“Perfect! Maglomaniac, please see this gorgeous young debutante to a fitting room.”
Maggie escorted Cora to a large room with mirrors on every wall. “Get nekkid, girlie. We’ll be in with some options in a second.”
Cora stared at herself up close in the full-coverage mirror. She hadn’t felt this down since just after the breakup, and she wasn’t sure why. She doubted that the fancy dresses would do much to cheer her up, especially when she looked so blotchy and puffy from crying.
Darnell tapped on the door as Cora slid her leggings off. She peeked out the door and saw that both he and Maggie had a stack of dresses in their arms.
“Time to start mainlining some serious sparkle,” Darnell said. “It’s impossible to feel sad in glitter. We’re gonna start with floor-length stuff then move on to cocktail. I want to see you in this Donna Karan first, then the Léger, then the Stella just to switch things up. Slay us, baby.”
“Wait a sec,” she said, running her hand down a nightgown-thin peach silk dress midway through the stack. “I’m not trying this one. If it’s this wrinkled on a hanger, it’s going to be a nightmare on my body.”
“That’s nineties Calvin Klein realness, I’ll have you know. Kate Moss waif shit. I order you to try it,” Darnell answered. “And besides, if it looks good on you, you can always keep it looking tight with that steamer your girl stole from our employer.”
“Darnell! They were throwing it out!” Maggie exclaimed and widened her eyes at him. “It wasin the trash,totally broken. I didn’t steal it!”
“Uh-huh, okay. Whatever you say.”
They walked away bickering like a married couple.
The Donna Karan dress was a simple strapless column of black sequins, with some forgiving ruching at the waistline. Cora stepped into it and was surprised by the weight of the dress. She contorted herself to pull the zipper all the way up, and when she turned to look in the mirror she was shocked.
The dress transformed her, accentuating every curve and hiding any perceived flaws. She looked stunning, even with red-rimmed eyes and unruly hair. The sequins rippled like moonlight on water when she walked. The high slit in back wasn’t just to give the dress added sex appeal—it was so formfitting that without it Cora would have been forced to take baby steps. Even she couldn’t deny that she looked amazing in it.
She walked out to the main room. “Guys? What do you think?”
Darnell turned around and screamed.
“Is that good?” Cora laughed.
“Yes. That’s good.”
Maggie stood a few steps away with her hand over her mouth. “Holy shit, I forgot that you have abody! Look at your glorious tits! How are they so goddamned perky in a strapless dress?”
“Yeah, I’m not going to argue with you. I look pretty awesome in this. And you know I never say that.” She spun around slowly so they could take her in.
“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you say that you look good in anything! Cora, you look perfect.”
Darnell appraised the dress from a distance, like an art critic getting ready to weigh in on a sculpture. “Yes, this one is good,reallygood, but now that I see what you’re workin’ with”—he gestured to her body—“there’s no doubt that the Léger will be even better. Go put that one on.”
Standing in front of the triptych mirror in the middle of the department, Cora shifted her weight from one hip to the other, miming party laughter and turning so that she could see how she looked from the back.
“Yes, your ass looks good, too,” Maggie chastised. “Go change!”
Cora went back to the dressing room, slipped off the dress and peeked at the tag. $2,995.00, unthinkable. She took the gold Léger dress off the hanger and checked the price before putting it on. $1,990.Better,she thought, even though she rarely spent over $50 on any article of clothing.
The Léger didn’t look promising, reminding Cora of vintage shapewear, with seams that accentuated the bustline and hips. Even tighter than the Karan, this one had the added challenge of Léger’s signature bandage-like horizontal strips laced with spandex. Cora eased the shimmering fabric up her body with her back to the mirror. It felt like a good, snug pair of leggings. She pulled the thin straps onto her shoulders, smoothed the twin vertical seams down the front of the dress, and turned to look at herself.
Holy shit. Her jaw dropped.
Darnell had been right, the Léger was better in every way. While the black dress flattered her, the shimmering gold of the Léger made her skin look incandescent. The bandages managed to both slim her and accentuate her curves at the same time. The subtle mermaid swoop at the bottom of the gown gave the skintight gown a modicum of class. She felt like a goddess.
Cora walked out to the sales floor and posed seductively with her hand resting on a jutted-out hip. “How ya like me now?” she drawled.
Maggie whooped like a cowboy. “Holy shit! Holyshit! You must own that dress and wear it every day! I didn’t think the Karan could be toppedbut look at you in Léger!” She turned to Darnell to get his opinion and stopped. “Oh my God, Darnell, are youcrying?”
“A little.” He sniffled dramatically. “She looks so perfect in that dress, and I’m crying because I knew she would.” He pounded the desk. “I was born to do this.”
Cora laughed. “You were! You’re a dress savant. Now can we get back to me and how good I look?”
