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Althea leaned in and embraced me tight. “Try to get some sleep, honey. Things will be okay. I promise.”
Her words hit me like a wrecking ball, smashing into the fortress I’d built around my emotions. Before I could do something embarrassing like throw myself at her and sob, I untangled myself and stepped back, clutching my hands together in front of me.
“Good night, Althea.”
Althea shot me a warm smile. “Good night, honey.”
She disappeared up the stairs, and Nim helped me get to my room. I vowed to burn the dress as soon as I found a way to get it off.
Nim stood in the door while I took in the beautiful room she’d shown me to. It was kept in pastel colors, the king-sized bed pushed against the far wall next to double doors leading out to what I guessed was a balcony. It was too dark to see anything, but since the other two doors in the room were open and led to a walk-in wardrobe and the bathroom, I guessed it to be the most likely possibility.
“I’ll get your clothes and leave them on the bed. If you need anything, just dial 0 on the intercom. It’ll go straight through to my apartment at the other end of the property.”
I shot her what I hoped was a grateful smile, knowing I’d never call her. I felt like enough of a burden already. I wouldn’t make myself a nuisance on top of invading their space. “Thank you, Nim.”
She closed the door behind her, and I made my way into the bathroom. Everything was gleaming, the marble polished, not a single speck of water on anything.
First order of business was to get out of my dress. Instead of a zipper, tiny buttons from the top of my butt all the way to my neck held it together. When I couldn’t even undo a single button, I searched for something sharp instead. I got lucky when I opened the fourth drawer and found nail scissors.
I started at the hem, cutting my way up the front of my dress, past the garter belt Gabriel would never see, the lacy white underwear that cost more than most people’s monthly salary, and the elaborate bra I’d have to most likely cut off as well.
The task was slow and laborious, taking almost twenty minutes.
Once I’d cut the dress off, I put the scissors on the counter and peeled the lace off my itchy skin. My corset followed the same fate as my dress. Taking the first deep breath since Louisa had laced it up, I instantly felt better. I’d gotten through worse. My husband being a dick wasn’t going to keep me down. I’d been expecting this, after all.
No matter how much I repeated the words, a small part of me had still hoped that, for once, things would be different.
I went to work on getting all the hairpins and ties out of my hair. Not a minor feat since my hair was thick, and the stylist had used two cans of hairspray and about 3,987 pins.
Once I’d taken everything off, I turned the shower to hot and stepped under the waterfall cascading out of the ceiling and walls.
Showers were my coping mechanism. Whenever I felt the walls closing in around me, I took one, shutting out the world.
I washed my hair three times before it wasn’t sticky anymore. The guest bathroom was stocked with expensive shampoos and conditioners, so at least I’d be able to avoid knots.
After wasting entirely too much water and turning my skin bright red, I reluctantly turned the shower off and wrapped myself in one of the fluffy towels on the shelf next to the stall. I wrapped another towel around my long hair. Aleksándrhad never allowed me to cut it besides a few small trims, and it fell nearly to my butt. I’d begged and pleaded to be allowed to style it in anything other than a ponytail or an updo, but with everything else, his word was final, and nobody could question it.
I gave up pretty quickly and kept telling myself it was just hair. Who cared what it looked like? I didn’t go out much, anyway.
I had natural dark ebony hair, the rich color shining in different shades when the light fell on it. It was straight, not a wave in sight, no matter how much I’d wished for it.
I found a hairbrush in the top drawer and brand-new facial cream still in its original packaging. It was all I’d need. I’d always been low-maintenance when it came to my body. If I’d been allowed to, I’d only wear jeans and T-shirts, but as it was, I had never owned either.
The first step in this new chapter of my life would be to not put on a lick of makeup tomorrow.
As promised, an oversized T-shirt and boxers were waiting on the bed for me when I came out of the bathroom. Before I had a chance to do more than pull the towel off my hair, there was a knock on the door.
“It’s me, Althea.”
I went up to the door, making sure the towel I’d wound around myself wouldn’t slip. “Is everything okay?”
She wrung her hands, and I stepped back, drying my hair. “You want to come in?”
Nodding, she stepped inside. “I just wanted to make sure you have everything you need.”
She was in a bathrobe, and her hair was falling down her back in soft waves. I turned around to close the door, and she gasped.
I dropped the towel, and rushed forward, putting my hands on her arms. “What happened? Did you hurt yourself?”
