Chapter 33 #2
“To spend how I like. If you had wads of cash and I had none, would you treat me to something nice?”
“Of course… I…shit. I see what you did there. Alright, on your head be it. And if I bankrupt you, it’s your fault.”
“Champagne?” the manager asks, dollar signs flashing behind her eyes.
“We’ll take the bottle.”
Max and I flop on a low sofa while Willow and Theo start pawing through the racks. The manager snaps her fingers at a saleswoman to help. “She’ll need something with lots of color,” I call over. “Don’t think of trying to make my girl drab.”
“Sparkles for Sparkle Princess,” Max adds. “Definitely sparkles.”
The resulting pile of dresses that head to the changing room look like a Lisa Frank fever dream, but Theo’s grin is a mile wide.
The only downer is her friend, who is picking out all kinds of grandma frocks.
“I thought you wanted to bang Naomi Wats-her-face,” I say, clicking my fingers impatiently. “You’re currently giving me Hilary Clinton vibes.”
She gives me a ‘wahhh’ face.
“He’s not wrong,” Max chimes in. “Get a red dress which shows lots of tits, that will get you the W. And in this case, the W stands for Woman pussy.”
I laugh, and Willow throws a shoe at Max.
Luckily, Theo peeks her head around the curtain and interjects. “You would look great in red, Wills, and your cleavage is gorge.”
“Fine,” she huffs. “I’ll try one thing like that, but I really think I should go for this brown lace.”
Max makes a gagging noise, which perfectly sums up how I feel about that particular piece of clothing.
After another twenty minutes, Theo comes out to show us a two-piece. Can I say—show stopper?
“I like this,” she says softly, admiring herself in the long mirror and smoothing her hands over the fabric of the skirt. Yep, I like it too.
A fucking lot.
The top piece is a hot-pink bandeau, which shows off Tee’s tummy perfectly.
It’s paired with a huge, sweeping floor-length skirt made up of every color you can think of.
The fabric has a subtle glitter to it (and excitingly, there is a thigh-length slit.
I can just imagine slipping my hand inside the folds of all that fabric to find the folds of her… .)
“Bro, you’re drooling,” Max jabs me.
Theo blushes, then yells at her friend. “Show us what you got, Wills.”
Willow pushes her curtain aside, and I pat myself on the back.
“Ten out of ten,” I tell the girls, then I nod to the manager. “We’ll take them both.”
I hand over a card, and Willow starts spluttering.
“Nah, you’re doing me a favor, Wills. Tee really can’t complain about me getting her a dress if I buy yours too. Now go get changed, ladies. Shoes are up next.”
“How come you’re so good at this kind of thing?” Theo asks me as we’re wandering down the boulevard fifteen minutes later.
I wish I could tell her it was because of all the bonding times I’d had with my mother, but obviously that’s not the case.
“Our family, and Cosmo’s, are all from Southernhampton.
It’s old school South Havengard; think cotillions and debutante balls.
Charity galas every weekend. The Harts have been part of that high society for centuries; it’s in my blood. ”
“I can’t even imagine what that kind of life is like,” Theo says, squeezing my hand.
“Boring,” I tell her. “All the same families trying to inter-marry to keep the bloodlines blue, and all that bullshit. Though my Father mixed it up when he married my mother, a Hart marrying a scientist of all things—oh the scandal!”
“Was he head-over-heels in love?”
Lol. “I very much doubt it. It beats me why they got married. They don’t even seem to like each other.”
Shoe shopping takes only one stop. These girls are the easiest shopping experience I’ve ever had. Good thing it hasn’t taken too long because Max is grumbling about food, and I’ve got to admit I’m starving too.
Ever since getting out of the white realm, my appetite has been off the hook. I text Wes and Cosmo, telling them we’re heading for La Casa Picante.
I’m feeling margaritas.
The four of us find a table at the restaurant, and I immediately flag down a waiter to order a pitcher of mezcal margaritas.
Wes is radio silent. “He'll show,” I say, more to myself than to anyone else. Fuck. Why did I let him go off alone?
“You know how he gets in a camera store,” Theo adds, trying to reassure me. But I can tell she’s equally worried. “He's probably just knee-deep in a shutter-speed conversation.”
I smile, but it’s forced. I hate that; my girl deserves genuine smiles only. I give myself a mental slap and decide to get the party started. Perfect timing, as the cocktails arrive. "Come on, senoritas, now who loves a salty rim?"
“Yum, I love rims,” Max grins.
Willow grimaces. “Gross. Don’t put me off my guac, thank you very much.”
I start making a joke about rocking the guac, but it’s lost as Cosmo walks in.
His face is a picture of misery. Like the most famous artist in the world couldn’t have painted a sadder face. He slams his phone on the table and sighs.
Max opens his mouth, but Cosmo cuts him off. “Don’t ask.”
“Don’t ask what?” A grin spreads across Max’s face. "Whether Jordan needed your opinion on her waxing? What do you go for—Brazilian or Frenchie?”
“That’s not a fucking joke. She made me hold her hand while they did it, too.” Cosmo makes a gagging noise. “At least there was a sheet, so I didn’t have to see anything.”
He runs a hand over his chin. “I was in that spa for two hours. Two. Fucking. Hours. And the whole time, I had to listen to her complain about the lack of good technicians in Havengard City. Not tactful while one of those ‘below-par’ technicians is stripping her asshole.”
“Wait, was the technician below par because she wasn’t very good, or does Jordan call her vag ‘Par’ so then the waxer was ‘below par’?”
I put my hand out for a high five, but Cosmo swats it away and picks up the nearest glass. “I usually don’t touch this abomination of a drink, but needs must.” He downs it in one.
“Have a chip,” Willow says, pushing a basket toward him. Theo’s friend is hilarious. I expect Cosmo to snap at her, but he doesn’t, just nods and says thanks. I guess, when you’ve had a morning with someone like Jordan, you can appreciate people who aren't complete twats.
My phone buzzes, and I get a stomach flip when I see the message.
WES: Getting a ride back, don’t wait for me
DONOVAN: How?
WES: ….
The dots appear, then disappear again. Fuck.
I know my face is worried, because Theo is looking at me with the serious eyes she only uses when something is actually serious. “What happened?” she asks.
“Wes. He says he’s going to make his own way back to the academy. It makes me nervous as all fuck, to be all honest.”
Cosmo’s eyes narrow on me. “Who’s he getting a ride with?”
I have no answer for him.
Shit.
A massive plate of Enchiladas is placed in front of me, and I decide to eat my feelings. It’s the only way.
Maybe Max is having feelings too, seeing as he’s ordered two meals for himself.