Chapter 24
Chapter
Twenty-Four
WINTER
I’ve been working at Spanish Silk and Moss for almost a week now, and loving it.
While the clients can sometimes be impatient or difficult, I don’t mind.
It makes me stretch my abilities, and forces me to be very precise with my stitching because of how expensive the materials are.
No one wants a hole in their clothes due to my not being careful enough.
Cordelia also has a few debutantes who have come into the store with their parents, looking for gowns before the season starts. I can see why she said the alterations consultant, Daphne, has been really busy now.
We’ve both been working in the dressing room with clients, but she’s not very chatty.
Since I’m busy, and I’m not much for small talk either, I don’t mind it.
I bought myself a pair of discreet earphones to play music from my phone while I’m working in the back.
It helps me drown everyone else out, and no one minds pulling me back to reality when I need to help a client.
I’m eating lunch now, and stop to listen as I hear a client speaking. I can’t usually hear things back here, but the door is cracked open, and my earphones are sitting on the table unused.
“Where is this new alterations person everyone is speaking about, Cordelia?” she asks loudly. There’s a nasal-like quality to her voice, and it raises the hair on my arms as I swallow hard.
Coughing lightly, I take a sip of my water, waiting to see if I’m needed. I decided to eat my lunch with the lull in people in the store. However, Daphne is working on a wedding dress that had a strict deadline, and she asked not to be disturbed.
I get it. The wedding dress is important, so I could be pulled in to help this creepy client. I’m sure she’s completely harmless, right?
I can’t hear what Cordelia is saying now that they’re further in the store, and I force myself to take another bite of my sandwich.
I have to eat now, or there won’t be another chance until my shift is over. My appetite is finally back, and my blood sugar will kick my ass if I neglect myself.
“Winter?” Lena sticks her head into the back room, and I wave at her as I take a final bite. “No, please don’t rush. Cordelia and I are helping Mrs. Larson. You have time before you’re needed. I just wanted to let you know she’s very petite, and always needs things altered.”
“Thank you,” I say once I’ve swallowed. “I’m almost done.”
Lena gives me a smile as she leaves, shutting the door behind her. It gives me a bubble of safety, and I sigh as I take another sip of water.
“Mrs. Larson touches too much,” Daphne says, surprising me. “Don’t spend too long alone with her. I wish you’d worn pants today.”
Glancing down at my fluffy skirt, I sigh as I hear the implication.
“It’s been raining today, so I actually did shove a pair of pants in my bag,” I admit. “I’m going to change so I won’t have to worry about being goosed at work.”
“I think that’s a good idea. She comes in often, buys a few pieces at a time, and then needs it all altered. The woman has too much money, and a husband who overindulges her,” she says. “It wouldn’t be an issue if she wasn’t constantly touching me.”
Daphne makes a face at me, and I understand completely. She’s a beta, but no one likes to have their personal space encroached on.
“Thank you for the heads up,” I murmur, pulling the gray cotton pants from my bag. Moving quickly, I head into the bathroom back here and change.
I’m wearing a loose white top today, and I carefully tuck the front of it into the pants. I’m wearing a necklace that works well with it, and my closed toe shoes are cute too.
The very idea of being touched inappropriately is making me twitchy, and I have to remind myself that I don’t have to allow it. I can set boundaries nicely.
Right? I can do that, right? Fuck.
My anxiety is making my hands shake as I wash them just to have something to do. I also dry my hands slowly to give myself time to pull myself together, because sticking Mrs. Larson with a pin would suck.
I refuse to lose my job today.
Stepping out of the bathroom, I walk back to my bag and pull out my new phone. Abbott insisted that I have my own since I’m working. They made a Pack Chat for us to communicate throughout the day, and I smile as I read some of the messages.
Abbott
How’s work going, Winter?
Me
It’s busy. I have a client that’s known for being difficult in a second, so I’m trying to hype myself up.
Cassidy
Who?
Me
Just a regular. It’ll be fine.
My pack is too murderous to tell them about Mrs. Larson when she hasn’t actually done anything to me. Who the hell knows what they’ll do to her?
Taking a cleansing breath, I put my phone away and throw out my trash. I could be building this up too much.
Lena pokes her head back in, and I stand up as she motions for me to walk with her. I’ve been left with clients alone various times while working, and it’s never been a problem.
“Mrs. Larson wants to know how you’d alter some of the pieces she’s chosen,” Lena explains. “She’s a very hands on client, and always has a lot of questions.”
I don’t typically need to talk to people, so I simply nod. Everyone thinks I’m really shy, but I think it’s more that I feel awkward in social settings. It’s easier to do my job without chit chatting, and also faster.
Old habits are difficult to break, and I’d rather observe before saying anything. It’s saved my life on more than one occasion.
“Don’t worry about having to talk to her,” Lena says quickly. “You can twitch fabric into place, do what you typically do, and I’ll do the rest, okay?”
“Thank you,” I say softly.
“It’s no problem at all. We adore you, and we don’t want you to feel uncomfortable at all,” she gushes, making me flush as I nod.
The two of us walk into the dressing room, and I get my first glimpse of my client. Mrs. Larson is in her forties, with lots of curves, and short even in her heels.
I haven’t seen many alphas who have done cosmetic surgery, but I can see it in the sculpting of her jaw and nose. They’re too sharp to have been made by nature. Her gray eyes are stormy and shrewd as she watches me through the mirror, her nose flaring as she inappropriately attempts to smell me.
Ugh, this is going to suck.
“Now, I love this dress for the Winstrom’s party, but I’m concerned about the hem,” she sighs, twitching the train of the dress.
The front will need to be raised quite a bit, and I walk over to kneel in front of her to see by how much.
“Hmm. So pretty and submissive,” she purrs under her breath as Lena begins to speak. I pretend not to hear her as I grab some pins and get to work, letting Lena be my voice.
My blood is boiling, and I can feel Bellamy checking on me through our bond. I can’t tell him I’m fine, because that’s a lie, so I continue to work.
“I suppose raising it there would work,” Mrs. Larson muses. “Will it affect the train?”
I shake my head, the strong scent of her pheromones making me lightheaded. She smells like roses and dead things, and it makes my nose twitch unhappily.
When alphas are terrible matches for you, they can smell worse than they would for others. It’s nature’s way of helping an omega find a mate.
Unfortunately, it just makes me feel queasy. I have a pack, I’m not looking, Universe! Kindly fuck off.
I disassociate slightly as I continue to alter the dress. Her waist is so small, I’ll need to take in the sides as well. She’s built like an hourglass, which means the dress doesn’t show off her curves the way she expressly says that she wants.
My hair is half up in tiny clips so it’s off my face, while the rest tumbles down my back. As I’m moving to stand, Mrs. Larson twirls a piece of my hair in her fingers.
“Hmmm. This material is very soft,” she says, talking about my hair and not the goddamned dress.
Lena can’t see what she’s doing, but nods and discusses where the material for the dress is from. Even in her gross inability to understand boundaries, Mrs. Larson is careful. Her body is also blocking my ability to telegraph to Lena that I need to be excused.
Immediately.
My chest feels tight as I finish what needs to be done, and I force myself to step back. Mrs. Larson’s finger gets stuck for a moment in my hair, and I wince as it pulls sharply against my scalp before she releases me.
“Winter, darling, will you be a dear and help me out of this dress?” she asks, her eyes taking on a predatory nature.
I manage to finally catch Lena’s eye, and she flinches at whatever she sees.
“I’m so sorry, Mrs. Larson. I’ll need to help you as I pulled Winter away from a rush order,” Lena says smoothly. “Winter, go ahead and return to your work.”
I have the ridiculous feeling that I should curtsy or some shit, and barely manage to keep myself from doing it as I step around the raised platform where Mrs. Larson stands and leave them behind.
My hand presses against my chest as my steps get quicker once I’m in the hallway that leads back to the employee room.
“Did she try anything?” Daphne asks shrewdly as I nearly fall into the room.
“Tried is a relative word,” I breathe, shaking out my hands as I move to a pair of pants I need to finish hemming.
“I keep hoping they’ll ban her,” she mutters. “She’s very influential in certain circles, and the owner doesn’t want to ruffle feathers.”
Nodding to show I understand how that goes, I lose myself to my work until it’s time to go. I grab my shit gratefully, and head to the front of the store where I can feel Cassidy’s energy.
It’s a different kind of bond than the one I have with Bellamy, but I like that I can feel when she’s close. She also feels a little anxious, and I raise my brow in surprise before her arms wrap around me.
I guess the cat is out of the bag. Oh well. I’ve proved I can do the work, it’s no longer considered nepotism, right?