“It’s not funny. Did you know all the places they wax? I wasn’t even aware my ass had hair that needed to be waxed.”
She let out a snort-laugh. When she finally got herself under control, she said, “Now imagine Patty getting that done.”
The image flashed through my mind, and I screamed as I covered my face with both hands.
“What in the world?” Patty asked, walking back in. “What are the two of you talking about?”
Elizabeth pushed the last bobby pin into her hair before she turned and said, “Annalise thought her clitoris was pulled off during her wax this morning.”
Patty flashed me a satisfied smile. “Good, you got it done. You’ll thank me later.”
I snarled my lip at her. “I’m pretty sure I’ll be cursing you until the day I die.”
Patty gave a rumbling laugh and then forced me to turn around, holding up a pair of diamond earrings.
“There, these are the perfect finishing touch for your dress.”
I gasped. “Are those real diamonds?”
She nodded.
“And you had them in your car?” I asked.
Elizabeth walked up and handed me a glass of wine. I still hadn’t grown a taste for it and usually sipped at the same glass for hours. But today was different. Today it was a sweet, bubbly dessert wine, and I’d already had more than four glasses. At least, I had stopped counting at four. Patty had brought four bottles, thinking we would drink all of them while getting ready for dinner. So far, we’d nearly polished off three.
I was starting to feel the effect, so I shook my head. “No more for me. I’m starting to feel it.”
Shrugging, Elizabeth downed the glass. “This isn’t New York City, Annalise. We can leave diamonds in our cars.”
“It’s not Mayberry either,” I countered.
Elizabeth poured another glass as she said, “That’s true.”
Clearly, I was a lightweight when it came to wine.
Patty stepped back and covered her mouth, studying me. “Oh, you look beautiful.”
I turned and looked at myself in the mirror. It was a version of myself I don’t think I had ever seen before. Oh, sure, I’d dressed up for plenty of fancy parties in New York, but beyond the gown, there was something very different about the woman staring back at me.
She looked happy, yet her eyes screamed of sadness.
As for my outfit, the top of the light blue gown was satin with appliqued beadwork that dipped down to the skirt. I stared at the deep V-neck and wondered, again, if I was showing too much cleavage.
“You’re not showing too much, so wipe that frown off your face,” Elizabeth said.
“How did you know I was thinking that?”
“You’re staring at your chest.”
Patty huffed. “If I had perky boobs like that, I’d be staring at them as well.”
The three of us laughed as I lifted the blue tulle skirt.
“You look like Cinderella going to a ball,” Elizabeth gushed.
I forced a smile. “If only I believed in fairy tales still.”
“What?” Patty asked. “How can you not believe in them?”
I sighed and turned to look at the back of the dress. The straps crossed up at the top near my shoulders, and the back was open damn-near to the top of my ass, where more beadwork started—and all I could think was How in the hell am I going to sit down?
“Because Prince Charming doesn’t exist,” I said, meeting Elizabeth’s gaze in the mirror. She looked equally beautiful in her gown of emerald green. And Patty was rocking a black, off-the-shoulder dress with a slit so high, I actually thought I saw her Brazilian wax job.
Elizabeth walked up and rested her chin on my shoulder. “That’s not true. I’ve met mine.”
“You’re an exception to the rule,” I said, letting my fingers run over the empty space at my neck. “Do I need a necklace?”
“No,” Patty said in a low, seductive voice. “A woman keeps her neck bare so men can dream about kissing it in a dark corner somewhere.”
Elizabeth snorted again. Okay, maybe the wine was getting to her.
“Are you sure you don’t write naughty romance novels, Patty?” Elizabeth asked.
Patty winked at her, then turned and put on a pair of earrings that hung nearly to her shoulders.
My doorbell rang, and Elizabeth gasped as she ran for the door. “That’s them!”
Patty’s husband, Jim, along with Rick, and Larry, Elizabeth’s boyfriend, had agreed to pick us up at my house. I wasn’t even sure how my house had become the go-to spot for everyone to get ready, but Patty and Elizabeth had shown up hours ago and proclaimed a girls’ day of getting fancied up. I knew it was Patty’s way of making sure I actually went tonight, even though she had proved her point earlier this morning.
I watched while Patty followed Elizabeth, calling out, “Lizzy! Do not run in those heels. You’ll break a leg.”