“So, what will you do now that you’ve decided to settle in Vegas?” Dana asks, popping open the lid of the box and offering me what looks like little round balls of chocolate. I frown and hesitate before taking one, but I don’t want to seem rude.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Arianna. Truffles … they are Belgian truffles.” She laughs. “Every girl needs truffles with coffee, especially after a trauma.” She winks and places the box on the table, taking a truffle and popping the whole thing in her mouth. I’ve never eaten truffles. They’ve never really appealed to me, but I feel like I would be rude not to try them. I take one and pop it in my mouth whole, just as Dana did. It starts to melt on my tongue immediately and the smooth rich chocolate flavor fills my mouth making me groan in appreciation.
“They’re good, huh?” she asks with amusement. “I discovered this little place just outside of town that makes them; it’s the best kept secret around. I don’t eat them often but I thought today would be as good a time as any. They taste like little drops of heaven, and as much as a girl needs to keep her shape, I figured it’s worth it for these little beauties.” She takes one more and pops it in her mouth, the mere act, making her smile. When she’sfinished enjoying her truffle, she turns her attention back to me. “So, where were we? Oh yes…so what will you do now that you’re settling in Vegas?”
“I came here not knowing what was going to happen, and the last week has been a whirlwind. So much has happened and I’m still trying to make sense of it all, really. I at least know that I have somewhere to live and I have a job…well, I think I still have a job…”
“Where do you have a job?”
“Denham introduced me to a lovely lady called Beth—”
“Beth, at Chique?”
“Yes, you know her?”
“Do I know her?” She laughs, “Everyone knows Beth, she’s one of Las Vegas’s treasures.”
“Oh,” I say, not knowing why I am surprised. It actually doesn’t surprise me at all that Beth is well liked around here. She’s another person that says how she feels and calls you out on your shit. Maybe there’s something in the Vegas water.
“Beth gave you a job?” she questions.
“Yes, she offered me a position as assistant buyer. That was before I let her down and didn’t show when I promised I would, and now she probably thinks I’m unreliable and will reconsider her offer,” I blurt.
Dana laughs, and when she does I notice she has the same dimple that Denham does.
“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Arianna.” She pats my hand reassuringly. “Just give her a call, she’ll understand. She’s not unreasonable, you know.”
“No, I know that. I don’t know why I worry about these things,” I muse, more to myself than her. I suppose after years of having to double check everything I said or did, just in case it started an argument or instigated a beating, will make you insecure.
“It’s because it’s all you’ve ever known.”
I smile shyly and shrug my shoulders, looking anywhere but at her.
She touches my jaw gently, turning my head to look at her. “Hey, it’ll take time, Arianna. Everything takes time. Just go with it and stop looking for the bad in everything,” she says softly, giving me a reassuring smile that I mirror instantly. It’s impossible not to, she has the same easy way about her as Denham has, which makes me feel at ease. “So,” she says, “for Beth to give you a job must mean you’re pretty knowledgeable. What is it you’re trained in? What work have you done previously?”
Again, I feel myself shrink inwards. Self-esteem is where I struggle. How do I tell her I have little experience in the retail sector, and no experience whatsoever in a buyer’s position. I’ve never had any formal training in anything and for the past eighteen months, I’ve been a kept woman, even if I hated it.
“Arianna?” she questions. “It wasn’t a trick question, dear. I’m merely curious. It wouldn’t be a problem to me if you said you only had experience flipping burgers at the golden arches. If Beth thinks you’re good enough, then that’s fine with me.”
I let out the breath I was holding and relax. “Thanks, Dana. I’ve never had any formal training. I just love fashion. I love everything about the design and the fabrics. It’s all I ever wanted to do.”
“Well, you seem very passionate about it. And, you’ll love working with Beth, she really is the best. She’ll take you places, be sure of that.”
“I’m really looking forward to getting started.”
“When are you due to start?”
“I’m not sure now,” I say. “I should call her and find out, I was supposed to meet her, but…well, you know.”
“I bet you’re excited! And you won’t have to worry about what to wear, as it’ll all be at your fingertips. God, what I’d do for a staff discount at Chique…”
“I’ll see what I can do for you.”
“Now you’re talking, my girl. See, we are going to get along just fine,” she says, popping another truffle into her mouth with a grin.
I follow suit, and help myself to one more of the delicious little balls. They are heavenly, and coupled with coffee and good company, I smile inwardly. She’s right, I know I must have more belief in myself but when you’ve spent year upon year with it being beaten out of you, it’s hard to find that step up. Although Aaron didn’t continually beat me, I had suppressed my own personality and adopted Natalie Jamesson to play a role. It wasn’t until the end that it all turned bad, but maybe it was never really good in the first place.
“I think it’s great that you know what you’d like to do, Arianna. I never had a clue. I went from job to job, testing out different industries. Once, I had an apprenticeship in a hair salon. It was the most prestigious salon around and I couldn’t wait to get started. I always liked playing around with my friends’ hair and was always experimenting with makeup. After months of doing nothing but making coffee, sweeping the floor and washing hair until my fingers were shriveled, I finally convinced my boss to let me try blow drying a client’s hair.” She looks at me with a raised brow and I’m sure she hasn’t got to the best bit of this story yet. “I felt like I owned the place, stupid naive teenager that I was. They got someone in that was willing to let me practice on, and I sat her in the chair and gowned her up. I really thought I was the bee’s knees, so I started blow-drying, flicking around the round brush that I was using, like I had seen the other stylists doing. They make it look so easy, you know?” I smile, encouraging her to continue. “Well, I waved that brush alright. I waved it intosuch a tangle that we couldn’t get it out. The client went home with a large chunk of hair missing where we had to cut the brush free. And I went home and never went back!”
