“You bought a costume?” I asked him incredulously.
“It’s yours.”
“You ordered me a costume?”
“Jasmine helped,” Parker admitted as the sales associate and her coworker displayed a fancy gown.
“We modified a dress pattern to make it look period appropriate.”
The dress was early Victorian style with a narrow waist and a full skirt and a train. Champagne-colored with green accents, the dress had a nice weight. It was more well made than a costume would be.
“Later,” the associate said, “if you all go to another fancy function, it’s easy to modify it to make it look more contemporary.”
“Are you going to try it on?” Parker asked, grinning.
In the dressing room, the associate helped me slip into the dress and lace it up.
“Can you take a picture? I need to show my friend,” I said, holding out my phone.
Sadie:So Parker got me this dress…
Jasmine:Squee! You look amazeballs!
Sadie:I can’t believe he planned that.
Jasmine:Planned? Barely. He asked me for my help not even two weeks ago. Barely enough time to get a dress together.
Jasmine:I got you another little surprise. Enjoy!
I walked out into the boutique, skirts swishing around my legs.
“I didn’t think the Victorians did necklines quite that low,” Parker said. His voice sounded a little strained.
I looked down. The corset definitely filled up my coffee cups. “I don’t think they were supposed to be quite this low, but they also probably didn’t have access to donut Danishes and mocha caramel lattes with extra whipped cream,” I quipped.
“We do have a fur stole to cover those bare shoulders up,” another associate said. “It’s chilly.”
“This dress is so heavy I don’t think I’ll be cold.”
“The dress is a little long, so you’ll want to wear a pair of these,” the associate said, bringing out several pairs of high heels.
“Ooh, shiny!” I admired the calf-high boots. They had a low heel and laced up.
“What do you think, Parker?”
He shrugged and took a sip of his water.
“They’d go really nicely with that BDSM outfit I have in the closet, don’t you think?” I added with a wink.
Parker inhaled the water and started coughing as the sales associates tittered.
“I guess I’ll go change,” I said. I hoped the dress wasn’t too much.
“You’re forgetting your most important accessory!”
“Like a hat?” I asked, confused.
“Like a man.”
