Page 35 of Come A Little Closer

Sayra made a strangled noise in her throat. “What you mean is that he wouldn’t let you work, is that it?”

I nodded. “I don’t think he was comfortable with affording me that kind of freedom.”

“Fucker!” She jumped up and started pacing, her hands in fists at her sides. “I had a friend caught up in a situation like that once. It was awful. I’m so glad you got out of it.”

I finally managed a smile. “So am I.”

“That being said, just give it to me straight. You were married to him, weren’t you?”

I sucked in a deep breath through my nose, but then I remembered that I didn’t have to protect Carter anymore. Sayra was my friend. I’d gotten out of that clusterfuck and there was no reason not to spill the beans.

“Yes, I was,” I admitted, and it was like I could feel the shackles coming off as I finally said the words out loud. “When I finally scraped together the courage to leave, I divorced him, but it caused ripple effects with my family. They thought he was good for me even if he was anything but, so I left my old life behind and came here.”

“You cut all ties with them?” she asked, tears now welling in her eyes. “God, Tallulah. I’m so sorry. That must’ve been horrible.”

“It was, but it’s over now. It’s taken me a long time to be able to say that, but it’s true. I came to New Orleans to redefine myself and to curate my own identity, which is exactly what I’ve done. I embraced my eccentric, horror-loving side and I’m trying to learn to trust my instincts and follow my heart without doing what I think I should anymore.”

“I’m so proud of you,” she whispered, sagging down on the windowsill and gripping the edge of it. She smiled at me through her tears. “You’re even more bad ass than I thought.”

“Yeah, well, I might be done with trying to do things that would garner the approval of people who kept me in a tiny little box, but sometimes, I still feel as small as they always made me feel.”

“Don’t,” she said, shooting back up and striding over to the bed with renewed determination glinting in her eyes. “We’re going to make you feel big, bold, and beautiful tonight. That’s a promise. Next time you get invited to something like this, call me, and I’ll go shopping with you. Better yet, let’s go shopping sometime soon anyway. You are working now. You’re earning your own money and you should get to spend it on whatever you want.”

I swallowed hard in an attempt to rid myself of the lump of anxiety that had lodged itself in my throat at the mere thought of randomly spending money. “I have a better idea. Let’s work up to that.”

Sayra sighed but nodded. “Fine, but in the meantime, will you please come over here so we can pick the perfect dress for tonight? You never know who’s going to be there. You might meet a man who’ll show you how much he loves your eccentric, horror-loving side.”

“Well, actually,” I started, my voice smaller than I was proud of. “I’m kind of going with Niall.”

She paused again, then broke out in a wide grin. “I knew it! I knew you were crushing on him. Did he really invite you to go with him?”

I shrugged. “Yes, but he didn’t say that it was a date or anything. It’s just…”

“You want it to be one?”

I nodded, feeling my cheeks turn to molten lava once more. “Is that stupid?”

“Not at all,” she said, once again starting to rummage through all her clothing. “We’re going to put you in something that’s going to make his jaw drop when he sees you.”

I really liked the sound of that, but there was something else that was bothering me about it, and since I’d already started baring all my deepest thoughts and secrets to her, I figured I might as well get it all out there.

“I’m a little worried that he’s going to be upset when he finds out I lied to him, though. I don’t really know what to do or why I lied, but when I told him about Carter, I didn’t tell him we were married.”

“Chin up,” Sayra said, reaching out to squeeze my shoulder. “I’m going to coach you through this, and the first thing you need to know is that Carter and your parents can’t control your happiness anymore. If you want Niall, go for him. He’ll understand why you didn’t tell him right off the bat. He’s a good guy and you didn’t owe him your whole life story. Especially not in one sitting. I’m willing to bet you don’t know his either. It takes time to get to all that.”

Looking at how confident she was about it, I really did lift my chin up, taking the red dress she handed over to me. “Thank you. I think I needed to hear that.”

“You’re welcome. Now hurry up and go put that on. You’re probably already late and we haven’t even started on your hair or makeup yet.”

Following her instructions, I headed into the bathroom and changed. Then I sat down when I got back to the bedroom, trusting her when she turned me away from the mirror as she started working her magic.

It took a while, but when Sayra was finally done and she turned my chair so I could see myself in the mirror, I felt like I was looking at the reflection of my true self for the first time. She had gone dark and dramatic with my makeup, turning my eyes into smoky, glittering pools that even I was transfixed by. Deep red lipstick accentuated my mouth, making it look sexy and alluring.

My hair had been curled into spiraling waves that tumbled past my shoulders, only the fronts secured by a sparkly red clip on top of my head. The longer I stared, the less I could believe that it was really me I was looking at.

Sayra lowered herself down until her eyes were at the same level as mine in the reflection, and she looked at me with a fierce light gleaming in her eyes. “When you walk into that party tonight, remember who you are and how far you’ve come. You are an incredibly brave, strong woman to have broken out of a situation like that and to have landed on your feet and found a way to make a living from your passion.”

“Thank you, Sayra,” I said softly, genuinely touched by everything she’d done for me.