Sealed With a Kiss by Leeanna Morgan

home.”
    “But I haven’t had my hair curled,” Bella
said with a sigh. “Could we stay for five more minutes?”
    John shook his head. “We need to leave. Do
you want to thank Poppy for inviting us?”
    Bella stood up. “I already have, but I’ll go
and say goodbye.”
    “I’ll get our jackets.”
    Bella nodded and John headed off toward the
hallway. He looked through the windows either side of the front
door. The snow was falling thick and fast, covering everything in
its path with a white, icy blanket of cold snow. The weather that
had been forecasted had arrived.
    All he had to do now was get himself and his
daughter home safely. Donna and her playdate offer could wait for
another day.
     
    ***
    Rachel slammed the tailgate closed on her
truck and hauled the last box of bridesmaids’ dresses into Tess’
loft.
    Since taking the job as Bella’s tutor three
weeks ago, she’d had less time to help at The Bridesmaids Club.
With Christmas fast approaching, all of her friends were finding it
more difficult to balance their own lives with the brides and
bridesmaids who were desperate for dresses.
    Tess and Rachel had decided to put a few
hours aside on Saturday morning to go through the boxes and letters
that had arrived that week. Bella had been at home, waiting for her
dad to come back from a meeting in Washington DC. Rachel had
invited her and Tank to The Bridesmaids Club, hoping to fill
Bella’s day with something interesting before John got back.
    “Last one coming up now,” she yelled from the
top of the stairs. The door to the loft opened and she stumbled
inside. “Thanks, Bella.”
    “That’s okay. Tess said to put the box on the
kitchen counter. If we wipe the snow off the box, the floor won’t
get wet.”
    “Good idea.” Rachel slid the box onto the
counter and flicked the fresh snow into the sink.
    Tess walked out of the spare bedroom carrying
a handful of clothes hangers. “These should be enough for this
week’s dresses. Hopefully, no one sends us any over Christmas.”
    Rachel looked at the three boxes on the
counter. “If they do, we’re going to be seriously out of room.”
    Tess grinned. “Do you remember how much space
we had in my last apartment above Angel Wings Café?”
    “You were surrounded by dresses. I’m
surprised you could move.”
    “It was worse when new boxes arrived. I used
to stack them in the kitchen until I could find room for them.”
    “I’d like to live in a house filled with
these dresses,” Bella said wistfully. “It would be like living in a
Disney movie.”
    Tess laughed. “Or an out of control train
filled with satin and lace. But we don’t have to worry about that
anymore. Logan’s home is perfect.”
    “Your home is perfect,” Rachel reminded her.
“Have you forgotten that you married the man of your dreams?”
    “Only when he’s snoring at two o’clock in the
morning and keeping me awake,” Tess moaned.
    “It’s a small price to pay for
perfection.”
    “Exactly.” Tess put the clothes hangers on
the counter. “If you hear of anyone who wants to rent my old
apartment, let me know. Or better yet, take them there to have a
look. With Christmas getting closer, I don’t have a lot of spare
time.”
    “Tell me you’ve moved your spare back door
key? That little magnetic box above the doorframe was so
obvious.”
    “It’s still there. Who’s going to break into
my apartment?”
    Rachel sighed. “No one if they find the key.
You might as well leave the door wide open.”
    Bella moved around the counter. “What’s a
magnetic box?”
    Tess held her hands out to show Bella how
long the box was. “It’s a little box, about this big, that sticks
to the metal above my door. It’s for emergencies.”
    Bella frowned. “Dad told me what to do in an
emergency. I call 9-1-1. He’s coming home tonight.”
    Rachel gave Bella a hug. It had been a tough
few days. John had called each morning, but it didn’t make up for
her dad not being at