“Would you like to take a look now?” Carly asks, sensing my unease.
“Um…” I hesitate.
Making the decision for me, Francesca runs over and uncovers the rack.
All the air leaves my lungs as my eyes fall on a whole rack of beautifully colored dresses.
“W-who chose these?” I ask quietly.
“Cole sent us some photographs of what he thought you might like, and after gathering a little more information, we pulled the options together. If you don’t like any of them, we have time to have more delivered. We won’t leave here until you’re one hundred percent happy.”
“Wow, okay,” I breathe, accepting the glass of bubbles when it’s passed over.
If I knew I was going to be drinking this early, I might have had a little more to eat.
The champagne goes down far too well, and before I know it, I’m riffling through the dress options. They are all beautiful, and every single one is something I would look at in a store.
How?
How have they done this?
“Is there one or two you’re immediately drawn to?” Carly asks.
“This one,” I say, pulling out a sequin-covered sapphire dress.
“Okay, so shall we start there?”
I slip into the bathroom with the dress in hand and close the door behind me.
I pause when I see my reflection in the mirror. There’s excitement in my eyes. Never in a million years did I think I’d see that again while getting ready for an event like this.
The dress lining is as soft as silk, although when I notice the price tag swinging from it, I figure that it probably is. It feels incredible and fits me perfectly.
I twist this way and that, feeling those familiar sparks of the girl I used to be as I watch myself.
Feeling confident, I pull the door open and step out.
“Oh wow.” They both gasp. “That looks incredible,” Carly adds.
“Are you going to be a first-choice-wins kinda girl?” Francesca asks.
“Maybe. I do love it,” I say, gently running my palms over the sequins at my sides. “I would like to test a couple more, though, if that’s okay?”
“Of course it’s okay. You tell us which ones, and we’ll pass them through to you.”
I spend the next three hours having the best time with Carly and Francesca. I soon learn just how down-to-earth and relaxed they are. We shortlisted three dresses, but in the end, I couldn’t give up the sapphire one. Neither of them looked shocked by my choice.
Once my hair and makeup are done, and I’ve consumed another two glasses of champagne—thankfully, they allowed me to run out for snacks—I feel like an entirely new woman.
I’m not the old me that I’ve been trying to find. And I’m a long way from the broken girl I was not so long ago.
I’m…me, but another new version. And I think I really like this one.
Maybe, just maybe, it’s the one I’ve always been destined to be.
Carly and Francesca say their goodbyes and wish me a good night, and I’m left in the apartment alone, fully dressed and ready to go.
I haven’t heard anything from Cole, but as long as everything went smoothly with their travel, he should be back any moment.
