Stealing the Heart of Mr. Steele

Chapter 94 Chapter 94

[Cordelia]

"Excuse me," I try to catch the owner's attention as she turns to leave. "I think there's been a mistake. I'm not the one getting married."

The woman turns around not bothering to mask her disgust. "Are you sure? After last time how can you be so certain?"

I am not going to justify myself to this woman. She doesn't need the intricate details of my relationship with the Steele Family.

"Oh, Cordelia!" Angelica pops her head in. "Here you are!" She sees the way the woman is looking at me and twists her face in confusion. "Is there something wrong?"

Pretending the woman's bad attitude doesn't piss me off, a skill I've mastered in recent days when dealing with Angelica, I smile brightly and sigh, "Of course not. I was just letting her know that I do not need the wedding dresses and I..."

"Oh! 1 should have told you," Angelica beams as if she had the best idea ever. "I thought it might be a fun idea for you to get to try on some wedding gowns as well since your wedding will be coming up soon as well."

"Well actually Clark and I aren't," Her eyebrow rises to her hairline in curiosity and I stop myself just barely, "...sure of when we will be getting married, but we thought not until after the baby is born and..."

"Oh I'm sure you don't mean that," she shakes her head as if that is the worst idea she has heard in a while. "Of course, you two would want to get married soon. If we get the right dress, you won't even look pregnant and..." "Wouldn't it make more sense for me to get married after I've had the baby and maybe gotten back into shape and...

"Nonsense!" she huffs with her hands on her hips. "You wouldn't want people to think the wrong things about you and this baby, especially considering the timing." She says the last part quietly before hissing in my ear. "You wouldn't want anyone guessing that the baby might not be his."

"Why would anyone think that!" I gasped, surprised that she'd come to that conclusion. "Clark and I know exactly whose baby our little Jasper is," I can say this calmly without the hit of a lie because it isn't a lie. We both know exactly who the father of this baby is. "Still," Angelica keeps her voice very low. "Getting pregnant the same week that Clark gets back looks... suspicious, don't you think?" Angelica continues. "Besides, you wouldn't want this baby to be born a bastard," her last word is almost inaudible, but I hear it and my heart clenches for a moment.

Do I care that this baby will be born out of wedlock? Even though I was once married to the baby's father, and we were married at the time of conception, would he still be considered illegitimate?

"What if Clark and you were to, God forbid, separate and he were to have a child with someone else and something were to happen? Your child could be left out of any inheritance if the will were lost or he didn't make one. Do you want that for your son?" "Well no," I considered for a moment. "Of course not."

She nods in the satisfied way that she does when she believes she is getting what she wants.

"The thing is," I add. "I don't really care about the Steele family fortune." I shrug. "I plan on making a name. and a legacy of my own. With or without the Steele name," I rub my belly, smiling at my baby who cannot see me but hopefully feels my love for him. "My little one will be loved and cared for."

"I see," she looks down disappointed. "Life is so unpredictable. I just...worry about you, Cordelia. What if something were to go wrong? It's good to have a little insurance." She moves back towards the door." Just please, consider trying them on. It would make me so happy to see you in your future wedding dress, whenever that might be."All content © N/.ôvel/Dr/ama.Org.

I nod, and her whole face radiates joy. Giving me a genuinely grateful squeeze, she bounds away. Sighing, I give in. I don't even bother to argue. It's not like I'm going to marry anyone anytime soon.

Starting with the bridesmaids' dresses, until we find a lovely dress with an empire waist that makes me look beautiful without making my pregnancy very obvious. The other three bridesmaids decide to go with their own more form-fitting styles

When the three of us line up it is clear that I am the one who will stand out as the odd one. Angelica doesn't seem to mind, and orders all three dresses to be made in the same weird sea foam color that seems to have been designed to look terrible on all skin tones.

Once that is decided, the four of us are given snacks as we watch Angelica parade around the room in her wedding dress selections. It really doesn't matter which silhouette she chooses-she looks incredible in everything she tries on. After about an hour of watching her parade around in dress after dress, she finally picks the gown of her dreams-a long silky number that costs more than some people's houses.

"Now you," she insists, shooing me back into the dressing room.