by Mia Moore
As she rummaged around the cupboards for the rest of the things she’d need, he spoke. “After breakfast, we need to go shopping. You’re going to be here for a while, so you’ll need some new clothes.”
Her hand closed around the handle of a stainless frying pan and she froze in place. What? HE was going to go with her? Oh God, she’d intended to find a thrift store and pick up some slightly used clothes for a good price. God only knew where HE’D want to take her. She wasn’t ready for shopping on Fifth Avenue, with over priced racks and saleswomen who probably looked like fashion models.
She turned and her chin was lowered almost to her chest when she spoke. “But Chris, I don’t—”
“That’s part of our deal. You didn’t read the fine print, dear.” He rose and grinned as he plugged the kettle in again.
“What fine print? There was—”
He wagged his finger in her face and smiled. “True. But I insist on coming with you when you go shopping. You can be the boss in the grocery store, but darling…you’ve GOT to let me pick the clothes. I’m seeing you in a whole new wardrobe focused on indigo—dresses, skirts, blouses. Indulge me, doll. I always wanted a daughter to dress up in frilly, girly clothes.”
At the blanched look of shock on her face, he doubled over laughing. Her mouth opened, once, twice, as she tried to counter. Surely, he couldn’t be serious. Dresses? What for? She only needed a few jeans and shirts to do the housework in?
When he got control of himself, he straightened and patted her shoulder. “Okay. No frills or flounces, but nice clothes that bring out your eyes and flatter your figure.” He turned and called over his shoulder, leaving the room. “I’m having a shower and getting dressed. Give me ten minutes and I’ll be back for breakfast. And don’t forget my tea, sweetie.” The last sentence was almost sing-song.
Brie turned and her hands seemed to move on remote control as she cracked the eggs, diced the onion and stirred them together. Oh my God. She’d need the money he’d said he would pay her if she had to blow a wad on fancy clothes. For the first time, she kind of regretted agreeing to the deal. Things would be simpler if she’d just gone on her own and found a regular job at a grocery store or something.
Chapter 8
When the taxi stopped at the curb and she saw the ‘Bloomingdale’s’ sign, her jaw dropped. Flags above the door fluttered, pushed by gusts of wind that channeled through the tunnel-like streets. Her eyes drifted up, five stories? Then to the sides—a whole city block? Oh my GAWD! Her palms were sweaty and it was hard to catch her breath taking it all in.
Chris slipped a twenty dollar bill through the grill separating the driver from the back seat. He turned to her. “Ready for the shopping experience of your life?”
How could he look so happy? So happy that he looked almost evil considering how scared she was? She gulped and took a deep breath, pulling the door handle. When she stepped out the wind whipped the flaps of her brown overcoat away from her legs. Chris put his hand on his black fedora hat to keep it from flying away as he emerged from the warm interior of the car.
He slipped his gloved hand around her arm and tugged her across the sidewalk to the entrance. He held the door and she stepped into a world as foreign as another planet. An older man, one of many in the dark uniforms, stepped forward to greet her. She glanced away from him at the open area, the escalators travelling up and down, carrying shoppers laden down with bags.
Chris nodded and thanked the Concierge for his offer of help. “Miss Morely and I are here to update her wardrobe.” He plucked a black Amex from his pocket and wiggled it in front of the man’s face. “Would you please arrange for your best sales person to assist us?”
Brie’s eyes couldn’t have gotten any bigger than when she watched Chris speak to the Concierge. A complete wardrobe! And it was obvious that he was going to pay. He’d said he was rich but this was crazy. She watched the older man step away and pick up a phone at the reception desk, smiling as he spoke.
“Chris, no. I just need—”
He leaned in, muttering in her ear, totally ignoring her protest. “The entrance always reminds me of the M.C. Escher ‘Relativity’, stairs going to heaven, it seems.”
“Is that a movie? With that has-been rapper guy?”
Chris laughed. “No… it’s a picture. I’ll show it to you when we get back home if you want.” He waved back to the escalators. “You’ll get what I mean as soon as you see the pic.”
“Sondra Evans will meet you at the top of the escalator. She’s one of our best associates.” The Concierge had appeared like a retail genie, at Chris’s side.
She turned and her fingers were white knuckled clutching his arm. There was no way she could do this. There were so many well dressed people flitting around, all with a sense of purpose and importance. Her senses were bombarded with their chatter, laughter, the bright lights and heat. Too hot, too much, too fast. Was she going to pass out? Her knees turned to rubber.
“Brie? Are you okay?”
Her voice deserted her and she shook her head no.
He stepped in front of her and removed his glove. “Take my hand. You’re all right, dear. Nothing to worry about. We’re every bit as good, with as much right to be here as anyone else.” He took her hand and squeezed it, his eyes wide and serious gazing at her.
His soft tone of voice only helped a little in easing her anxiety. But she was able to take a breath, inhaling slowly.
“Look at the big tiles on the floor. Try counting them as we walk to the escalator. No cheating. I know the number.” His hand was warm and dry, pulling her after him.
One. Two. Three. She gulped and exhaled slowly. Four. Five. Six. Oh my God, the metal grid lines of the escalator skimmed away from the toe of her boot. She looked up into his face and blinked.
“The sales people here are fabulous. They get commission as well as salary. We’ll probably start on the second floor. Ladies wear is on the first three floors and it gets more expensive the higher you go—kind of like the air, rarified.” He chuckled and stepped onto the escalator pulling her after him.
Her mouth went dry, eyes openly gaping at the stores coming into view as the escalator ascended. Chris prattled on, designer names dropping like manna from his lips, that they absolutely HAD to try. Only the odd word was able to penetrate through the fog of her brain. He stepped off the escalator and she stumbled, but caught herself, clutching his hand.
The wide smile and gleaming white teeth in a finely sculpted ebony face was the first thing she noticed about the smartly dress woman stepping towards her.
Her eye shadow was pale, with dark elongated eye liner extending well beyond her orbs. In the dark tailored blazer and skirt the only indication that she was a sales person and not some fashion model was the white name tag on the lapel. “Miss Morely?”
At the slight nod of Brie’s head, the dark goddess extended her manicured hand. “I’m Sondra. And...?” She turned to smile up at Chris.
He held out his hand. “Just Chris will do.”
She looked to be in her mid thirties, and she flashed a smile at him. “Pleased to meet you ‘Just Chris’.” With feline grace, considering the height of her heels, she eased in beside him.
Brie breathed a silent sigh of relief. Thank God, this Sondra woman was experienced and knew who held the credit card! In the navy cashmere coat and silk scarf Chris fit in with the affluent shoppers like a fish in water. Walmart was more her comfort level.
“Sondra, today is your lucky day. I just know you’ll recommend only the most suitable outfits for my niece.”
Brie’s head swerved and her mouth dropped open looking into Chris’s face. He smiled and winked at her before turning back to Sondra. Well, it WAS kind of credible. He had to be in his mid forties while she was only twenty-four. It would have been fun growing up with an uncle like Chris, rather than the one who could actually claim that title—drunk more days than not and a surly drunk at that.
“…a complete make-ove
r. Yes. Starting with…ahem” He cleared his throat and lowered his voice leaning into Sondra, “…FOUNDATIONS.” He patted Sondra’s forearm. “Lots of lace and sexy satin.”
“Absolutely. We’ll start with OnGossamer. They’d got a great selection and there’s some yummy deals today.” Sondra, stepped forward and her eyes wandered up and down Brie’s body. “Hmm…With your fair skin and dark hair color, we’re going with cool colors. Blues and deep mauves. And those eyes…oh my, such vivid blue.”
Brie barely dared to breathe when the sales lady assessed her. Next to the sophisticated woman, with her perfect make-up, full ruby lips and short hair perfectly ruffled over a high perfect forehead, she was oh so aware of her own drab appearance. She thrust her hand into the pocket of her coat and fingered Nana’s feather and glass ornament she had taken when she left home.
Sondra and Chris exchanged a look before she turned and led the way through a line of ghostly mannequins, decked out in every shade imaginable, in bras and panties. Chris gave her hand a squeeze and pulled her along, trailing the smiling saleswoman.
Sondra’s red nails flashed like exotic birds, her hands flying through a rack of lacy satin bras. She turned to Brie and her smile was warm. “What size do you wear? I’m guessing a thirty-six but is it a C or D cup?” Her head dropped to the side. “How silly of me. We need to get you out of that coat or you’ll roast.”
Brie’s hand rose to slip the buttons open and she shrugged out of the heavy woolen coat. Standing there in the turtle neck and jeans, her shoulders slumped. She was about to fold the garment over her arm when Chris plucked it from her.
“Sondra, is there somewhere we can stash our coats?” He loosened the buttons of his coat and slipped out of it.
“Certainly. Let me take them and I’ll be right back.” She took the coats and smiled at Brie. “Please pick out some bras you like. I’ll get you settled in a change room when I return.” With that, her high heels clacked across the marble floor and she disappeared.
Brie looked at the rack of bras and tentatively reached for a blue lacy one with a demi cup. Her eyes widened when she saw the price tag. Oh my God! Sixty five dollars? The most she’d ever paid, and that was for a ‘good one’, was twenty! She turned to Chris and shook her head from side to side.
His eyebrows drew together and he looked at her for a moment. He grabbed the tag and after peering at the price he dismissed it with a wave of his hand. “You need seven. One for every day of the week.”
Her head dropped and she stared up at him with a gaping jaw. Seven? Was he nuts? She’d always been able to manage with three.
“That’s a darling shade of blue.” Sondra appeared and scooped the hanger off the rack. She peered down at Brie’s chest for a few moments, her mouth pulled to the side. “Let’s try a D, shall we?”
Brie shook her head and mumbled. “No, I think a C.” She risked a glance at Chris and her face grew warm seeing his small grin.
“You may be right, but let’s try both sizes.” Sondra flashed a knowing grin and plucked another bra in the matching shade from the rack. With a flourish of her hand, she turned and called over her shoulder. “Come along Miss Morely.”
She stood mutely for a second and felt Chris’s hand prod her shoulder. “Run along, dear.”
A sigh passed her pale lips and she fell into step behind Sondra’s swaying hips. Behind her, Chris let out a soft chuckle.
On the far wall of the lingerie area was a wide archway, where Sondra paused to allow Brie to catch up. She swept through and opened the first door of a line of doors. She stepped inside and after the faint click of metal meeting metal, she emerged and extended her hand inviting Brie into the small room.
Brie brushed by her and closed the door. She was surrounded by mirrors on three sides. The two bras hung on a porcelain hook, their cups gaping wide in a hollow smile. She tugged the shirt over her head and placed it on a brocade upholstered bench. Her tummy tugged when a glimpse in the mirror, fingers unhooking her bra, showed a roll of flesh protruding above the tight waistband of her jeans. She slipped the worn straps of her bra down her arms and tossed it onto the sweater. She peered at the small tags indicating the size and pulled the C cup off the hanger.
After fastening it in place, she gazed into the mirror. The color was close to the indigo robe that Chris had lent her, bringing a small smile to her lips. The lace overlay on the cups was scalloped in feminine curves where it met the swell of her breasts. She tugged at the sides, pulling the cups up.
“How are you making out?” It was Sondra’s voice outside the door.
Her eyes widened and she turned to tuck her raggedy white bra under the sweater. “Fine, I think.”
“May I come in? I just want to check the fit.” Her voice was gentle and low.
Brie gasped and her hand flew to her chest. THIS had never happened before at any department store. But she wasn’t at Walmart and this was a far cry from Mumford. “Sure.” It came out almost like a squeak. She opened the door and stepped back.
Sondra’s eyebrow rose when she scanned the cups of the bra. “Maybe the D would be a better fit. You’re popping out at the top. You want a smooth line, not something that splits you in half.” Her eyes rose to meet Brie’s and she smiled. “When ya got it, ya gotta flaunt it, girl.” She winked and left the room, closing the door softly.
Brie looked into the mirror and blinked. A smile spread on her face and she pulled her shoulders back, noticing that the roll of flesh circling the front of her pants disappeared.
Her boobs were one thing that Rob had always admired. She’d dismissed his sometimes crude compliments as just comments from a horny guy. But now, here was this fancy sales woman telling her to flaunt them?
Her fingers flew unhooking the bra and then tossing it on the sweater. She grabbed the D size and in half the time it had taken to put on the first one, she preened before the mirror. There was no overflowing this one. Her breasts settled into the cups like it had been molded to her body.
“How is that one Miss Morely?”
“It’s Brie. I think you’re right.” She reached for the door handle and opened it, grinning at the sales woman.
For a moment the woman’s eyes widened. She flashed a smile, shaking her head from side to side. “Perfect. You fill out the cups the way a woman should.” She leaned in and lowered her voice. “Take the price tag off but leave the bra on. Your uncle’s orders.”
Her hand rose and held out a little brown bag. “Here’re the matching panties. They’re a high cut bikini which is really flattering for your body shape. Put your old things in the bag and come out when you’re ready.”
Brie’s hand rose to take the bag as if on autopilot. She could only stare and blink her eyes watching the sales woman depart. Her neck became warm and her hand dropped to her side. Of course he’d seen the condition of her clothes when he’d washed them, the elastic band in the panties stretched and misshapen, to say nothing of the loose net of rubberized fabric in the sides of her bra. She took a deep breath, unsure whether to cry or be grateful.
Chapter 9
“She’s beautiful enough. You must be almost finished.” Chris leaned against the partition peering into the brightly lit, make-up area.
There was a whining quality to his voice that brought a smile to Brie’s lips. He’d asked for this—shopping all day doing a total make-over and now he was hungry for dinner.
The blonde cosmetician at the Estee Lauder boutique rolled her eyes, and muttered softly. “Men! Just a little lip gloss and she’ll be done.” She picked up a tube of lipstick, the color of ripe watermelons and held the brush before Brie’s lips. “Open and relax your lips.”
Brie’s eyes were fixated on the mirror before her, watching the woman outline her mouth with the glossy cream.
It was hard to keep her lips steady and relaxed. The urge to grin bubbled up from deep inside her core. Who was that raven haired beauty staring back at her? Her own mother wouldn’t recognize her! Eve
rything about her was different, except the color of her eyes. Yet with the shadow, the dark line making her lashes fuller, the color appeared more brilliant, more there.
Her fingers fluttered to her hair, lifting the soft wisps framing her cheeks and the line of her jaw. It would take a long time to get used to not having long, curly locks. She’d had that look since high school. This was more in keeping with the big city, especially with the new clothes.
OH MY GOD! Chris had spent a small fortune on her—totally outfitting her from bra and panties to the new Burberry winter coat. Her eyes drifted down to the V neck of the jersey top. A warm glow flooded through her chest. The shade of indigo blue was now HER color, no more shades of taupe and brown. The neckline was cut fairly low, revealing cleavage and the swell of her breast. She straightened and pulled her shoulders back, no longer trying to hide the evidence of her sexuality.
It seemed a lifetime ago that she’s clung to Chris, counting floor tiles to get to the escalator. As the clothes she’d tried on and he subsequently bought, stacked higher and higher, it became easier, fun even. Sondra had been great, bouncing between her and Chris, trying to keep the cost down while making sure that the quality was the best. She’d acted more like a best friend, discarding anything that didn’t absolutely flatter her face or figure. Totally ruthless.
Brie’s eyes sparkled gazing at the woman in the mirror. She may not feel like a native New Yorker yet, but she sure as hell LOOKED like one, She held her chin high when the cosmetician finished with the lipstick brush.
“Voila!” The high pitched chirp of the cosmetician interrupted her thoughts. The blonde lady’s hands flew to the sides of her face, framing a mile wide smile, like an accomplished artist displaying her work.
