And the Wedding Date

Chapter 5

 Luckily, Cassandra hadn't gotten any punch in her hair so she was able to take a quick shower. And her dress was machine washable so Jennifer went to put in it in the machine to soak. She left a couple of dresses on the bed for Cassandra.

When she returned, Cassandra was trying to zip up the second of the two dresses, a light green sundress with a white leaf print. It had a halter top and fell just past Cassandra's knees. It was a little more form fitting than the styles she typically favored, but the dress matched her shoes better than the yellow one Jennifer had laid out.

"I can't quite reach the zipper," Cassandra laughed.

"I got it," Jennifer said and Cassandra took a breath in so Jennifer could zip her. Jennifer also fixed the halter so it was straight.

"Oh my, Cassandra, you really have a nice figure, you should wear stuff like this more often." Jennifer nodded in approval. "You look better in that then I do. Plus it works so nice with your hair."

Cassandra smiled and thanked her.

Jennifer smiled and said, "well now, let's get back to the party before my brother misses you too much."

Cassandra smirked and wondered if Jacob was even missing her. He'd certainly been so sweet in the aftermath. But then Stone was a kind, good hearted person and she knew he liked her. He'd probably acted that way toward any friend who'd been treated like that. She stifled her sigh and followed Jennifer out the door.

Jennifer was telling Cassandra a story from her childhood that involved the neighbors' pet goat, an ice cream cone and Jacob having to rescue her. Cassandra was laughing so hard at one of Jennifer's descriptions that she totally missed seeing Stone when she came back into the barn.

He very nearly dropped his beer, catching it with his other hand at the last minute as it slipped through his fingers. His jaw certainly dropped. The only other time he'd seen Cassandra in an outfit that hugged her figure quite like that had been Rome. And as much as his brain had refused to let go of the feel of his hands on her bare back, he'd been far too busy, stressed and scared to really appreciate the whole esthetic.

Tonight though, the image of his Cassandra, laughing, her head tossed back, that dress hugging the figure he hadn't quite realized she had, would be burned in his brain forever. And if he never had another night like this with her, he'd always be able to bring this memory up.

She saw him and came over, a smile on her face.

"Glad to see your spirits up," he grinned at her. "I'm real sorry about Mary Sue and draggin' you into this."

"Stop it," she said shaking her head. "No one is to blame but Mary Sue and her bitterness." She shrugged. "Maybe she'll wake up and realize her loneliness is her own doing. And your sister is really nice and funny too. Made me feel much better. How do I look?"

Stunning, Jacob thought but what he said was, "nice. You look nice."

Cassandra rolled her eyes. "Thanks. Have I missed much?"

--

The party was winding down. Jessica and Andrew had since left. Cassandra nearly caught the bouquet having at the last second realized she'd been calculating the trajectory of the item and knew exactly where it was going to go, so she moved an inch to let Joey's girlfriend catch it. She was very glad that she chose not to go through with catching the bouquet when a slightly red faced Stone did manage to catch the garter.

The Stone tradition regarding that was simply to have the two share a dance, but Cassandra was glad the heat was off in terms of the implications had she caught the bouquet. After all, she was sure that Jacob's sisters would be planning their wedding immediately.