“Jump his bones?”
A buzzer sounds and Lindsey hands me the black dress. “That’s probably my sexy beast. Here, try this one on first, be back in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.” Then she skips off toward the front.
“Her sexy beast?”
“She means her husband.”
“Oh.”
“He’s on his lunch break. We probably won’t see her for another half hour,” she says, shaking her head.
“What does she mean by ‘jump his bones’ and ‘robbing the cradle?’”
“One thing you need to know about my sister is the girl is constantly thinking and talking about sex. She’s almost as bad as a man sometimes.”
April leads me to a large dressing room, hanging up the dresses Lindsey picked out on the hook and the other garments on the turquoise antique chair in the corner that has a flamingo sipping a cup of tea on the throw pillow.
I proceed to try them all on with April’s help. Lindsey also rounded up shorts, skirts, jeans, socks, shoes, and undergarments. Most everything fits perfectly, flattering my figure.
When I lived with my father, I wasn’t allowed to wear revealing or tight fitting clothing and never had the desire to, not wanting to provoke my father’s men or their lustful gazes, but I must admit that for the first time in my life, I feel like a woman and not a little girl.
I adore everything I tried on but the black dress is my absolute favorite, and though I have no idea where I would wear something so beautiful, it doesn’t stop me from wondering what Justin might think of it.
Will he find me beautiful or, dare I say, sexy?
Lindsey returns about half an hour later, just as April predicted. Hair all mussed and swollen lips. She tosses us a smile before disappearing into the small bathroom.
Once April has the zipper of the last dress in place, I take in my reflection in the mirror. I hardly recognize myself. My hair hangs in loose locks around my shoulders and my face has a glow to it. A smile tickles my lips.
“I love that one. Aside from the black, it’s my fave. Though, you could pull off anything with that shape of yours and that color looks so good on your dark skin,” April says from behind me.
The floral maxi has a simple rose pattern of soft pastels and shows off a lot of leg when I move.
Lindsey ducks out from the bathroom door sporting fresh makeup and lipstick. She holds up a cosmetic bag. “Your turn.”
For the remaining time, Lindsey fusses with my hair and adds some subtle color to my eyelids and two coats of mascara, making them pop more. I remember my mother wearing makeup. She didn’t very often. She was naturally beautiful but I remember when she did, I thought she always looked like a princess.
“Here, you can keep this.” Lindsey hands me a small makeup bag. “It’s the essentials. You don’t need foundation because your skin is gorgeous but I hooked you up with some eye color, liner, mascara, and lip stain. Oh, and some makeup wipes.”
“I can’t accept this. It’s too much.”
“Nonsense. It’s a gift. Besides, I sell the stuff so I get it for dirt cheap.”
“I don’t know what to say. Thank you. Both of you. You’ve been so kind to me.”
“That’s what friends are for.”
Friends.
Something else I’ve never had.
Warmth invades my chest as I lean in and give her a hug.
The bell rings and Lindsey releases me. “I bet that’s Justin,” she says, rushing through the curtain.
My tummy flutters with nervousness. I hear the deep rumble of his laugh as he makes his way through the curtain, but as soon as his eyes land on me, his smile fades.
“Son of a…”
