Walker Bride by Bernadette Marie

father
walked her down that aisle to him—that’s what mattered.
    Pearl listened intently and at times found
herself swooning over the men in Sunshine’s life. What could she
possibly say to someone if they ever asked her about her
father?
    Three hours after Sunshine had walked through
the door, she walked out with a wedding dress fit for a
princess—and yet unique to her as it was still a beautiful
hand-me-down.
    Emily had refused payment from Pearl—and
Pearl had refused payment from Sunshine. Once in awhile it just
felt good to give.
    At eight o’clock, Pearl locked the front door
to her store and walked to her car. The day had certainly taken a
detour from where she’d thought it was going. It had started the
moment she’d opened the front door and Tyson Morgan stood
there.
    His eyes had been dark as he looked at her.
All six-foot-four inches of him had seemed small when his shoulders
rolled forward as if he were not sure what had drawn him to her
house.
    It was endearing, she thought.
    And then the kiss she’d planted on him the
night before wandered into her mind as she opened the door to her
car and slid inside. She pressed her lips together.
    Had it meant anything to him? Or had he
written it off as something Pearl Walker just did?
    As she started the car, a sudden sea of
loneliness washed over her. She’d missed drinks with Lydia. After
work, Audrey was usually too tired to want to do anything—not that
Pearl had asked too many times.
    She sighed. Was that all she could think
about when it came to keeping company?
    Susan had moved out to Eric’s and Bethany and
Kent—well they didn’t need her sad company.
    Sunshine crossed her mind. Certainly she was
probably with family. They were planning a wedding for
tomorrow.
    At that moment, Pearl knew she needed her
mother to take away this loneliness that filled her heart at that
moment. Even that might be a stretch, but she had to try. She just
didn’t want to go home and be alone.

Chapter Eight
     
    When Cassandra Walker opened the door, a
large glass of wine in her hand, her face didn’t exactly register
excitement seeing Pearl standing on the porch. Concern shadowed her
gaze before a smile finally surfaced on her lips.
    “Is everything okay? You didn’t call first.
Is your sister okay? Are you sick?”
    “I’m fine, Mom. Can I come in?”
    “Oh, yes.” Her mother stepped back, and Pearl
walked through the door.
    Any other child might have an open invitation
into their parents’ houses, but Pearl still knocked on the door as
if she were a typical guest. She didn’t even have a key.
    “I’m having a glass of wine. Would you like
one?”
    Pearl considered it for a moment but decided
against it. “I’ll get myself a glass of water if that’s okay.”
    “Of course.”
    Pearl walked to the kitchen, her mother close
behind. She opened the cupboard, which housed only four glasses,
four plates, and an array of tea cups.
    She took a glass and moved to the
refrigerator to use the water dispenser. All the while her mother
watched her as if she might put something in the wrong place.
    “You’re sure everything is okay?” Her
mother’s voice had softened to a warm level. Pearl had been sure it
would come. Her mother had to be eased into everything. As horrible
as it might be, she could sometimes understand why her father felt
the need to stray during their marriage.
    “I just had a strange day. I wanted a little
company.”
    That moved her mother. She could see the
glistening in her eyes. “That’s very sweet that you came by.”
    “Can we sit?” Pearl asked motioning to the
kitchen table.
    “Yes. Please.”
    Pearl pulled out a chair and waited for her
mother to do the same before she sat down.
    “A woman came into the store just as I was
getting ready to close,” she began her story. If she didn’t just
dive in, the awkwardness of working her way into the conversation
might take an hour. “She had been planning on getting married in
six