two shoe boxes and stomped back toward the building, her heels sounding like short little blasts from a .22 rifle with every step.
“Yes, it is,” Graham called out.
“Do we follow her, Daddy, or do we get to blow off this wedding and go with you and Mitzi today?” Dixie grinned.
“I’d like that a lot better than spending the day here,” Tabby said.
“Guess we better follow her, since y’all agreed to be part of this affair,” Graham said.
Rita disappeared inside a room and slammed the door behind her.
Tabby looked over her shoulder at her dad. “Maybe they wouldn’t even miss us.”
“A Harrison keeps her word. It’s too late to back out at this point.” Graham pushed his way inside the room, and the rest followed him.
Rita was uncorking a bottle of champagne over to their right. She poured a glass to the brim and drank down half of it before she turned around to her daughters. “We’ve set you up at the end of that table. If there’s time, the professional makeup lady will take care of you.”
“We do our own makeup, Mother,” Dixie said. “The lady can use all her time on y’all.”
“Could I have a word in private with you, Mitzi?” Rita asked. “In the ladies’ room?”
“Of course,” Mitzi said.
Graham laid a hand on Mitzi’s shoulder. “You don’t have to do this.”
“Oh, yeah, I do.” Mitzi kissed him on the cheek. “Don’t worry. I can take care of myself.” She would do her best to keep things civil, but she couldn’t promise there wouldn’t be a few drops of blood on the bathroom floor.
“Then I’ll wait right here.” Graham sat down in a chair by the door.
The girls were both busy setting out their makeup kits and didn’t even notice when Mitzi followed Rita across the room and into a bathroom. Rita went straight to the mirror and, using her fingertips, fluffed up her long blonde hair. Mitzi leaned against the door and waited.
“Well?” Rita finally flipped around and glared at her.
“You called this meeting, remember? What do you need to say?” Mitzi prompted.
“Graham is mine. He always has been, since high school, and he always will be. A man never forgets his first love,” Rita said.
“You’re married, aren’t you?” Mitzi asked.
“For now,” Rita answered. “Seeing Graham again brought back all those old feelings, and I will have him again, right along with my daughters.”
“I think seeing that Graham now owns the dealership put dollar signs in your eyes, not love in your heart. And, honey, everyone in high school knew that Graham wasn’t your first love. I don’t know which one of the football players was, but you made your way through several,” Mitzi told her.
Rita’s hands knotted into fists. “Are you calling me a slut?”
“If the shoe fits,” Mitzi said. “Frankly, I don’t care if you’re a slut or a saint. What I don’t like is the way you’ve treated your daughters. They think you’re embarrassed of them because of their size, and that’s why you left them and never even came back to see them for so many years. That scars a kid. You should be ashamed.”
Rita’s lip curled in a sneer. “You should know all about that fat business. Trust me, Graham likes small women, not b-big old . . .” She stammered when Mitzi pushed away from the wall and stepped closer.
“‘Big old’ what?” Mitzi asked.
“Tubs of lard,” Rita shot out the answer.
Mitzi wanted to snatch the woman baldheaded, but that would make Rita the victim, and create more drama. “There’s two sides to every person. The one that the world sees, and then that inward one. You might be little and cute on the outside, but the inside of you is black with rotting evil. If that’s all you’ve got to say, then I’m walking out of here. But before I go, just remember that one woman’s trash is another woman’s treasure. I intend to cherish every precious moment I can spend with your beautiful daughters and with Graham. Y’all have a good day.”
Mitzi left her standing at the vanity looking like she could kill someone with her bare hands. She slung open the bathroom door with such force that if Graham hadn’t been there to catch it, the bang it made against the wall would have startled everyone in the room.
“You okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” she bit out. “There’s no blood and she still has all her hair, which is a miracle.”
“Graham.” Rita brushed past them both and went straight for the