“This is my best shirt,” Dax mutters. “See, no stains or rips.”
I pat his arm. “Just get into the pants.”
After Dax changes trousers, I follow into his fitting area where Ralph has Dax stand on the podium in front of the three-way mirror. Ralph cuffs the bottom hem of the dress pants and takes the rest of his measurements. He then measures Dax’s waist, chest, shoulders, and arms. Afterwards, he pins together shaped materials over Dax’s shoulders and down his back, showing me some different options.
When I greenlight the materials for Ralph, he gives Dax a dress shirt to try on.
Dax buttons down the crisp white shirt, and Ralph frowns, looking at him sideways.
“Hmm. Wrong size,” Ralph mutters.
I shrug. “It looks good on him.”
I catch Dax’s reflection grinning at me.
Ralphs turns on his heels. “No, I shall find a better size.”
With Ralph gone, Dax leans closer to the mirror and lightly plays with his hair. I catch him smiling and have to ask what he’s thinking. He turns to me with nervous enthusiasm.
“Do you know anyone who could fix my hair?”
I step closer to him. “What do you mean?”
“For the gala,” he says, angling his head in the mirror. “Might be a good idea if I got this mop actually styled.”
“I didn’t think you’d care about that.”
He shrugs. “It might be nice. Especially when I’m on the arm of the most beautiful girl in town.”
I blush. “I don’t know about that.”
He reaches for my hand, and then recoils, inspecting his fingernails. “I should probably get rid of the grease under these.”
I place a hand over his. “I have a good manicurist.”
He laughs. “Why not do this right?”
“Are you really into this?”
He shrugs, unable to hide his smile. “Maybe this is my glow-up moment?”
“Does that mean you’ll stay styled after the gala?”
“I doubt it. I spend too much time riding and tinkering with the bike.”
I lift onto my toes and peck his lips. “Good, because I like you just the way you are.”
As I run my hands down Dax’s shirt front, the good feelings bubble inside me. That is, until a voice sounds behind me.
“Vanessa, darling, I didn’t expect to see you here.” .
His voice cuts through me like shards of glass. Tension seizes my back as I turn, knowing who belongs to the voice.
My teeth grit as I fake a smile. “LJ, hi.”
“Wait,” Dax lingers on the word before LJ has a chance to respond. “This is LJ?”
A cheesy grin stretches across LJ’s mouth. “Aww. You’ve been talking about me, sweetheart?”
