I held the phone away from my ear as Lance screamed and blathered on for about a full five minutes, before finally attempting to put a stop to it.
“I need your help!” I practically screamed over his hysterical excitement.
He took deep, slow breaths over the phone. Must be something he learned in Performance Arts 101.
“Anything,” he finally squeaked. “Anything at all!”
I shook my head, sighed, said a little prayer that I wouldn’t live to regret this and end up looking like Zsa Zsa Gabor…or something far worse, and said, “I need you to help me decide what to wear.”
There.
No going back now.
Again, he squealed, although this time it was much more contained. “Oh, yes! Shopping! I’ll call Felix, and we’ll pick you up tomorrow morning at eight sharp!”
“Hey, whoa there, Cowboy,” I protested. “I was hoping you would help me find something from my closet. I can’t afford to spend money on something new.” I was on a pretty tight budget and I didn’t like to spend money on clothing for myself. Just the necessary work clothes were about it for me. I didn’t do extravagant.
My mother was the wealthy one. I really don’t think she realized husband number three had more money than God, but where my mom was concerned, it was anyone’s guess.
Either way, she was living the life now, and I wanted nothing at all to do with it.
“Are you kidding me?” He gasped, sounding completely appalled. “Honey, you can’t afford not to buy something new. You are having dinner with Jack Freaking Dupree!”
He did have a point there.
My closet consisted of two types of clothing: work attire and play attire – which basically meant t-shirts and yoga pants. Yes! I put my ample ass in yoga pants. Except for the rare occasions I went out to a movie or something. Then, I had a few pairs of beat up, worn jeans I just couldn’t bring myself to part with. They were like old friends, and the one pair actually made my butt look pretty darn good.
Sighing heavily, I had to admit Lance had a point.
I didn’t want to wear a professional suit and have Jack feel like he was dining with his accountant.
And I refused to show up in Yoga pants and a Books are my Boyfriends T-shirt.
“Okay,” I replied, “You’re right. Eight o’clock it is. Bring coffee.”
“A double mocha latte it is.” He laughed. His excitement literally oozing out of him and through the phone.
I wondered just how long he had wanted to get his claws into me. “Lance?”
“Yes, Love?”
“Promise me one thing,” I begged.
“Anything…”
“Promise me you won’t make me look like someone from your act.”
With that, he burst out laughing, ending his tirade with a resounding snort. “Baby-girl,” he choked out, “Whether you want to believe it or not, you don’t need that much work. You are absolutely beautiful! You just need to see it. I mean…obviously Jack Freaking Dupree does.”
I had to chuckle at what was fast becoming Lance’s new name for the man.
I was one lucky girl to be so blessed with such awesome friends.
“Okay, tomorrow at eight. Love you, Lance.” My throat was a bit constricted with emotion.
“I love you too,” he replied evenly, “Even if you are a breeder!”
I burst into a fit of full-fledged giggles and said goodbye.
I knew he would be burning up the phone line with Felix within the next sixty seconds as the two of them plotted and planned my makeover.
Fingers crossed!
Chapter Two
The pounding a t the door woke me the next morning from a rather nice dream. I turned over and glanced at my bedside clock.
Seven-fifteen!
Seriously?
I grumbled a slew of obscenities as I threw back the covers and slipped from my nice, warm, cozy bed.
Heads were going to roll!
I could hear the giggling of my two best friends as I approached the door.
Oh, Lord! This was so not going to be good!
I threw back the lock and opened the door.
“It’s not eight o’clock!” I barked out, trying my very best to look pissed. But, I couldn’t help but grin as the scent of Mocha Latte filled my apartment and I looked at their happy faces.
They were just too cute!
Both were practically bursting with excitement, and it made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.
“We know,” Lance replied as he walked through the door and shoved a steaming cup into my hand.
Coffee! The substance of life!
Felix followed close behind, a box of pastries in her well-manicured fingers. “I’ve brought croissants.” She giggled as she made her way over to the kitchen island. She pulled out a stool and plopped down. “I could barely sleep last night,” she informed me with a grin. “I am so excited for you!”
I took a sip of my Latte, and groaned as its hot, chocolaty goodness slipped down my throat.
Heaven.
I would honestly love to kiss the person who invented this delightful drink of decadence!
“Oh, my God!” Felix squealed when she noticed the large vase of flowers sitting on one of my living room tables. “Tell me he sent you those?” She gasped, and I nodded. “Hot damn! ” She exclaimed with a wide smile.
Lance looked me over for a second. “Okay, Sweets, get your ass in gear. Go shower, but no makeup.” He scrunched his nose up a bit, “And just do that pony-tail thing with your hair,” he advised with a flick of his hand, referring to my usual weekend “styling” .
“Huh?” I grunted, more interested in downing my coffee than rushing off to shower.
Lance rolled his eyes and Felix snorted from over at the bar.
She tried to cover it up with a cough, but I knew the truth. She was enjoying every blasted moment of this!
“You have hair and makeup at two,” Lance explained, and I about spit out my Latte all over his shirt.
Hair and makeup?
What the hell ?
Oh, Lord! Zsa Zsa here I come!
“Nope…no way,” I protested, hoping to nip this in the bud. I had no plans at all of having “Hollywood” magic performed on me. Nope. Not this girl! If Mr. Dreamy didn’t like my hair, or the amount of makeup I normally wore – well, too damn bad. I was who I was, and I was not about to change that for nothing or no one !
Lance picked up on my uneasiness and walked over to where I stood, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder and giving it a squeeze.
“Listen, Lace,” he whispered, his eyes locking with mine, “I promise we aren’t going to go all La-La Glam on you. It’s just a trim and some light makeup. You deserve to be pampered a little bit.”
“Are you sure?” I asked, my voice cracking slightly.
I’ve always had a real problem with people trying to change who I am. My entire life, my mother tried to get me to do just that, so it was always a huge warning bell to me that just sent my nerves into a tizzy whenever someone started talking about making this and dressing that.
I just wanted to be who I was.
I wanted to be loved and accepted for me and not for my clothes…or the way I looked. This was one of the single most important things in my life, and something I just wouldn’t budge on.
I might not be the most confident person on the planet, but I damn well had my principals!
“All right,” I sighed finally in defeat. Taking a giant leap of faith and deciding that I would put myself wholly into their capable hands, I agreed to their day of primping.
Silently praying that I wouldn’t live to regret it…
I took another sip of my Latte and dashed off to shower.
“Oh…my God! ” Felix gushed, “That’s it! That is the one!”
I looked at myself in the dressing room mirror and tried not to get overly excited. I was wearing a black, halter style sundress that for some unknown reason was extremely fla
ttering on me. The filmy material hugged my curves in a way that didn’t make me look like an Oompa Loompa.
It was dressy, but not too dressy. And, I had to admit: it made me look damn good!
“I wanna see!” Lance whined from the other side of the door and Felix and I grinned. I spun around for good measure before throwing open the door and stepping out.
“Holy crap …” Lance blurted, his eyes huge. “Lacy, that dress is spectacular!”
“You like?” I asked, as I did my best imitation of a model during New York Fashion week.
Lance plopped down in a nearby chair, his face a mask of wonder. “I love !” He breathed. “Good God, Lacy, you’ve been hiding all that this whole time?”
I felt my cheeks heat as I looked down at myself. All what?
Felicity dashed from the dressing room and rushed past us. “I saw just the shoes!” She informed us as she disappeared. She was back not five minutes later with a pair of silver, strappy sandals clutched in her hands in what had seemed to be a death grip – which led me to believe they were probably the last pair in my size. “Here!” She proclaimed proudly, thrusting the sandals at me.
I was extremely thankful the heels were only about three inches. I was so not going to wear stripper shoes! That just spelled disaster.
I slipped the shoes on and stood back, letting my friends get a good look. “Well?” I asked when I was greeted by silence.
“There are no words,” Felix whispered, and I swear, her eyes were sparkling with tears.
“Ditto,” Lance choked out.
Geez! Those two are quite a pair.
I checked the price tag and just about had a coronary.
No wonder I looked pretty darn good in the dress. It had to have possessed magical powers to justify that price tag!
Lance and Felicity picked up on my surprise and shuffled me back into the dressing room.
“Come on, hurry up and take that off so we can get you to your hair appointment,” Lance instructed, shooing us into the room and closing the door behind us.
I looked to Felix, feeling utter disappointment that I was going to have to start all over at square one and slipped out of the dress. Before I could even voice any objections, she opened the door to the dressing room and handed the dress off to Lance who dashed away without a word.
“What are you doing?” I squeaked in surprise.
“Us?” She questioned innocently. “Why… nothing.”
“Felix…” I warned, but she just shrugged and picked up the sandals I stepped out of.
“Come on, get a move on. We have hair and makeup to get to, and you need to pay for these shoes.”
“But…”
“Get dressed.”
I did as commanded, all the while fighting back the lump forming in my throat. We left the dressing room to find Lance standing there, dress bag in hand and a sly smile cutting across his mouth.
“You guys…” I didn’t know if I wanted to cry or throw myself at the both of them...so, I settled for both.
“Consider it an early Birthday present,” Lance explained with a smile and Felix nodded happily beside him.
I was blessed with fabulous friends.
The rest o f the day flew by in a flurry of hair, makeup, and getting me back home in time to dress.
I will admit… the finished product wasn’t half bad.
As promised, my hair had just been trimmed up a bit, which helped immensely with its wicked, wild ways. The stylist had added some soft layers and it seemed to frame my face better. The makeup was light and applied to perfection.
In fact, it almost looked as if I wasn’t wearing any at all - that I just looked this way naturally. And, as much as I hated to admit it, I looked pretty darn good.
My two Fairy God-mothers stood by the door, getting ready to leave. I still had about an hour before Mr. Sex-On-A-Stick arrived and I was beginning to feel the nerves starting to kick in with a mighty punch to my gut.
“What in the Hell am I thinking?” I gasped, feeling my stomach drop to my knees. “I am way, way out of my league here, guys.”
It was Felix who took a step towards me, her beautiful golden hair pulled back into a messy bun and her blue eyes sparkling with emotion.
She was the one who should be going out to dinner with Jack Dupree.
Not me!
She was funny, and smart and beautiful.
I…I was just plain old me.
“You are not out of your league, Lace.” She scolded me in that tone only a friend could pull off. “You look amazing. And, you are going to knock Mr. Jack Dupree right out of his socks!”
“Hell yes, you are!” Lance chimed in and I couldn’t help but laugh.
They had faith in me.
I could do this.
And, really, what was the worst that could happen? He’d never want to see me again after tonight? That this was just a pity date?
Well, whatever may come of it, I was ready.
I kissed and hugged them tightly before they dashed off. Lance needed to get ready for his performance and Felix needed to meet the guy she had been dating on and off for the past few months.
I closed the door behind them and leaned against it, telling myself that I wouldn’t get sick!
Chapter Three
At precisely si x that evening, there was a gentle knock at the door.
I stood up from the sofa and tried desperately to steady my nerves, but the shaking of my knees proved that my body was definitely not listening to what my brain was telling it to do.
I took a deep breath and walked to the door, silently chanting the mantra – it’s just a date! It’s just a date!
I pulled open the door to find him standing there in all his gorgeous glory.
So, I hadn’t dreamed up this whole fiasco after all , I thought with a small sigh.
Okay, I’ll admit it.
A small part of me feared that my crazy ass mind had snapped and imagined this whole damn scenario, and that I had really agreed to go out with some pimply-faced delivery boy or something to that effect.
But, no…there he stood.
His perfect teeth gleaming from beneath that smile and his unbelievable body filling out a nice pair of jeans and V-neck shirt in a way that should be illegal in all fifty states.
The terms Yowza , Holy Crap and Liquid Sex came to mind, but thankfully, I was much too nervous to blurt any of them out.
Jack Freaking Dupree.
“You look absolutely stunning,” He breathed, his eyes scanning me from head to toe and I must admit… it was kind of nice to have him do it quickly and not focus on my somewhat ample bosom.
Thank the Lord for small favors.
“Thank you,” I rasped, “would you like to come in?”
“Actually, we have a reservation for six-thirty and I—”
“…hate being late.” I finished for him and was grateful when he laughed.
Geez! The last thing I needed was for him to think I was some pushy, stalker bitch who clung to his every word he said and memorized them all by heart.
“It’s nice to see that you remember. Ready?”
When I nodded, he took my elbow and led me towards the elevators.
And good grief, but it felt damn good!
I was throw n for a loop when he led me over to a beat up old pickup truck and opened the door for me.
My mouth dropped open in delight. I loved trucks! And this baby was an absolute classic.
Damn! I would have bet my last dollar the man would have been driving a Mercedes, or Maserati, or some God-awful status quo type of vehicle. But, no! He surprised me yet again with his vintage beauty.
“I hope you don’t mind,” he said as he helped me up into the cab, “but, this was one of the very first trucks I ever owned, and I just can’t seem to give her up.” He closed the door before he sprinted around the front and jumped in beside me.
Good God! Could the man be any more perfect?
“I sink money into
her left and right,” he explained with a grin. “But, I’ve kept her runnin’. I really hope you don’t mind.”
I erupted with laughter. I just couldn’t seem to help myself.
“Are you kidding me?” I snickered. “I love trucks! And, I have to admit I’ve been worried sick for the past hour that I was going to have to squeeze myself into some little sports car and not pop a vein while doing it!”
Oh, crap …did I just say that out loud ?
Jack looked over at me and smiled.
It was another one of those “remember all your life” moments that I immediately stashed away inside of my mental vault.
He looked like a content and happy little boy who had just gotten his first bicycle, and all because I said I liked his truck.
He started the engine and pulled out of the lot, the smile not fading from his lips one bit. “I hope you like seafood,” he said.
I nodded, trying desperately not to twist my hands in my lap. “I love it.”
“Fantastic, because I know this amazin’ little seaside restaurant that has the best gumbo I’ve had since I’ve been out here.”
Damn! I loved how his drawl came out when he was excited.
I kept stealing glances as we drove along, admiring the view of the ocean and of the man candy sitting beside me. We talked and laughed easily, and by the time we arrived at the restaurant twenty or so minutes later, I was completely comfortable with him.
It was as if I had known him forever and that realization was a bit daunting.
I could really be setting myself up for a fall if I started liking him too much.
He took my hand as we walked up the steps of the eatery, intertwining our fingers, and I swear I felt my heart skip a beat.
Maybe even two!
We were led out onto a beautiful deck overlooking the ocean. Tiny white lights twinkled and glowed all around us as candles flickered, giving the patio a kind of magical fairyland vibe to it.
He pulled out my chair and took the seat beside me. Close, but not too close.
His knee grazed mine and I could feel the heat rushing across my skin.
Sinfully Delicious: Six Scintillating Stories of Sweets, Treats, and Happily Ever Afters Page 12
