Page 111 of Pretend To Be Mine

“Remember what?”

You, I thought. Us. This moment before everything changes.

“This day,” I said instead. “Paris. Versailles. You forcing me to take tourist photos like a normal person.”

She looked at me and smiled. “You are a normal person.”

I wished that was true.

“I should go find Annika,” Elizabeth said. “Those dresses won’t make themselves.”

36

ELIZABETH

Annika had commandeered a beautiful room. I didn’t know how they managed to just take over these places, but I was glad they did. It paid to be rich. It opened doors that would never be opened to someone like me.

I looked around the room. It was filled with dress forms, bolts of fabric in sapphire, emerald, and burgundy, and two industrial sewing machines that looked hilariously out of place against the gilded walls.

“Okay,” Annika said, spreading my sketches across a table. “Three dresses, two days. It’s ambitious but doable. Tell me your vision for each one.”

I walked her through the designs Adrian and I had created together. The few minor tweaks I made would be easy to implement.

“These are bold,” Annika said, approval clear in her voice.

“Adrian helped me see that I was playing it safe. Designing for other people’s sensibilities instead of my own.” I touched the sapphire fabric, feeling its weight. “These are me. The real me.”

“Then let’s bring them to life.” Annika was already pulling out her measuring tape. “We’ll start with the emerald since it’s the least complex construction. Get the basic shape right, then work our way up to the burgundy beast.”

What followed was hours of intense focus. It had been so long since I actually sewed anything. I loved the process. We were cutting fabric, pinning pieces together, testing drape and movement. The emerald dress came together surprisingly quickly. It was a relatively simple design, which was the goal.

“Try it on,” Annika instructed, handing me the partially completed piece. “I need to see how it moves on a body.”

“I’m not exactly the size of the models,” I joked.

She waved a hand. “Close enough.”

I slipped into it carefully, and Annika circled me like a fashion shark, pinning and adjusting. “The cutouts need to be a quarter inch lower. I’m afraid we might be flashing bits that shouldn’t be flashed.”

I laughed. “We don’t want another Sebastian-style show.”

“Definitely not. When you move, it should move with you.”

“When I move? I’m not wearing this.”

“Not you specifically. But we need to fit it to someone’s body, and you’re here.” She made a note on her pad. “Besides, you’re closer in size to our models than most people. Makes you a good test dummy.”

“I think that’s a compliment.”

She winked and went back to work. She transformed the dress from good to exceptional. I found myself thinking about Adrian. About last night’s almost-confession under the streetlamp. I saw it in his eyes. I knew there was more but I just couldn’t get him to say it and I didn’t want to be the one to say it first.

I felt like it was obvious I would fall for him. It wasn’t so obvious he would want me. He had everything and I had nothing. To say I was punching above my weight was an understatement.

I wasn’t even sure he was interested in trying to have a relationship with anyone. He told me he didn’t have time. If he had time for a relationship, he wouldn’t have needed me to pretend to be his fiancée.

“You’re thinking about him,” Annika said without looking up from where she was pinning the hem.

“What?”