“There. Done. Now show me these dresses before I change my mind about going all together.” I tossed my phone on my bed and walked over to my wardrobe.
They opened the doors and pulled out a selection of dresses that just so happened to all be together, and carefully laid each one out on the bed in front of me. There were loads of colours—one black gown I recognised from Gabi’s birthday two years ago, a red wraparound midi dress that could be dressed up or down, a navy-blue satin number that was going to hug my hips far too tightly today, and a pale-yellow chiffon gown that still had the labels on.
And the green one that was partially hidden by the black one.
“First things first. What are you two wearing?”
“Red,” Gabi said.
I picked up the red dress and handed it to her. “Then no. Eva?”
“Torn between a cream strapless jumpsuit and a dark pink halter neck gown.”
“If you go cream, that rules this out.” I handed her the pale-yellow one. “Far too similar in shade. What’s the green one you both want me to wear?”
Gabi hung the red one back in the wardrobe and pulled out another dress. “It’s not entirely your usual style,” she said hesitantly. “I bought it and I’ve never worn it, and honestly, I don’t think I have the boobs to pull it off.”
I turned to look at it. She was right. The emerald-green silk number was not my style, and I was about to say as much when Eva interrupted me.
“Think about it like this. This will definitely get Timothy’s attention if he’s really interested in you.”
I swallowed. “I’ll try it on. That’s all I’m promising.”
Gabi handed me the dress with a grin, and I walked into my bathroom to try it. There wasn’t a chance in hell this dress was going to suit me, but I would give them the benefit of the doubt. Trying it on would at least make it look like I’d tried, so that was what I’d do.
I quickly changed out of my clothes and eyed the dress. It had thin spaghetti straps and the kind of neckline that would potentially spill over a proper bra, so I would need both a strapless bra and some tape to stop the silk sliding over the bra cups.
With a deep breath, I removed it from the hanger and slipped it over my head.
It fit me like a glove, and I immediately understood Gabi’s point about the boobs. Mine were bigger, and they filled the chest out so I knew I wouldn’t need tape. The tie at the waist gave the illusion that my waist was smaller than it was, and the draped skirt was flattering all the way down. The back dragged slightly on the floor, but with heels, it would be no problem, and the way the skirt was draped meant it wouldn’t trip at the front.
Damn it.
I wasn’t one to toot my own horn, but this dress really was amazing on me.
Ugh.
I hated it when they were right.
“Are you done?” Eva yelled. “We don’t have all day! We have a hair appointment in thirty minutes and I’m hungry!”
She was always hungry.
She’d be fine.
I opened the door and stepped out of the bathroom, holding out my hands. “Well? What do you think?”
They both grinned.
This was the one, then…
CHAPTER TEN – ADELAIDE
We were going to be late.
Not that I was even remotely surprised by that. I should have known that getting ready with my sister and Gabriella would result in us running behind schedule, but I had hoped that we might be even a little bit on time.
No.
We may as well have opened the wardrobe and wandered into Narnia.
“Come on!” I said, sitting on the bed. “We have to go!”
“Why? Are you desperate to see Timothy?” Eva teased from the bathroom.
“No, I just don’t want to hear it from Alex when we’re late!”
Gabi stepped out of the bathroom, still in her robe. “You’re ready. Why don’t you go down and get in? We’re all sitting together anyway because we got seats at the same table.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. You’re ready, and we’re going to be another ten minutes at least.”
I sighed and stood up, fiddling with the clasp on my bracelet. “Fine. We’ll meet you inside.”
“Perfect.” Eva popped her head out. “We won’t be long!”
I rolled my eyes and grabbed my clutch and phone, then left them alone to finish getting ready.
I didn’t even know what they had to do except get changed.
Either way, I made my way to the lifts and hit the button to go down. It didn’t take long for it to arrive, and it was empty when I stepped in, but that didn’t last long. The lift stopped on the next floor down, and the doors slowly opened to reveal the one person everyone wanted me to see.