Marry & Bright
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Teri Wilson
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18
Chapter One
Addison England was seeing double.
She brushed a pink crepe-paper streamer away from her face and narrowed her gaze at her sister, Everly—the guest of honor at the modest surprise party Addison had thrown together this morning with the help of the third member of their girl squad, Daphne. Everly looked lovely, as always, with her dark hair pulled back into a high ponytail that was exceptionally bouncy and shiny for a woman who’d given birth to twins a few short months ago. It wasn’t the twins that were throwing Addison for a loop, though. They weren’t even there. This being the new mom’s first day back to work at Veil—the high-fashion bridal magazine where Everly, Addison and Daphne worked—the babies were back home with their dad for the day.
The dogs, however, were very much in attendance. Two of them, flanking Everly on either side like a pair of canine bookends.
“Everly?” Daphne tilted her head. Clearly Addison wasn’t the only one confused by the sight of an extra party guest. “Why do you have two Cavalier King Charles spaniels with you right now? Oh my gosh, did you get Holly cloned? You did, didn’t you?”
“What? No, of course not.” Everly laughed, as if cloning her beloved Cavalier was something she’d never even consider.
Addison wasn’t buying the nonchalant act for a second. Everly worshipped that dog. Holly had her own iPad and a subscription to DogTV. From where Addison was standing, cloning seemed like it was definitely on the table.
“This is Holly.” Everly nodded at the dog to her right, who was staring up at Everly as if she’d hung the moon. Then she turned her attention to the other spaniel, who had the same chestnut-and-white coloring as Holly. Same melting brown eyes. Same merrily wagging tail. “And this is Sabrina. She’s a foster dog from Manhattan Pet Rescue.”
Oh, boy.
Addison braced herself for whatever was coming next. Her sister had a tender heart, and Addison loved her for it. But did any brand-new mom to not just one, but two infants need to adopt a second dog?
Daphne frowned. “Isn’t Manhattan Pet Rescue the place where you adopted Holly?”
And then there was that. Everly didn’t exactly have a great history with Manhattan Pet Rescue. As far as Addison knew, Everly’s last contact with the organization had been the time she’d basically pet-napped the bride during a dog wedding she’d been covering for the magazine.
“Come inside. We can’t have this conversation in the office hallway, you guys.” Addison grabbed Everly by the hand and dragged her sister fully inside the luxurious confines of the Veil fashion closet.
The space was more than just a closet, really. It was more like an exquisite bridal fashion warehouse, lined with rolling racks of couture gowns and shelves upon shelves of beaded shoes and bespoke wedding veils. The closet housed all the designer clothing that had either been loaned or gifted to Veil for magazine photo shoots or in-person events, as well as couture pieces from their advertisers. It also happened to be the place where Addison, Everly and Daphne converged whenever one of them needed a little moral support.
Not today, though. Today, Addison had sent a fashion closet 911 text to the other members of the Veil trio so they could welcome Everly back to the office in celebratory style. She’d hung streamers from the ceiling in shades of pink ranging from blush to Barbie. Daphne had stopped at Magnolia Bakery for cupcakes topped with tiny plastic baby bottles. Addison had even thrown caution to the wind and brought the fixings for mimosas—heavy on the OJ since they still had work to do today. Still...
Addison knew how excited Everly was to be back in the office, even if only part-time since she was planning on working half days for a while so she could be home with the twins. Henry, Everly’s husband, worked as the travel editor for Veil, and they’d arranged a short-term tag team schedule with the babies while she adjusted to being back. The closet had seemed awfully quiet these past few months without Addison’s sister in the office. If wedding gowns could talk, they probably would’ve asked where everyone had gone. Addison couldn’t remember the last time the Veil crew had gathered on the white silk damask ottoman situated in the center of the glamorous space. It was crazy how much had changed recently. Two weddings, two babies, two promotions. Everly and Daphne were living their dreams.
Addison seemed to be the only one stuck standing still.
Not for long. She pasted on a smile. Colette Winter, their boss and editor-in-chief of the magazine, had bought a Peloton a while back and told Daphne she was preparing for a six-month bicycle tour through Europe. And that could only mean one thing: Addison was going to be promoted to head of the magazine. Finally.
So long as Colette didn’t lose it when she realized the office had been overrun with dogs. A definite possibility, considering Colette had one stylishly clad foot in the Miranda Priestly camp of employer-employee relations. As it turned out, the devil didn’t necessarily wear Prada. Sometimes the devil wore Vera Wang.
“This is really sweet, girls.” Everly pressed a hand to her heart as she took in the cupcakes, the mimosas and the crepe paper draped from the clothing racks to the glittering chandelier that hung over their faithful ottoman. “I didn’t expect a party.”
“Clearly not. From the looks of things, you expected a doggy day care instead.” Addison’s gaze flicked toward the new dog. Sabrina.
Was it just a coincidence the pup was named after Addison’s favorite Audrey Hepburn movie? Everly had named Holly after the legendary heroine Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Everly had adored that movie ever since their mother introduced them to Audrey Hepburn’s filmography when they were little girls.
Addison had always preferred Sabrina. Once upon a time, she’d even dreamed of being Audrey Hepburn’s character from that film, running away to Paris and starting a whole new life there. She’d dreamed of learning French, walking along the Seine and eating buttery croissants dunked in warm, milky coffee. Maybe she’d even have gotten a poodle.
But that was ages ago. Addison hadn’t watched the movie in years—not since her post-college gap year in Paris had been abruptly canceled and she’d taken a job at Veil as Colette’s lowly assistant. It had been horribly painful at the time, but now here she was, deputy editor of the entire magazine. Just one step away from the top job.
“Everly, hon.” Daphne reached for a cupcake as she twirled one of her blond curls around her finger. A single pearl dotted each of her fingernails, right in its center. She’d recently given up her job as Veil’s beauty editor to pen a brand-new fiction series for the magazine, but Daphne Ballantyne King could still rock a bedazzled mani with the best of them. “You’re the best doggy mom I know, but don’t you think fostering a dog when you have four-month-old twins at home might be taking on a bit more than necessary?”
“That’s the thing.” Daphne blinked wide, innocent eyes. Too innocent, now that Addison thought about it. She’d seen this look on her little sister’s face before, and it usually meant trouble. Specifically, trouble for Addison. “The rescue group contacted me because they knew how...ardent...I’d felt about adopting Holly.”
Understatement of the century.
Addison arched an eyebrow at her sister. That little episode had nearly cost Everly her job. Thanks to her now-husband Henry, she’d walked away unscathed, eventually working her way up to features editor.
“Anyhoo.” Everly cleared her throat. “The rescue folks told me they’d recently taken in a Cavalier with a teensy separation anxiety problem, and they just knew I was the right person to foster the little sweetheart. How could I say no?”
Addison shrugged. “Easy. It goes like this—‘Sorry, I can’t. I just gave birth to twin human infants.’”
“Sometimes you sound so much like Colette it’s uncanny.” Daphne shuddered and then flashed Addison a smile. “I mean that in the nicest way possible.”
“Gee, thanks,” Addison said flatly.
If her Veil crew wanted to compare her to Colette, then so be it. Colette was a legend in the fashion industry, and one day, Addison would be one too. Maybe with a tad bit more warmth, that’s all.
“You’re absolutely right, Addie.” Everly smiled. The dogs wagged their tails in perfect unison, like furry little Rockettes, as if this entire conversation had been choreographed ahead of time. Addison was beginning to realize it had. Everly never called her Addie unless she needed a favor. “Which is why I’m not the one fostering her. I was thinking that maybe you could do it.”
And there it was.
“Absolutely not.” Addison shook her head. Hard. “This the worst possible time to ask me a favor like this.”
“Come on, Addie. She’s a total sweetheart.” Everly picked up the dog and made a big show of oohing and aahing as Sabrina nuzzled the side of her neck. At Everly’s feet, Holly let out an annoyed whine.
Addison shot Everly’s dog a sympathetic glance. I’m with you, Holly.
“She does seem sweet.” Daphne reached out a hand and let the dog in question lick a dab of cupcake icing from her fingertips. Sabrina’s tail beat a happy rhythm against Everly’s hip. “And weren’t you saying recently that you needed to develop some interests outside of work, Addison?”
Everly nodded. “I remember that conversation. Work isn’t everything. Remember to actually live your life and all that.”
Addison glanced back and forth between them. Were they legitimately being serious right now? “I never said those things. You did.”
They’d stood in this very spot, right here in the fashion closet on the day that the Peloton showed up in Colette’s office, and basically told Addison she needed to get a life.
Addison never agreed with that statement. Why would she? She had a life, thank you very much. And soon, that life would include a new job title, a new office and every professional perk she’d ever wanted. What it would not include was a needy little rescue dog.
Even if that dog was named after her very favorite movie...
And even if the canine in question was currently looking at Addison with the biggest, saddest puppy-dog eyes she’d ever seen.
“The answer is no.” Addison straightened her headband—a nervous habit she sometimes resorted to when she was trying to project a perfectly composed girl-boss aura in the face of opposition.
Today’s headband was black velvet with a knotted bow on top. Very retro. Very Sabrina. Now that Addison thought about it, the headband would’ve matched perfectly with the little black Givenchy dress that Audrey Hepburn wore in the movie—the one with the bateau neckline and bows on the shoulders.
Addison averted her gaze and sipped her mimosa, but she could feel the dog staring at her, waiting for her to melt like Daphne and Everly.
Not going to happen.
Her heart gave a tiny, almost imperceptible twinge. Why, oh why, did the Cavalier have to have that name?
“Perhaps you two are forgetting that the Cartier holiday party is tonight?” Addison huffed. The dog cocked its head, ratcheting up its cuteness factor by a large margin. “Colette and I are both invited. Colette asked me to meet her for drinks first at the Carlyle. Tonight is it. I can feel it. Her big European bicycle trip starts just after the first of the year. She’s going to tell me about the promotion over cocktails. Think about it—Colette never invites me out for drinks. I’m going to walk into the Carlyle as the deputy editor and walk out of there as the future editor-in-chief.”
Everly shrugged one shoulder. “The Carlyle is dog friendly, you know.”
“She’s right.” Daphne nodded. “They’re kind of famous for it. Have you seen their Instagram page? So cute. Glamorous dogs everywhere. Sabrina would fit right in.”
Addison glanced back and forth between them, tossing in a glare at the Cavalier for good measure. “Your takeaway from everything I just told you is that the Carlyle is dog friendly?”
Unbelievable.
Everly thrust Sabrina toward her, and the Cavalier’s tail wagged like crazy as she settled into Addison’s arms with a satisfied sigh. Clearly the dog had yet to learn the meaning of the word no—much like Addison’s sister.
If Addison had her own special form of kryptonite though, it was Everly. Since the sudden death of their father in a car accident during Everly’s freshman year at Columbia, Addison had felt responsible for her younger sister. They’d always been close, but tragedy had taken their sisterly bond and transformed it into something else. Something sacred. Addison had promptly canceled her plans to attend graduate school in Paris so she could stay in New York and be there for Everly and her mom. Their poor mother had been reeling, hardly able to take care of herself, much less comfort her daughters. So Addison had stepped up and become the head of the England household. She’d gotten the job as Colette’s assistant at Veil and never looked back. Not even once.
“Colette loves Holly, and you know it,” Everly said as the Cavalier snuggled into Addison’s arms.
True. For some unknown reason, Colette’s stone-cold heart had melted when Holly Golightly came on the scene. In a move that made zero sense to Addison or the legions of other tortured assistants who’d come before her, the notoriously difficult editor-in-chief even let Everly bring the dog to work every day.
“Colette will probably adore Sabrina too, you know. They’re practically identical twins.” Daphne reached for another cupcake. “Just take her for one night and see how it goes.”
Everly nodded, eyes dancing. “Yes! Just one night. If it doesn’t work out, I promise I’ll take her back to Manhattan Pet Rescue first thing tomorrow.”
Addison sighed. It wouldn’t work out. She was sure of it. She didn’t want a dog—not even temporarily. Hopefully, tonight was going to be the most important night of her career. The very last thing she needed was a furry little interloper ruining things.
“Please?” Everly pressed a hand to her heart, and her eyes went shiny. Were those actual tears?
Addison told herself that her sister’s emotional display had to be postpartum hormones or something, but it was no use. When Everly looked at her like that, all Addison could see was her baby sister as a young freshman girl who’d just lost her dad.
“Fine,” she said and instantly regretted it. Tonight was supposed to be perfect, and spontaneity wasn’t Addison’s strong suit. Things worked out best when they were carefully planned out with no room for surprises.
A random newcomer definitely qualified as a surprise.
Sabrina licked the side of Addison’s face with a gentle swipe of her dainty tongue.
Dramatic much? It’s a dog, not a professional saboteur.
Addison held up a single, determined finger. “But for one night only.”
What had she been thinking?
Addison planted her hands on her hips and gave Sabrina the sternest look she could muster. “I’m leaving now. There’s no reason at all to be this upset. You and I don’t even really know each other.”
She was going to strangle her sister. Every time Addison slipped out of view, the poor dog panicked. It hadn’t been much of a problem during her workday, given the fact that Addison spent so much time at her desk. On the few occasions when she’d gotten up and Sabrina followed suit, prancing alongside her, it had even been sort of cute.
But this—the way the Cavalier had turned into a shivering, drooling mess the instant Addison had tried to leave her apartment for her meeting with Colette at the Carlyle—was not cute. Honestly, it was alarming.
“Look.” Addison crouched down to peer straight into the dog’s sad puppy-dog eyes. Not an easy task in a strapless evening gown crafted from yards upon yards of fine pink satin with a train covered in hand-sewn rosettes, but desperate times and all that. “You’ve got a doggy bed, toys, blankets, treats...everything. What more could you possibly want?”
Everly had dropped off a ridiculous amount of pet supplies in Addison’s office before she’d gone home, despite Addison’s fervent reminder that Sabrina’s stay would be temporary. The Cavalier came with more baggage than Everly’s twins. It was ludicrous.
Even more ludicrous: Sabrina wasn’t the least bit interested in any of it. All she seemed to care about was not being left alone.
Addison stood. If she didn’t leave soon, she was going to be late and that could not happen.
“We’re going to try this one more time. Be strong,” she said, and she wasn’t altogether sure if she was talking to herself or the dog.
The second she shut the apartment door, Addison could hear the poor thing panting and whining on the other side. She felt like the world’s biggest monster...or sort of like Colette that time she’d fired an intern for wearing tie-dye to the office.
I can’t do this.
“Fine, you win,” she said as she flung the door open. “You’re coming with me.”
Her tenure as a doggy foster mom was going to be the longest twenty-four hours of Addison’s life, wasn’t it?
Fortunately, Everly and Daphne had been right about the Carlyle being pet friendly. The doorman didn’t bat an eye at Addison when she stepped beneath the famous black-and-gold portico with Sabrina nestled in her arms. The hotel was all decked out for Christmas, with twinkle lights and garland strung over the awnings and a massive, flocked tree in the lobby. The snowy evergreen almost caught Addison off guard. With her big promotion on the horizon, she’d hardly given a thought to the holidays. But there would be time to celebrate Christmas once she was editor-in-chief.
Listen to you. Now you really do sound like Colette...with a dash of Ebenezer Scrooge for good measure.
Wrong. Ebenezer would’ve rather died and joined his gang of chain-wielding ghosts than bring a dog to a work function.
Addison’s stilettos clicked on the smooth marble floor as she headed toward the hotel’s piano bar, famous for its charming murals by Ludwig Bemelmans, the artist and writer best known for the Madeline picture books. Addison adored those books as a young girl. She’d always imagined herself as Madeline going on all sorts of wild adventures around Paris in her chic little school uniform. By the time her mother had shown her Sabrina for the first time, Addison was already familiar with places like Notre Dame and Sacré Coeur from the Madeline stories. It made perfect sense to her that Audrey Hepburn would go off to Paris and come back a few years later completely transformed.
But why was she thinking about Paris again when she was mere minutes away from being promoted? Addison had given up on that dream years ago. Everything she wanted was right here in New York.
“Nice dog.”
Addison tore her gaze away from Bemelmans’ murals and found a man standing beside her near the entrance to the bar. How she’d failed to notice him before that moment was a mystery, because he had piercing blue eyes and dark hair. Such a striking combination. He grinned and a dimple creased his right cheek, almost like a wink amid the dark layer of stubble that lined his finely sculpted jawline.
You didn’t notice the man because you were worried about work, as per usual.
Ugh. It was like her Veil girls were sitting on her shoulder, whispering straight into her ear.
She cleared her throat. “Pardon?”
The man smoothed down his tie—ice-blue silk, which made those eyes of his sparkle like new-fallen snow. “I was just admiring your dog.”
“Oh, I don’t have a dog.” She had a 401K, access to the Veil fashion closet and regularly ate wedding cake samples for lunch. What more could she possibly want?
The man’s eyes danced as he cast a pointed glance at Sabrina wiggling with glee in Addison’s arms. He arched an eyebrow. “My mistake.”
Addison’s face went warm. “No, you’re right. She’s a dog. She’s just not mine.”
He looked Addison up and down, gaze lingering on her couture gown, courtesy of the aforementioned closet. “You’ve got to be the most glamorous dog walker I’ve ever seen.”
Cute. And was that a slight French accent she detected?
Maybe Addison wasn’t as dead inside as her loved-up friends seemed to think. Of course she wasn’t. She had priorities, that’s all.
She squared her shoulders and refocused her attention on the bar, searching for Colette’s signature swingy bob. Addison didn’t see her boss, but that didn’t necessarily mean Colette hadn’t arrived yet. Half the tables were obscured by the grand piano in the center of the room.
“I’m not a dog walker. I’m actually here for a very important meeting with my boss and somehow, I ended up with a rescue dog for the night. I tried leaving her at home and that didn’t go over well at all,” Addison said.
“So you brought her along to your important meeting?” The man’s lips quirked into a crooked grin. “That’s very kind of you.”
“Or very stupid. It’s a toss-up at this point.” Addison blew out a breath.
“Oh, come on. Who could resist this face?” He reached to give Sabrina a scratch under her chin. The dog responded by squirming out of Addison’s grasp and launching herself at the handsome stranger.
Addison sort of understood why, although she never would’ve admitted as much to Everly and Daphne.
“You clearly haven’t met my boss.” Addison let out a shaky breath.
The man regarded her while Sabrina attempted to climb his neck like a tree. He gently wrestled the Cavalier under control and cradled the dog in a way that reminded Addison of the hot-groomsmen-with-puppies feature pictorial they’d done for Veil last year.
He shrugged. “I could always watch her for you.”
What? No. Everly would murder her if she ever found out she’d left Sabrina in the care of a perfect stranger.
Emphasis on perfect.
She looked away. Just because the man was handsome and charming didn’t mean he was a proper dog sitter.
“I couldn’t possibly let you do that.” Could she?
“I’m having a quick drink here with my aunt. I’m sure she won’t mind a surprise guest. She’s got a weak spot for cute puppies. Go figure.” He glanced at the sleek silver watch on his wrist. “I’ve got a Christmas party to attend in about an hour, but I’m happy to help out until then.”
Sabrina nuzzled her little head into the crook of his neck. Clearly the dog had no problem with this bonkers plan.
“I don’t even know your name,” Addison said.
“It’s Carter.” He extended a hand while maintaining a comforting grip on Sabrina with the other. “Carter Payne. I honestly don’t mind. I love dogs, too. Where I’m from, they hold a special place in society. In Paris, dogs are welcome in five-star restaurants.”
So Addison hadn’t been imagining things. He did indeed have a hint of a French accent...another ding in Addison’s armor.
“We’ll be seated in the same bar. You’ll know if I try and abscond with this dog that doesn’t belong to you.” He gave her another crooked smile.
Carter had a point. Sabrina wasn’t hers, and he seemed to know far more about dogs than she did. Maybe he’d even consider adopting her, and she’d be rid of the Cavalier problem once and for all.
“I need you to know that I’d never let you do this if I wasn’t completely desperate,” she said.
His dimple flashed again. “That’s certainly flattering.”
“I didn’t mean it like that. I’m just saying that I’m normally a very responsible person. This meeting with my boss is just really, really important. I’m pretty sure she’s about to retire, and she’s going to tell me she wants me to take over her position,” Addison said.
“That does sound important.” Carter nodded, and his forehead creased ever so slightly.
“I’ve been working for this for a long time.” Addison took a deep breath and then, before she could stop herself, she launched into a detailed monologue about her tenure at Veil—the highs, the lows and everything in between.
She might have even told Carter Payne about those awful first years as Colette’s assistant when she’d wanted to resign at least five times a day. She definitely told him about the time she’d had to cancel a long-planned trip to the Hamptons because Colette had broken an ankle after donning a particularly tall pair of stilettos at Bridal Fashion Week and she’d expected Addison to move into the servant’s quarters of her penthouse for the duration of her recovery. The poor guy looked like he wanted to interject a few times, but she wouldn’t let him get a word in edgewise.
It wasn’t like Addison to babble on like this. She never complained about her job. Ever. It was just so nice to talk to someone who wouldn’t judge her for her unfailing devotion to her career, even though the road to the top of the masthead had been rocky at times. Someone who knew nothing whatsoever about Veil or Colette Winter.
Just as Addison was about to tell him how it had all been worth it now that the brass ring was within reach, she caught a glimpse of Colette in her periphery. A server in a festive bow tie was showing her to a seat in one of the booths that backed up to Bemelmans’ fabulous murals.
“Oh, she’s here.” Addison grabbed Carter Payne’s forearm. “I’ve got to go. Thank you. I love you for this.”
His brow arched again.
She swallowed. “You know what I mean. I just really, really appreciate the help.”
Then before he could respond, she swished past him, bustling toward Colette’s booth as fast as her pink satin gown would allow.
Addison was vaguely aware of Carter’s presence just over her shoulder as she maneuvered her way through the crowded bar. He was apparently making good on his promise to stay close enough for her to keep an eye on Sabrina. She thanked her lucky stars that he’d come to her rescue, just in the nick of time. The man was a bona fide Christmas miracle.
But then the strangest thing happened as she slid onto the supple leather seat of the banquette—Carter slid in place directly opposite her, flanking Colette on the other side.
Addison gaped at him. What are you doing? He just winked at her, as if this was all some hilarious joke.
Apparently, the joke was on Addison.
“Addison, you look lovely.” Colette leaned over to give her a kiss on each cheek. Bisous, as the French called it. “I’m so glad you could join me for a little tête-à-tête before the Cartier party. We have much to discuss about the future of Veil. But first, I need to introduce you to someone who’s going to play a big part in that future.”
Colette turned smiling eyes on Carter.
No.
Addison’s stomach plummeted. This couldn’t be happening.
No, no, no.
“This is my nephew, Carter Payne.” Colette beamed at him. Addison wasn’t sure who seemed more enamored with the man—her boss or Sabrina the Cavalier.
“You two will be working very closely together.”
