“And you totally dig that in a guy,” Tori informed her. “Nothing wrong with that either, you like emotional, but you’re not going to get to know those emotions properly trussed up like a nun! So, come here,” Tori ordered her.
To her consternation, Brierley stood up and followed her friend into the walk-in wardrobe. Tori pulled a few tops from the rails and placed them in front of her. None of them really seemed to be something that resonated with her, but she persisted as Tori kept mentally trying clothes on her. “Try this one?”
“That’s really not me!” Brierley protested, looking at the overly patterned top, shining with turquoise sequins. She looked through the clothing herself, “What about this one?” She asked, pulling out a paisley-printed top.
Tori pulled a ghastly expression, “The idea is to make you look smokin’ not seventy.”
With a laugh, Brierley put the top back on the rail, “Hey, it’s in your collection!” She protested.
“It was my mother’s.”
Brierley went back to exploring the vast amount of clothing her friend had. “Okay, this?” She asked, pulling another top from the gathered clothing.
Tori mused as she looked between her friend and the top she’d selected, “Maybe, try it on?”
Brierley pulled her own clothes off and swapped for the top. It was a simple wrap-around top with a low V-neck and flowing angel arms. A deep blue colour that matched well with her stonewashed jeans. When she pulled her thick brown hair from the collar, holding it up, she called out, “Do me a favour, Tor?”
Her friend skipped out of the wardrobe and took hold of the ribbon Brierley was hinting at, looping the ends together. “Ooooh, he is going to want to clamp those tusks down on you. If he doesn’t claim you while wearing this, then there’s something wrong with that boy!” She encouraged. “I have the perfect shoes to match!”
Tori disappeared once again and returned with a surprisingly sensible pair of sling-back, kitten-heeled shoes. They matched the colour of her top wonderfully, and she slipped them on with ease. “How is it you have my size in everything?” Brierley asked her petite friend.
“A girl needs to be prepared. Especially when her bestie is not!” Tori replied with a loving smile.
“Are you ready?” Brierley asked, eager to get to the party and let her hair down as she had been so lovingly encouraged to do.
“Almost,” Tori replied with a sing-song. The sounds of shuffling came from the wardrobe as she found a little clutch bag and a pair of high heels. When she emerged, she looked nothing short of beautiful; a siren among women.
Brierley waited as Tori kissed her husband goodbye. The walk to where Alluin lived was short and filled with cheerful banter about everything and nothing. Tori was right, though. Brierley became aware that she was talking about Breht a good deal. Everything in her life revolved around her store. Having him there was huge excitement, and she was ever more curious to know what he was doing in her beloved shop. Naturally, Tori teased her every time she brought him up in conversation.
When they arrived, ringing the doorbell, the gathering was already flourishing. Alluin greeted them both with a hug and told them that there was plenty of food and drink. Informing them that they shouldn’t have bothered bringing the bottles that they brought as a gift. That they were welcome to treat his home as theirs. Among the guests were several faces that Brierley hadn’t seen in many years, and the enthusiasm with which she greeted them couldn’t be matched. The gossip that followed brought her up to speed on what they were doing with their lives, who had married whom, and how many children (or cats) they all had. The drink went down easily, but she couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of displacement. All the magnificent souls that she had known had moved on with their lives in one way or another, and she was struggling to make ends meet. Borrowing pretty party tops from her best friend made her feel inadequate compared to their vast fortunes. Her life felt strangely empty in the wake of the light-hearted conversation.
It was when she’d finished her first glass of wine and made her way to Alluin’s kitchen for a refill that she noticed Gorim standing in the corner, cradling a bottle of beer in one hand, talking animatedly to someone she didn’t know. She raised her brows in silent greeting, giving the large orc a nod, knowing that he had been good friends with Breht during their time at school.
He grinned knowingly and returned the gesture, clapping the stranger on the shoulder and making his way over to where she was refilling her glass.
“Hey, you, it’s been a while,” Gorim said with a broad smile, twin sets of tusks protruding from his lower jaw. He was a fair-skinned orc, with skin the colour of peppermint, and long, thick coils of dreadlocks snaking over his shoulders. Dark eyes, the colour of molten tar, regarded her with casual ease as she raised the bottle and offered it to him. He shook his head in return and showed her the bottle he was drinking from.
“Hi, Gorim,” Brierley greeted, clinking her glass with his. “How have you been all these years?” It was hard to believe that they lived in the same town but never got to see one another.
“Well, you know how life is?” He asked, “Busy! Life-mate. Daughter. Work. Life!” he offered.
“Not for me,” she replied, trying not to let her dreary mood seep over onto other people.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Gorim replied hastily. “Hey, I heard you were working with Breht?” He asked.
The fluttering in her chest beat its breathy wings swiftly at the mention of his name on another person's lips. Her cheeks felt a wave of warmth crash over them, which had nothing to do with the wine she’d already consumed. “Yes,” she replied, at a loss for words. “He told you as such?”
“Yeah,” he chatted, “I could feel his grin over the phone,” Gorim stated, “I spoke to him yesterday, and he couldn’t wait to tell me. Sounds like my boys real happy to be active again.”
“He’s helping me figure out things with the store, you know, bring it to the twenty-first century or, whatever business speechhe actually used!” Brierley enthused, and while she was over the moon that her business was being repaired, especially considering she’d spent most of the day working on new items for the store's relaunch. There was something exceptionally heartwarming about hearing that Breht was happy; when they’d first met that morning, he’d seemed harried. Harassed by his constantly ringing phone.
“He said, jewellery, right?” He asked, looking at the light-catching paua necklace that clung to her throat.
“That’s right,” she replied, lifting the piece of glistening shell between her fingers. “We’re relaunching the store in a couple of days’ time, if you’re interested.”
“Get Breht to send the details, and I’ll be there,” he swore.
“There you are!” Tori said, entering the kitchen, and she leaned in close to her friend's ear, “Lover boy’s here,” she whispered, teasing her, and the intensity of heat in her cheeks magnified infinitely.
