Page 60 of Once Bitten

“Oh! What is it?” I asked the operator.

“I do not know, Ms Sinclair, but he did say that if you asked to tell you to stop asking.”

“Oh.” I laughed, he knew me too well. “Thank you.”

“Bon soir, Mademoiselle Sinclair.”

I yawned as I walked to the bathroom, drawing a bath instead of getting in shower. I rarely ever took baths in my tiny Manhattan bathroom, but since being in these giant luxurious European bathrooms the last week, I’d developed a love of them again.

I sank my body into the half filled tub and lathered up my hair and body as the water continued to cascade from the tap, wondering what Finn could possibly have planned for the evening.

He hadn’t dropped any hints, but the combination of bottomless finances and his natural creativity, I knew it was something I wouldn’t have been able to guess.

Relaxing in the warm tub, I lost track of time as I heard a knock on the door.

“Coming! I’m in the bathroom, I’m sorry, but I’m coming!” I stepped out of the tub and wrapped a robe around me, not bothering to dry myself.

“So sorry, “I apologized again as I opened the door. Standing there was a group of three woman, each holding a toolbox and one with a garment bag.

“Bon soir, Mademoiselle Sinclair, Monsieur O’Reilly sent us. We are your surprise!”

I was speechless as I stood to the side, as they came in, setting up stations around the room with their equipment.

“Mademoiselle Si-.”

“Oh dear, please call me Kara.”

“Ah, bon, Kara, my name is Frankie, I’m going to do your make up for this evening, would you like to come sit down here on the sofa?”

She led me to the seat and fussed with a headband tying back my wet hair.

“You have such beautiful natural features, we should just highlight them, no?”

I was still trying to process all this, Finn had really gone all out.

“Kara, hello. My name is Jemima, and I will be doing your hair, do you know how you want to style it for the evening?” The tall brunette asked.

“Oh, um, well, I don’t know what I’m going to be wearing so...maybe just something simple to make it safe?”

“Parfait. We will wait for Frankie to finish and then it will be my turn, is that ok?”

“Thank you. So much.” It was all slightly surreal, I felt like an actress going to her first Oscars.

An hour later, looking in the mirror, I was a different person. The women had worked magic in such a short amount time. I stared at my reflection, it was me, just a better version of me.

Frankie had brought out the grey in my eyes with her shadow work, and insisted I try a pinker shade of nude than I would normally have thought I couldn’t pull off. And my hair, my usual tight bun or messy ponytail had been molded into a soft cascade of curls falling from a high ponytail and down to caress my shoulders. I’d never felt so beautiful in my life.

“Are you ready to put on the dress now, Kara?” Winnie, the third woman asked. I was almost too nervous to say yes.

I followed her to the bedroom and put on my underwear as she prepared the dress. Pulling it from the garment bag, she shook it to its full length and then turned to hand it to me.

“Oh my god.” I couldn’t believe my eyes.

“Yes, it is beautiful, isn’t it?”

“No. You don’t...you don’t understand.” I could hardly understand it myself. “It’s, it’s the same dress.”

I took the handle from her, and fiddled with the zipper, searching for the tag. It wasn’t there, just the jagged seam left where I’d cut it from the side because it was scratching me.