I’m already trying to struggle into the first pair of shoes, a strappy pair of heeled sandals, when Denise sits on the bench beside me.
“I can imagine you’ve had quite the shoe collection ever since you worked there.” I grunt, while I pull off the strappy sandal. Too hard to get on. It’s definitely not the pair for me. “How big is your shoe closet?”
Denise laughs. “Since we moved out to the lake house Gran gave us when we got married, Ryder has given me an entire room to house my shoes. He had a closet designer come in and build floor to ceiling shelves with a library style ladder I can climb to get to the shoes at the top. It’s pretty impressive.”
My jaw drops, and I look at her. “Seriously?”
“No, not seriously.” She laughs. “I wish I had a room like that. But we did have special shelving put in the walk-in closet in the master suite. It’s not quite enough room, but it does the job I need it to. For now.” She winks.
“Don’t let her fool you,” Becca yells from in front of a wall of platform boots. “Her walk-in closet is bigger than my whole two-bedroom apartment. She just has way too many pairs of shoes.”
“You never mind,” Denise says to Becca. “There’s no such thing as too many pairs of shoes. Right Rhea?”
“Uh, yeah, sure,” I mumble, nervous at having been put on the spot.
I focus my attention on the next pair of shoes, a strappy bootie with a peep toe, and a high heel. I actually like these. They have a zipper on the back and the many buckled straps are thick and cross over each other so much that they’re more like a solid boot than a sandal. I like them so much that I’m not going to bother trying on any more.
“These are the ones,” I say, walking around the shop and looking at myself in the various mirrors they have placed around the space. “They’re cute, I can walk in them, and they’re just a little edgy. I might even wear these again someday.”
“Yes!” Becca yells. “I win. Pay up ladies.” She holds her hand out and the other women walk over and start placing five-dollar bills in her hand. “I knew you would pick those,” she explains to me. “We all bet five dollars on our picks and I won. So thanks for helping me buy these boots.” She points to a pair of black lace-up boots with a high platform. Becca has dark hair with short bangs and tons of tattoos and those boots match her vibe perfectly.
“Happy to help,” I say with a laugh. “What’s next on the agenda, ladies?” I’m having a good time with these women and with hours to go still before my date that’s not a date. I wouldn’t mind spending more time with them.
“We’ve got to head back to Peaceful Pines,” Gladys says. “It’s one of the other women’s birthdays, and I’ve ordered a few young strippers to entertain us after bingo. I want to be there before those boys get down to their banana hammocks so I can see if they’re really packing.”
“Gladys is obsessed with finding out men’s dick sizes,” Denise says to me. “She was very concerned with Ryder’s dick before we got married and hasn’t quite gotten over the fact that she’s never seen his penis, and now she never will.”
“Oh yeah, she mentioned that when Aiden and I were at breakfast the other day. Something about not wanting to give up her dick quest like she had to with Ryder. “
“Never mind that, dear,” Gran says to me. “Lock that boy down as soon as you can. Gladys needs to learn that she can’t see any dick she pleases. Certainly not those of handsome young men who are practically related to me. She can get her jollies from somewhere else.”
“Oh poop,” Gladys pouts. “You’re no fun. I’ll wait in the car. Come on Lana.”
“Bye dear,” Lana says, leaving the shop. “Good luck on your date.”
Gran waves and walks out of the shop to join the other two, giving me a little wink before she’s out the door.
This is shaping up to be the weirdest day ever.
“So,” Ivy says, with her face buried in her phone. “We’re booked for mani-pedis and massages in an hour and a half.”
“Great,” Alex says, rubbing her baby belly. “I’m starving. Let’s get lunch before we go.”
We agree to all meet at Maggie’s after Denise insists her baby needs a milkshake and only Maggie’s will do.
The rest of the women go on ahead while Becca and I hang back to pay for our shoes with a promise to meet them there.
Chapter 32
Aiden - Give Me Shelter
“Ican’t believe you just threw him to the wolves like that,” Winnie says, joining me at the side of the playground to watch Johnny be mobbed by kids.
When they heard I brought someone new for them to terrorize today, the kids jumped straight into action and dragged Johnny out to play. He’s been playing tag, pushing kids on swings, climbing the monkey bars, and singing songs for hours now. I’ve been off to the side hosting story time for any kids who weren’t ready to warm up to a new person just yet.
“He’s doing surprisingly well,” I tell her. “I didn’t know he had it in him, to tell you the truth. I figured he’d have tapped out by now.”
Johnny and Travis come from the most stable family out of all the guys in the band. I guess I never considered that it had to mean they had an extended family involved in their lives as well. They must have cousins or nieces and nephews around a lot for Johnny to be this comfortable around kids. If it weren’t for all his tattoos, and the obvious height difference, you could almost mistake Johnny for one of the kids he’s been playing with this afternoon.
