Chapter 5
STEPHANIE
Narrowing my eyes at my reflection, I studied my outfit in the mirror. I turned slowly, cringing when I realized again exactly how short this dress was. “I can’t wear this.”
“You look great,” Tiana said, leaning forward over her dresser to slip a golden earring in. “So damn hot.”
“You and I have very different definitions of the words great and hot. Do they mean something different in Greek?”
She rolled her eyes and flipped me off, laughing as she reached for a tube of mascara. “Don’t take it from me, the dress speaks for itself. You’re going to be beating them away with a bat once we get there.”
“I highly doubt it.” Tiana and I were getting ready to go clubbing for my birthday. Her bedroom was covered in discarded outfits, and every time I moved, I tripped over a pair of shoes.
The antique wooden dresser she was leaning over was covered in tubes and tubs and makeup brushes. Hair product and perfume mixed in the air, creating that very unique girly smell you only ever get when two or more girls are getting ready in the same room.
Lining her eyes with shimmery green, she shot me a look in the mirror and pursed her lips. “I’m serious. Girl, if I wasn’t into guys, I’d scissor kick with you.”
“Really? Right now? Jeez.”
She shrugged. “What? Hot is hot, and you’re scorching tonight.”
I cast my eyes toward her full-length mirror again, wondering what it was she saw that I didn’t. Even away from the nightmarish dressing room light, I saw bulges everywhere. My breasts looked like they were planning a jailbreak, and my hips were two miles wide.
Tiana had blown out my long brown hair and given me some body cream that added a shimmer to my pale skin. That looked decent enough.
I also took some extra time with my makeup, blending in some bluish hues with the dark eyeshadow to make my eyes pop. Tiana had some tricks for accentuating cheekbones she showed me.
From the shoulders up, I looked good. It was the tight dress making me slightly unhappy with the way I looked.
Tiana fastened a dainty watch and glanced down at it. “You done? We should get going.”
Turning away from the mirror, I popped my lip gloss into my clutch and nodded. “Let’s do it.”
“Your car or mine?” she asked on our way out of the apartment we shared.
“Yours. Herbie finally bit the dust.”
She stabbed the call button for the elevator. “No! I mean, we knew it was going to happen sooner or later, but I’m sorry anyway.”
“Thanks.” Herbie, my 1986 Honda, gave me her all, but her time had apparently come to an end. “Earlier when I got home from work, she made a funny sputtering sound. When I tried to restart her, there was nothing.”
“Damn. What are you going to do?” A low ding announced the arrival of the ancient elevator car in our building. We trudged inside and I, for one, sent up a quick prayer that the thing wouldn’t also call it quits on us before we got to the parking level.
I lifted my shoulders and shook my head. “I haven’t got the money to get anything new right now, so I guess I’ll just have to make do without a car until I can save up enough to replace her.”
Tiana nodded solemnly. “In the meantime, you’re welcome to use Barney if you need to.”
Barney, Tiana’s Beetle, was at least two decades younger than my car. It should still have a good couple of years left in it. Between us, if we had one working car, I was sure we could make it work. “I’ll definitely take you up on that. Hoofing it to the bookshop isn’t that bad though.”
“You won’t be at the bookshop much longer,” Tiana said confidently. “Is that secretary job at Williams Inc. in the towers downtown or at one of their other buildings?”
“In the towers, but I haven’t got the job yet. I only sent in my application a few hours ago.” With a deep groan, the elevator doors slid open to deposit us in the darkened parking lot underneath our building.
I waited for Tiana to unlock the Beetle before sliding into the passenger seat and buckling up. She navigated us out of the parking lot and eased into traffic, drumming her fingers on the steering wheel. “The operative word in that sentence is yet. You don’t have the job yet, but you will.”
“We’ll see on Monday.” I didn’t want to get my hopes up. Being overly optimistic wouldn’t get me anywhere, but I was hoping my business degree would give me a bit of an edge above the other applicants.
“That we will,” Tiana said, following a turn to the Meatpacking District. “Other than Herbie giving up the ghost, how was your birthday so far?”