* * *
My feet were sore, but Alec was relentless in his determination to find the perfect dress for me to wear to the charity ball. I had found a pale blue long-sleeved dress in the first shop we visited. I tried it on and liked it. Well,likedmay be exaggerating a little...
Although Alec voiced his opinion very loudly... as usual. ‘Bloody hell, Twinkle. I wouldn’t let my granny wear that frock and she’s dead. Go remove it from your delectable curves before I have to use it to mop up my vomit.’
I rolled my eyes like the errant teenager I felt I was becoming. ‘Don’t sugar coat it, Al. Give it to me straight, huh?’ With a huff, I returned to the fitting room. Truth be told, I was still hung up on having my tattoos on show, and all the dresses Alec showed me would expose more than a little bit of skin.
Once I replaced the ‘granny frock’ on its hanger, I skulked back out to Alec, who grasped my hand and pretty much dragged me out of the store and down Princes Street towards a side alley. We were surrounded by pretty boutiques with bay windows displaying items I would have to sell my left kidney to buy. We arrived outside one such shop and Alec stopped. When I lifted my gaze and saw the dresses in the window, a wave of panic almost floored me.
‘There is no way inhellI can eitheraffordanything in that storeorfit into anything in there. Let’s just go get me a dress from a regular store, Al. Please?’
He turned to face me and placed his hands on my shoulders. ‘Twinkle, do you trust me?’
‘Of course I do, but—’
He placed a finger over my lips. ‘Ah dadadadadada. So, you trust me. That much we’ve established. Now for the next question. Well, it’s not really a question... it’s more of a statement.’
‘Alec!’ I mumbled around his finger.
‘Okay.Iam buying this dress. Call it your early Christmas gift. But I will take no protests.Youare my family. And I won’t take no for an answer. Besides, with what your boss pays you, there’s no way you can afford anything but a carrier bag from this boutique.’
I cocked my head to the side. ‘Butyouare the boss who pays me.’
He leaned forward and kissed my head. ‘Yes, and I think you deserve a raise. Now come on.’
He pushed open the door and pulled me along beside him. Suddenly I felt like Julia Roberts’ character inPretty Woman. I was a fish out of water, and there was no doubt about that. The major difference inthisstory, however, was that the owner was wonderful. Very friendly and eager to help.
Between them, Alec and the owner, Cynthia, pulled out four dresses for me to try. They were all absolutely stunning. But I was way out of my depth. I much preferred my shredded jeans and off shoulder T-shirts, while letting my dyed hair fall shaggily round my shoulders.
The final dress I tried was a floor-length, black strapless number with a boned bodice and crystals at the left hip. I had never worn anything like it. Ever. But as soon as Cynthia zipped me into it and turned me round to face the full-length mirror, I almost fainted. She had handed me a pair of black satin stiletto pumps and pulled my hair into a rough ‘up-do’. For the first time in my life, I looked and felt sophisticated. Demure. Classy. Somehow, the dress made my tattoos look even more beautiful, and my eyes began to sting.
Cynthia clasped her hands in front of her face and sighed dreamily. ‘I think we’ve found the dress, Star, my dear.’
I opened and closed my mouth a few times as if gasping for air. ‘I... I... Sheesh, I have no words.’
She smiled at my reflection. ‘Then we havedefinitelyfound the dress. Go show your friend.’ She gestured excitedly at the curtain that led out to the shop floor.
I stepped through the curtain and felt like a movie star as my feet landed on the red carpet of the boutique.
Alec gasped and his eyes widened. ‘Well, slap me silly and call me straight.’ His response made me giggle, and I dabbed at the salt water in the corners of my eyes.
I sniffed. ‘You like it? Do you think Fin will like it, too?’
‘Twinkle, if he doesn’t want to rip that thing off you right away then he really is gay.’
‘Great. But the price tag, Alec. It’s... I can’t let you—’
He made a clamping gesture with his hand. ‘Shhht. What did I say to you? I’m not taking no for an answer.’ Cynthia came out and stood beside me with a wide smile on her sweet face. ‘Cinderella, you shall go to the ball. Cynth, we’ll take the shoes and a little black clutch too.’
‘Alec—’ My attempt at a protest was met with an infamousAlec scowl. It was the warning expression that came just before he blew up and so I backed down and vowed to pay him back somehow. Someday.
39
Star
Why is it that things we look forward to take an age to arrive, yet the things we’re dreading or scared about seem to be here in the blink of an eye? In the previous days and weeks, I felt myself hurtling towards the night of the ball like a runaway train. Wishing I had some kind of time machine or at least a method to slow things down a little. But sadly, my wishes were all in vain and so there I was, all too soon, standing outside the doors to the charity ball venue. My heart tried desperately to vacate my body, and I fought to calm my breathing. This washuge. This was Fin and I at our first official function as a couple. It was all a little too soon, and I was terrified of making a fool of myself.
His parents might be there.Oh, shit.His colleagues, too. Alasdair had tried hard to reassure me in that soothing way he had about him that Fin and I belonged together, and that no amount of being looked down upon, by people who should know better, could spoil that fact.
