Ashley spotted the white dress before she recognized the woman wearing it, and for one confused second she told herself she was imagining things. Then her fiance’s face went pale beside her, and she understood the day was about to unravel in a way she never saw coming.
The Dress in the Crowd
Ashley caught the color first, a flash of white cutting through the room where every other guest wore soft, muted tones. Her mind refused it for a moment, insisting there had to be another explanation. Then the shape resolved into a face she knew well, and her stomach dropped. Rowena, her stepmother, had come to the wedding in white. Around her, conversations dimmed as other guests noticed too, phones lifting, voices dropping to murmurs. Ashley felt her face burn with embarrassment and fury in equal measure. She turned toward Bill, expecting him to share her outrage, maybe even laugh it off with her. Instead his expression had gone rigid, his eyes fixed on nothing, and for the first time since she had known him, she saw something like fear settle over his features.