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The hum of sewing machines filled the hallway. He overheard snatches of conversations in Vietnamese and Spanish as he passed the open doors where the seamstresses worked. Two of the older ladies noticed him and narrowed their eyes with disapproval. Apparently, he was not well liked around here.
“Danny.” Anita greeted him with a frown. “Well, if they were going to send someone to break my knees for payment, I’m glad it’s you.”
He grimaced. “Anita, I would never.”
“Metaphorically,” she amended and rose from behind her old desk. Her once coffee black hair was now mostly gray with thick streaks of white. Even so, she was still beautiful. The kind of beautiful where you stopped and gawked. Once, when he was much younger and dumber, he had asked her how old she was. He hadn’t made that mistake ever again with any woman.
“Is there a reason you’re paying late?” He’d never known her to be late on taxes, and her rate was much lower than anyone else in this neighborhood.
“Lots of reasons and none of them your business.” She pulled aside a tapestry of Our Lady of Guadalupe and revealed a wall safe.
“You don’t have to bite my head off, Anita. I’m only asking.”
“And I’m only saying,” she replied, blocking his view of the safe with her back. “Mind your own business, Danny.”
“Fine.” He glanced away as she withdrew cash from the safe. His gaze fell on a rack of colorful dresses. One of them caught his eye. It was the same shade of green as the scraps of fabric he had found in Macy’s burned-out house. He walked to the rack and shoved aside the other hangers to get a better look at the dress.
“If you’re looking for something to wear to amateur night at Buddy’s, that’s not the one, Danny. Green is definitely not your color, sweetie.”
“It’s not for me,” he scowled back at her.
“Good thing,” she said, money in hand. “There’s no way your Captain America ass is fitting in that silhouette.”
“I’m not sure if I should be insulted or flattered that you think I have Chris Evans’s ass.” He plucked the hanger from the rack. “Do you think this would fit a girl who is, like, this?” He draped the gown over his arm and outlined Macy’s shape with his hands. “About this tall?”
Anita rolled her eyes and swore in Spanish. “I don’t know what this means!” She exaggerated his hand movements. “I need measurements, Danny.”
“I don’t have them.”
“Do you have a picture of her?”
“Yes.” He placed the dress back on the rack and pulled out his phone. He found a photo he had sneakily taken of Macy at his place.
“Fully dressed,” Anita said before he showed her the phone.
“Really? What kind of man do you think I am?”
“The kind that shakes down old ladies for protection money.”
“Ouch.”
“Yeah, well, like Lizzo says...” She snatched the phone from his hand and studied the photo. Her eyes widened, and she glanced up at him. “This pretty little thing is your girlfriend?”
“Yes?” He wasn’t sure how to answer that right now. It was entirely possible she had decided to break up with him after the stupid way he had behaved.
“You don’t know?”
“I was stupid, and I hurt her feelings.”
Anita rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically. “Well, you better show up with something much more impressive than a clearance rack prom dress if you want to win her back.”
“I plan to,” he assured her.
She didn’t seem convinced. Looking back at his phone, she said, “Yes, this is definitely her size. She’s lucky to be so small. She’ll fit into any sample size we have in the store. Do you have any idea of her shoe size?”
“No.”
“Get it, and I’ll find you some shoes that go with the dress. You’ll need jewelry, too, and not the cheap shit I sell up front that’s meant to be worn for one or two different events.”
