Chapter 4
Chase wandered around the department store for fifteen minutes, feeling worse the more time he wasted staring at the headless mannequins in Bermuda shorts and tropical button-down tops. But he couldn’t go home empty-handed. Beth had offered her time and money to him, and he didn’t want to disappoint her. He didn’t want her kind gesture to go unappreciated. What would have been better was if she’d been able to come along. He considered going home and packing everyone into his car and bringing them back here. Tyler would act like a monkey in a zoo, but at least Chase would get a second opinion.
Yes, that’s what he would do. Then he wouldn’t feel as rushed.
He turned around and had almost reached the glass front doors when he froze. Ashley was coming inside. She smiled when she spotted him.
“Hi, Chase. Funny seeing you here.”
“Yeah, funny.”
Now that he was aware how awful his clothes looked, it was almost like having one of those naked dreams, where everyone was pointing and laughing, and no matter what he did, he couldn’t find anything but a paper towel to cover himself with. The feeling was stronger here outside the office since they’d always been just coworker friends.
“You didn’t find anything you liked?” she asked.
He opened the door for two older ladies coming inside as a new idea occurred to him. “Um, Ashley, would you mind helping me?”
“Sure.”
Ashley loved to help people. And he loved … her. It was a win-win. He’d be happy to wear anything she liked, so why not let her pick it out?
“What are you looking for?” she asked.
“Casual clothes for work.”
She nodded, taking him in from head to toe. “What’s your budget? Be honest.”
He had sixty bucks from Beth, but considering how much he suddenly wanted to burn everything in his wardrobe, he could afford more than that. “Two hundred.”
“Okay, we have our work cut out for us. Let’s move.”
She passed the registers and began weaving through the racks. He had to jog to catch up. “What about you? Didn’t you come in here for something?”
She shrugged. “This is more important. I can find shoes later.”
***
Chase’s girlfriend should be taking care of things like this, but perhaps she was as fashion-challenged as Chase. One thing was certain, all the cash back rewards Ashley had saved up would be put to good use today, along with a twenty-five percent off paper coupon from the mailer. That two hundred dollars would squeak when she was done with it.
“What’s your pant size?”
“Thirty-four, thirty-six.”
Ashley started checking tags on the clearance rack and came up with two pairs in his size. She held them up against him, making sure they wouldn’t be slightly high-water like most of his current slacks were. Nope, these looked perfect.
“Aren’t these green?” he asked, taking them from her.
“Olive. Just trust me. Go try them on.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He gave her a salute and headed into the dressing room. While he changed, she found four shirts for him to try on, plus a nice belt to replace his worn out one.
“What do you think?” he asked, coming back out. He looked so hesitant. He had no idea how a well-fitting pair of pants transformed him from unnoticeable to … well, noticeable. Seriously, his girlfriend should be the one checking to see how his backside looked in pants. She shoved the shirts at him, not meeting his eyes. “Okay, try on the other pair and match it with one of these shirts.”
Now, where were the discount ties? She flipped through a rack and found a few that weren’t too bad. Her phone buzzed in her purse, and she checked it, reading a text from her sister, Paige.
Coming to Zumba tonight?
Shoot. She’d forgotten about that, even though Lina had reminded her this morning and made her promise to come. Ashley hated Zumba, but she had to admit, with Paige and Lina there, it almost made exercise bearable. Almost.
