kissed my cheek and pointed at
the driver. “Lance will accompany you today. I’ve already given him
instructions.”
I glanced at the
middle-aged man and nodded. “What instructions?”
Of course, Mr. Black
only smiled as he shut and door and walked toward his building.
Without a word, Lance
pulled the car away.
Walking around high-end
shops was bad enough without six feet six of pure muscle following me everywhere.
Lance wasn’t a bad guy. He was quiet and always wore a Bluetooth headset in his
ear. Plus, he looked more like a bodyguard than a driver. I’d have to ask
Dorian about him.
At least Lance kept the
vulture like employees away while I browsed through each shop. My mind spun as
I checked price tags, and I tried my hardest not to blanch. Dorian took the
liberty of even making me a map for my phone with all the designers who carried
size 14 clothing. I suspected Lance had one too.
Come on, Alicia. You can
do this. Your boyfriend is a billionaire who gave you a credit card for a limitless
shopping spree. Go wild!
“Are you looking for
something particular?” a woman asked and smiled. “Chanel 2010? I love that
suit.”
I ran my manicured hand
over the smooth wool and nodded. “I’m looking for work clothes, evening clothes
and some casual clothes for a European business trip,” I explained and tried my
hardest not to grin like an idiot.
Slipping her arm around
my shoulders the woman, Mira, led me around the store. I breathed a sigh of
relief and let her. She had an eye for fashion and my figure, something I
hadn’t quite figured out yet. Every piece she brought came alive when I put it
on.
Staring at myself in the
dressing room, I saw for the first time why Dorian thought I was beautiful. The
fitted dresses made my waist look smaller than normal and my curves delicious.
It put the rest of my T.J. Maxx wardrobe to shame!
Pants, blouses, cocktail
dresses – they had it all and it looked like a dream. The girl in the
mirror was no longer broke and worried about finding a job. She was a woman
with an impressive career path (Dorian Black’s personal assistant) and an even
more impressive boyfriend.
To think I worried about
making my rent a little over a month before. Now I was living it up at the most
prestigious shopping district in the city! And tomorrow we’d fly to Europe for
the mystery business trip.
I needed to call my mom!
I pulled out my phone,
my hands shaking, as I brought up my list of contacts. Telling my parents hadn’t
seemed like a good idea before. Sure I told them I got the job, but I hadn’t
explained the details of my relationship with Dorian yet. I didn’t want them to
worry about me, but this was too big not to share.
I hit ‘call’ and waited.
“Hello? Alicia?” my mom
said after a few rings. “Aren’t you at work, honey?”
“Yeah, mom. Well sort
of. I’m actually shopping for a business trip. We leave tomorrow.”
The other side of the
phone was silent for a moment. “Oh, shopping? Are you sure you have the money
for it?”
I thought of the credit
card and frowned. Even with plenty of cash at my disposal, I didn’t want to
admit it to my parents. Why not? Why couldn’t I tell them the truth about
Dorian?
What if it doesn’t last,
Alicia? Then the whole family will know you’re a failure.
“Yeah, the company’s
paying for it,” I said, which wasn’t that big of a lie. It was Dorian’s
company, after all.
“Oh. Where are you
going? New York?” she asked and I heard the telltale sign of pots and pans in
the background and smiled.
“Europe. My passport’s
coming in the mail today.”
“Europe? Oh Alicia!
That’s so exciting. Which country? France? Italy? Spain?”
My heart dropped. Why
didn’t I think to ask where in Europe we were going? Stupid Alicia!
“Well, my boss is being
tight lipped about the whole thing so I’m not sure. Look, mom, I’ll call you
when I have all the details. Okay?”
She chuckled on the
other end of the
the driver. “Lance will accompany you today. I’ve already given him
instructions.”
I glanced at the
middle-aged man and nodded. “What instructions?”
Of course, Mr. Black
only smiled as he shut and door and walked toward his building.
Without a word, Lance
pulled the car away.
Walking around high-end
shops was bad enough without six feet six of pure muscle following me everywhere.
Lance wasn’t a bad guy. He was quiet and always wore a Bluetooth headset in his
ear. Plus, he looked more like a bodyguard than a driver. I’d have to ask
Dorian about him.
At least Lance kept the
vulture like employees away while I browsed through each shop. My mind spun as
I checked price tags, and I tried my hardest not to blanch. Dorian took the
liberty of even making me a map for my phone with all the designers who carried
size 14 clothing. I suspected Lance had one too.
Come on, Alicia. You can
do this. Your boyfriend is a billionaire who gave you a credit card for a limitless
shopping spree. Go wild!
“Are you looking for
something particular?” a woman asked and smiled. “Chanel 2010? I love that
suit.”
I ran my manicured hand
over the smooth wool and nodded. “I’m looking for work clothes, evening clothes
and some casual clothes for a European business trip,” I explained and tried my
hardest not to grin like an idiot.
Slipping her arm around
my shoulders the woman, Mira, led me around the store. I breathed a sigh of
relief and let her. She had an eye for fashion and my figure, something I
hadn’t quite figured out yet. Every piece she brought came alive when I put it
on.
Staring at myself in the
dressing room, I saw for the first time why Dorian thought I was beautiful. The
fitted dresses made my waist look smaller than normal and my curves delicious.
It put the rest of my T.J. Maxx wardrobe to shame!
Pants, blouses, cocktail
dresses – they had it all and it looked like a dream. The girl in the
mirror was no longer broke and worried about finding a job. She was a woman
with an impressive career path (Dorian Black’s personal assistant) and an even
more impressive boyfriend.
To think I worried about
making my rent a little over a month before. Now I was living it up at the most
prestigious shopping district in the city! And tomorrow we’d fly to Europe for
the mystery business trip.
I needed to call my mom!
I pulled out my phone,
my hands shaking, as I brought up my list of contacts. Telling my parents hadn’t
seemed like a good idea before. Sure I told them I got the job, but I hadn’t
explained the details of my relationship with Dorian yet. I didn’t want them to
worry about me, but this was too big not to share.
I hit ‘call’ and waited.
“Hello? Alicia?” my mom
said after a few rings. “Aren’t you at work, honey?”
“Yeah, mom. Well sort
of. I’m actually shopping for a business trip. We leave tomorrow.”
The other side of the
phone was silent for a moment. “Oh, shopping? Are you sure you have the money
for it?”
I thought of the credit
card and frowned. Even with plenty of cash at my disposal, I didn’t want to
admit it to my parents. Why not? Why couldn’t I tell them the truth about
Dorian?
What if it doesn’t last,
Alicia? Then the whole family will know you’re a failure.
“Yeah, the company’s
paying for it,” I said, which wasn’t that big of a lie. It was Dorian’s
company, after all.
“Oh. Where are you
going? New York?” she asked and I heard the telltale sign of pots and pans in
the background and smiled.
“Europe. My passport’s
coming in the mail today.”
“Europe? Oh Alicia!
That’s so exciting. Which country? France? Italy? Spain?”
My heart dropped. Why
didn’t I think to ask where in Europe we were going? Stupid Alicia!
“Well, my boss is being
tight lipped about the whole thing so I’m not sure. Look, mom, I’ll call you
when I have all the details. Okay?”
She chuckled on the
other end of the
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