Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 66330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 332(@200wpm)___ 265(@250wpm)___ 221(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 66330 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 332(@200wpm)___ 265(@250wpm)___ 221(@300wpm)
“Stop it,” Halley ordered.
I pulled my hands away and resisted the urge to tug down the hemline, too. “It’s not too short?”
“It’s short, not too short. And you’re going to look like a nun next to some of the girls there, trust me.” Halley was looking down again, and I could tell I was losing her attention. Then I heard a voice call out to her, “Ready for dinner?”
A pang went through me. I missed going to dinner with my friends. Sometimes it had been an amorphous mass of us descending on the dining hall and pulling tables together. Sometimes it was just two or three. Either way, it was better than eating alone on Halley’s pink couch every night. And it was a million times better than forcing myself to go out with a girl I wasn’t sure I liked and definitely didn’t trust.
“I’ve got to go,” Halley said, slamming shut the lid of her laptop. “Wear that with heels and heavy eye makeup. It’s perfect. You’ll look like an off-duty rock star.”
On Friday, Victoria came home with me after work. When she saw where I lived, she looked at me with curiosity and new respect. “Your parents must be rich.”
“It belongs to a friend,” I said evasively.
It had taken me nearly a week to feel comfortable in my best friend’s condo. Victoria made herself at home right away, walking through each room, running her hands over furniture, even opening my closet. She looked from the contents of it to the black dress I had hanging on the back of the door, an eyebrow cocked.
“One of these things is not like the other,” she pronounced, tapping the dress lightly with a long, black, stiletto nail.
I knew what she meant, so I wasn’t going to ask her to clarify. Of course, she took it upon herself to do so anyway.
“This is designer. Maybe even off the runway.” Victoria almost cooed the words. She was looking at the dress like she wanted me to leave them alone together. Then her gaze narrowed at the clothes hanging in the closet. “This is like, Mossimo.”
I couldn’t argue that. Many of my clothes were from Target. I offered an awkward shrug instead, wondering again if I’d made a huge mistake when I made plans with her.
Means to an end, I reminded myself. I’d find some nice guy to take my mind off Con tonight, and then Victoria and I could go back to ignoring each other in the office until I rotated away from Brand Development. God, it couldn’t come too soon.
Victoria wandered into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. Her gaze went right to one of the bottles of white wine that looked so expensive. Without even asking, she pulled it out and rifled through the drawers until she found the wine opener and wine glasses. “All right then,” she said approvingly. “Your taste is…eclectic, but I can work with this.”
I decided it wasn’t the time to tell her I normally drank Barefoot wine. I accepted the glass she poured me, and we retreated to opposite bathrooms to get ready. Nerves made it hard to apply the eye makeup Halley had suggested but finishing my first glass of wine helped. I went out and poured myself a second, then carried the bottle to the other bathroom to top off Victoria’s glass. She was struggling to get herself into a red dress that fit like Spanx. I looked for a zipper, but there was none. I set down the bottle and helped unroll the bottom of the dress from where it had bunched up in a tight band around her ribs.
“Thanks,” Victoria said breathlessly, pulling it the rest of the way down. It was longer than mine, going nearly to her knees, but it was so tight I could see the indentation of her belly button, the striations of her ribs, and the thin line of her underwear. She frowned, seeing it too, and before I knew it, she was shimmying out of them.
“That’s better,” she said, nodding at her reflection decisively.
“Are you sure you can walk in it?” I asked doubtfully.
“If Kim can, I can.” Victoria tossed her long dark hair back determinedly. She didn’t look like she was going out to have fun. More like she was heading into battle. It was on the tip of my tongue to say we who are about to die salute you. I swallowed the words back and returned to my bathroom to get ready. I had more confidence now, and I plunged into my make up bag with more zeal. I didn’t know if it was the wine or the realization that I couldn’t possibly look as absurd as Victoria, no matter how much eyeliner I put on. When I was done, I hardly recognized myself. I didn’t know if I looked sexy and sultry or completely ridiculous, but it was too late to turn back now.