"Which are the only ones I can afford, anyway," I told Lou. "But it's important to share when I can. I helped a woman in the Philippines buy stock for her tiny store the last time."
My phone buzzed, and I put Lou back down on the bed and reached for it, happy to see Molly's smiling face on the screen.
"Molly! It's like you're psychic! How did you know I was desperate for fashion advice at this very moment?"
Molly's lilting laughter sounded in my ear, and I felt myself relax for the first time since I'd opened that box. My best friend Molly Chen was an actual rock star, and her band Scarlett's Letters was on a national tour of small venues, which was the first step toward international fame, I was absolutely sure.
"Hey, Tess, glad to hear your voice. It has been nonstop here. Rehearsal, performance, rehearsal, performance, recording studio. The label seems to think we're the next big thing, but I'm still having to keep Dice from bashing one of the suits over the head with her guitar. That anger management class is wearing off, for sure. And she never was good with stress."
I rolled my eyes, glad Molly couldn't see it. She was a loyal friend, even to people I wasn't sure deserved it, like her perpetually troubled bass player. But, as Molly had reminded me more than once, if she dumped friends for being trouble, I'd be at the top of the list. Given how wild my life had been recently, I couldn't argue with that.
We spent a little bit of time catching up—mostly on her part; there was no way I was going to tell her about the stalker—and then she cut me off in the middle of my story about what had happened at church.
"Why fashion advice?"
"Jack's back."
Silence.
"Molly?"
"Tess, you know I like Jack, but I love you, and if he's going to jerk you around by disappearing and then reappearing with no notice, is that really what you want? You like reliable people and situations—"
"You make me sound very, very dull. Or a hundred years old!"
"You like reliable because your dad wasn't, this isn't hard to figure out; we've talked about this, and especially with your 'I see death' thing. So all I'm asking is this: Is Jack the right guy for you?"
She was right. Ididlike reliable and dependable.
But Jack had beencompletelyreliable and dependable when all the trouble had hit this year… And I really,reallyliked him.
"I don't know, Molls," I admitted. "But isn't it worth at least having one date to figure it out?"
She sighed. "I can't argue with that. But only one date until I decide if he's good enough for you! And you have to call and tell meeverything. Not tonight, but tomorrow, when the shop's slow."
"It won't be slow, it's a GYST day." Molly knew all about how hectic the shop got when the Golden Years Swamp Tours bus stopped by a few times a week on its way to take the nation's senior citizens on their AARP-approved jaunts into swamp territory and alligator viewing.
"Okay, okay, but after. Or when you eat lunch. Promise?"
"I promise! But this isn't solving the immediate problem. I don't want to go on this date wearing a church dress or jeans. I feel like I have a lot to live up to, after The Dress."
Molly, who'd practically tied me down to force me to buy that red dress, chuckled. "I still can't believe that saleswoman. Anyway, the problem is already solved."
"What? Which problem?"
"The fashion problem. I got you an early birthday present when I was in New York. It's in a garment bag in the closet in the spare room. I knew you wouldn't find it there until I was ready for you to see it."
I jumped up and dashed over to my spare room, which was easy enough, since it was just across the hall, and yanked open the closet doors. Sure enough, in pride of place in the middle of the closet, with my winter coats pushed to one side, was a black garment bag.
I made a sound that was somewhere between a squeal and a shriek, much to my embarrassment.
"What did you do? Oh, Molly, I told you—"
"You said not to buy you anything expensive, but I told you in fourth grade that you were not the boss of me, and it's still true. Just open the bag, so I can hear your reaction, and then I have to run, they're banging on my door, but you send me a selfie the second you put it on, you hear?"
I put the phone on speaker and tossed it on the bed and then carefully unzipped the bag.
"Oh,Molly."
