate piled high. He had a carrot hanging out of his mouth, a dollop of ranch staining his lips, and she gave him a wide smile and a wink. He wiped his forehead dramatically with his free hand before taking the carrot out to speak.

“Don’t worry, Ryann. The dressmaker is really good.”

Julia laughed. “Thanks, Stuart.” Julia turned to her. “It’s my shop, actually.”

“You and your sister are both in the wedding industry?” she asked.

Julia laughed. “No. Actually, a lot of my work is for theater companies, though I also do a lot of cosplay costumes now, too.”

“And you get to sleep in,” Stuart told Ryann, cutting off further questions with something like panic. “The fitting isn’t until noon.”

“All right, all right,” she said, waving a hand dismissively. “I trust your taste. It’s fine. I was just surprised. I guess I thought I was wearing something of my own.”

She waited her turn for the food behind Maddie, who helped her load her paper plate with a sandwich and a pastry. She’d stupidly carried her beer with her.

“Thanks,” she said.

“No problem.”

“Will you be there tomorrow?” she asked, unable to keep a hint of hope out of her voice.

“I might drop by, but I have studio time most of the day,” Maddie said. “My fitting was a few days ago. But we’ll see each other at one of the venues later in the afternoon.”

“Ah, okay,” she said. She felt slightly disappointed, maybe because she wouldn’t have a friend there, but she was probably fooling herself. If she was being honest, she was disappointed because she wanted to see her, and whatever that meant, it wasn’t good.

Chapter Ten