Page 30 of A New Year In The Presidential Suite

Cara gave her a thumbs-up sign. “I’ll go with you.”

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After work, Lori entered the thrift boutique, hoping to find the right thing to wear to go out with Guy. Having been aware of his family’s expectations in the past, she wanted to look her best to accompany him. The pleasure on his face when he saw her dressed for their movie date sent her back to high school when she first realized her appearance was important to him. Maybe because his mother was such a snob, and Lori’s background didn’t quite measure up.

Cara raced over to the cocktail dress section of the store and began leafing through the hanging dresses.

Lori followed behind and began searching at the far end of the rack. She and Cara reached the middle of the rack at the same time and whispered, “Yes!” together.

Cara pulled out the sleeveless, dark-red sheath and held it up for Lori to see.

It looked demure until Lori noticed the skirt was slit on one side, exposing a bit of her leg.

“Why are you hesitating?” asked Cara. “This is fantastic. It’ll be beautiful for you. Try it on.”

“Okay. But you have to be honest with me. If it seems too much like I’m trying too hard, I need to know.”

Lori removed her sweatshirt and jeans inside the dressing room and slipped on the dress. Even without it being zipped up all the way, she knew it was a perfect fit.

When she stepped outside the dressing room, Cara studied her and clapped her hands. “It looks like it was made for you. Let me finish zipping it up, and you can see for yourself in the three-way mirror.”

Lori walked to the mirror and twirled around. The slit in the side of the dress exposed her leg in a subtle sexy way. She turned to Cara. “I love it.”

“Me, too,” said Cara. “If only buying a dress would be that easy for me. But with your figure, you can make anything look perfect. While you settle the bill, I’m going to look around.”

After browsing for more casual things, Lori and Cara left the store.

“Thanks for helping me find this dress,” said Lori. “I owe you a favor.”

“No, it was fun doing this. See you tomorrow,” Cara said, getting into her car and driving off.

On the way home, Lori told herself she wasn’t being disloyal to Nick by being excited to go out with Guy. But she couldn’t stop thinking about how different Valentine’s Day had always been with Nick. Usually, it was a simple evening at home with special food Nick had catered in, glasses of wine, and lots of loving. Sometimes, friends were invited, but the best times were when it was just the two of them.

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Now that she knew what she was going to wear for her date, Lori couldn’t wait for Saturday to arrive. There was something about the dress that gave her confidence.

She couldn’t remember feeling this way about anyone else but Nick. This new excitement was a little troubling. Still, she’d make a real effort to enjoy herself and get to know Guy a little better, guilt-free.

After working at Bright Beginnings for just a half-day, Lori intended to use the afternoon to finish a project for a client and to get ready. First, she’d stop off at Flo’s house and spend some time with her goddaughter.

When she arrived at Flo’s, her husband, Blake, as principal, was overseeing an event at the high school. Hudson was sitting on the kitchen floor banging on a pot with a wooden spoon and Flo was seated in a kitchen chair nursing Eloise.

She looked up at Lori and said, “Thank God. The baby is ready to be burped, and I haven’t even had time for a shower today. Will you take Eloise? She’s had enough milk. And she needs a diaper change.”

Lori studied the fatigue marring Flo’s pretty features and said, “Sure.” None of this was new work for her.

“You’re a doll,” said Flo. “Hudson is ready for a nap soon. But for now, he’s fine. He’s putting on a concert for you.”

Lori laughed. “No worries. Enjoy your shower. I have time before I need to get ready to go out tonight.”

“When I come back all clean and ready for the rest of the day, I want to hear all about it. I heard you got a new dress. A red one.”

“Yes, it’s perfect. Go! Go!” Lori said, taking the baby into her arms.

“Auntie Lori, listen,” said Hudson.

“I can hear you,” Lori said. “Can you play it very softly, like sending a secret message?”