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Tammy reaches over and gives me a quick hug. "I'm so sorry, Lorelai. But this wasn’t your fault, don’t beat yourself up over it."
I thank her for the hug and stand up. "Shall we get to work?" I ask, trying to appear cheerful.
She stands up with me and looks at me. "Did I ever tell you how I met my husband?" She asks suddenly.
I shake my head no as I lead her back to the workroom to look for her dress.
"It was a few years ago. I was in desperate need of money. I met him through a mutual friend at one of these, I guess you would call it, uh… sex auctions." She explains sheepishly.
I set her dress on a nearby hanger and look at her in shock. She laughs at my expression. "It was all very innocent. Basically a woman can auction off anything she wants, like a date, or something as extravagant as her virginity and the men will bid on it."
I just continue to stare open mouthed. “That’s innocent?” I ask incredulously.
"The way I made money was by hosting an auction at my business,” she explains, “They pay a pretty hefty hostess fee. I'm just telling you because its quick money, and there's nothing wrong with it." She confides.
I look at her, then ask timidly: "Did you auction off your virginity?"
She laughs. "Not at first, but eventually…yeah," she admits.
I stare at her in shock again.
She pulls a business card out of her purse and hands it to me. "Look, they’re having an auction here tomorrow night. Why don't you stop by and see how it's done for yourself? We can talk more then, and if you're interested in hosting I can introduce you to the people in charge.".
I take the card from her and stare at it.
"Where can I try my dress on?" She asks.
I snap out of my trance, put the card down, and pick up the dress. "Right this way." I say brightly, directing her to the new makeshift fitting rooms.
She smiles at me and takes her dress inside. While I wait for her to change, I go back out into the store and stare at the card on the counter. Her story is certainly unusual. I don't know if I can bring myself to do anything as daring as attend the auction, though.
I sigh and look around my shop. Memories of my grandmother surface again and I have to will myself not to cry. I realize that I can't lose this shop. I have to do anything and everything I can to save it. That means making money in any way that I can. Tammy walks out in her dress. "Well how do I look?" She asks with a smile.
"Fantastic. Also, I’ve decided I'll be at the auction tomorrow." I inform her, turning to look at her with a smile.
She smiles brightly. "Wonderful!" She exclaims.
I help her over to the mirror. "How does it feel?" I ask, directing the focus back onto her dress and her wedding.
She looks at herself in different angles in the mirror. "Oh, it’s perfect! You did an amazing job. I'm surprised you were able to do it so quickly." she replies.
I laugh a little, "It’s my job." I reply.
As I see her smile I realize all over again that this is a job I love doing. There is no way I am going to lose this shop. She smiles at me again. "This dress is perfect. I'm glad this is the last fitting, I can't wait to wear it for real!" She squeals in delight.
We both laugh excitedly.
After she changes and pays for the gown, she gives me a quick hug. She writes the time of the auction on the back of her card. "If you have any questions you can always call me."
I thank her and she leaves the store. I make a note to deliver her dress a few days before her wedding.
Chapter 5 - Gabriel
The night has finally arrived. I'm at the auction with Tim. Well, “with” is a loose description, I lost track of him the moment we walked through the door.
I was really looking forward to tonight, we both had high expectations for what could happen. I have to be honest, though, now I'm starting to be kind of disappointed that I came. This is a pretty packed auction. I wasn't expecting there to be this large a crowd tonight.
I mean, there usually is, but at the larger events that take place out of town. I let out a sigh of boredom as I look around at the crowd of people again. There is not one single woman here that catches my attention. I think I might just be wasting my time. I look around for Tim. I need to tell him that I'm going to leave. I don't think I can endure much more of this.
