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Eva met my gaze with a raised brow. “Why are you looking through the sale rack when you could have the stunner in the window?”
She couldn’t possibly know about my encounters with Noah. Other than the one she filmed, that is. I hadn’t told a single person I’d taken a desperate chance with him years ago, and he’d shot me down. Up until this moment, I’d have sworn Noah had kept it to himself too.
My arms dropped to my sides, and I shook my head. “What makes you think I can get the stunner in the window?”
“A hunch.” She offered me a small smile and held a navy sheath dress up to her tiny figure.
“No.” I shook my head again. “You need something to show off your crazy abs.”
I dug through the dresses until I found one close to the image in my head—short, black, with open slashes across the middle. It was sexy and edgy and it would look fantastic on her.
“Here, try this one.” I handed her the dress, and her eyes lit up.
“Oh wow…” she breathed.
Eva disappeared behind one of the purple curtains, and I eyed the display at the front. Noah’s chance with me had passed, but with the right dress, I could show him what he’d missed. It would be nice to be wanted by someone like him, and after the auspicious start in my classes, I could use the ego boost. I knew what I wanted, why was I dithering?
Other than my need for an actual employee to climb into the store window. I’d never been in a shop like this where the employees weren’t constantly watching. Howwasthis place still in business?
A door in the back labeled Employees Only was probably my best bet for help. Eva’s dressing room curtain remained closed, so I squared my shoulders and knocked. If no one answered, I’d take care of the problem myself. It wouldn’t be the first time I’d wrestled a mannequin into submission.
A woman with tortoiseshell glasses and crazy rainbow streaks in her shoulder-length dark hair popped her head out. She looked about my age, but I didn’t recognize her from campus. Not a surprise considering I spent all my time with D’s crew.
“Crap,” she muttered under her breath, then slipped into the main room, pulling the employee door shut behind her. She wore overalls at least a size too big for her small frame over a fuzzy white sweater topped off with a pinched look on her face.
When I stood there staring at her, she raised a brow. “Can I help you?”
I blinked, surprised by the lack of any attempt at a customer service voice. “Yes. Can I try on the dress in the window?”
Her eyes, a vivid blue-green that didn’t look real, flicked to the front of the store then back to me. “Sure.”
I followed her, trying to pinpoint if I’d annoyed her personally or if she was simply bad at being a store clerk. “Have you worked here long?”
She sped through the racks without glancing back. “Sort of. This is my mom’s shop, but she’s at a yoga retreat this weekend, so I’m filling in.”
Ah. Bad at being a store clerk. I could work with that. “Your hair is beautiful. Can I ask where you get it done?”
She skidded to a stop, and I nearly ran into her as she turned to face me with her brows furrowed. “If you’re hitting on me, I feel I should warn you I’m not into girls.”
I snorted out a laugh. “No. I’m just an unrepentant extrovert. My mom says I’m incapable of silence for more than five seconds. I’m Chloe, by the way.”
She studied my face for a long moment, as if trying to ascertain my sincerity. “Bluebonnet.”
My brows rose. “Excuse me?”
“My name. It’s Bluebonnet, but everyone calls me Blue.” One of her straps sagged down her arm as she turned to cross the remaining distance to the window. “This one?”
“Yeah. Do you need help getting it down?” I wasn’t tall by any means, but she was a couple of inches shorter than me, closer to Eva’s size.
“No, Bertha here is a sweetheart.”
With efficient movements, she hauled Bertha out of the window display and stripped the blue dress off her.
She held it up to me bunched in one fist. “Just yell if you need anything else.”
I took the dress and cocked my head as she left the naked mannequin splayed on the floor to go back the way she’d come. After a second, I followed, catching up to her near the dressing rooms.
“Do you have any other sizes?”
