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I flick the kettle on and dress into my gym gear of black work-out pants and a black tank top. I put my hair into a high ponytail. I attend the 5:30 a.m. spin class every morning while Nathan goes back to his house and gets ready for work. He does his early rounds at the hospital before he starts his day. It’s a comfortable little routine we have. I go to the gym in the morning while he works, and then he goes to the gym straight after work in the evening while I sort dinner.
Moments later, he re-emerges from the bathroom.
“Your coffee is on the counter,” I call as I tidy up the cushions and throw them back onto the couch.
Why am I so messy at night?
“Thanks.” He picks up his travel mug.
“Are you going to do the online grocery order today?” I ask as I get his leftovers for lunch out of the fridge and pass them to him. We have a deal. He pays for the groceries and I do the cooking.
“Yeah.” He peers into the side of the Tupperware container. “What’s on the menu today?”
“Lasagne.”
His brows rise in surprise. He worked late last night and skipped dinner with me. “You had lasagne last night without me?” He puts his hand over his heart as if wounded. “How could you?”
“Uh-huh, you missed out big time. It was one of my best.”
“Did you give me extra today?”
“I did.”
He smiles down at me. “What would I do without you?”
“Starve, I expect.”
He kisses my cheek. “See you tonight.” He picks up his keys. “Email me the shopping list.”
“I already did, and don’t purposely forget the chocolate like you did last week. I’ll just make you go find it at 10:00 p.m. again.”
“Whatever.” He disappears out of the door.
I smile as the door closes behind him, and then I remember where I have to go now. I exhale heavily. Ugh, spin class. It never gets more appealing. Every day it’s a drag.
One of these days I’m going to wake up fit and hot, and I’ll never have to go again.
Until then, though, it’s off to the gym I go.
* * *
I flick through the rack of evening dresses, hmm, I’ve worn most of these before.
“What about this one?” Brooke says, she is taking a dress off the rack and holding it up.
I look at the red dress in her hands. It’s long, fitted, and has a plunging neckline. “Yes, that’s nice.” I turn back to going through the selection. “I’ll try that one on.”
Brooke and I are in the dress rental shop. I go to so many black-tie events with Nathan that I couldn’t possibly buy a dress for everything. Here, I can rent a beautiful designer dress for next to nothing. The shop is owned and run by two young girls. They buy the latest designer dresses, one in each size, and they rent them out for a fraction of the cost. It’s a fantastic idea, and their business is growing. They are opening their second store next month.
“Oh, this one just arrived, too,” Libby, the shop assistant says as she holds up a gold dress.
“That’s nice.” I nod.
“I’ll hang it in the change room.”
“When is the ball?” Brooke asks.
“Tonight.”
