Page 73 of The Price of Love

I flop onto my bed. “I try to hide it.” For dramatic effect, I point at Storm. “But she’s making me flash it all over the place.”

Storm puts her hands on her hips. “I’m not forcing you to do anything. You volunteered.” She turns to Shadow. “Don’t believe a word of her outburst. She’s making it sound like I’m trafficking her or something. The fuck?”

I know I’m overreacting, but the cocktail outfit is setting me off. I’d rather walk out in my bra and underwear than wear it.

Shadow grabs the skimpy black dress from the back of my door and holds it up. “Sexy.” She gives me a half-smile. “Can we see it on you?”

I rise from the bed and take it from her without a word. While I could change in the bathroom, if I’m going to be uncomfortable, Storm can share in my discomfort. I pull off my bra since the dress has one built in, and for good measure, I push down my panties and kick them across the room, almost hitting Storm.

She glowers at me. “You still need to wear underwear.” She picks them up as if there’s toxic sludge on them and tosses them onto the bed.

I slide into the dress, and it hugs my curves, making me feel exposed.

Shadow picks up my three-inch high heels and hands them to me. “My god, these will put you over six feet.”

“Just by an inch.” I sit on the bed and slip my foot into one shoe and then the other. I feel like a clown, but I stand, completing my humiliation.

“Damn, girl,” Shadow says, approaching me. She straightens the strap on my dress. “You’re gorgeous.” She looks over her shoulder at Storm. “Isn’t she?”

Storm scrunches up her face. “No. She’s my best friend. She can’t be gorgeous.”

Shadow and I both laugh, which I think was Storm’s intention. It takes some of the edge off, but not much. I’m gonna have to get drunk or high to make it through the night, which isn’t a wise idea since it’s important to remain alert.

Shadow’s eyes are soft when she steps back and looks at me before she moves forward and straightens the left side hem of my dress. “You look beautiful, but you’re not comfortable, are you?”

I walk to my mirror, but it’s not full length, so I can only see part of it. I snatch my phone off my nightstand. “Snap a picture so I can see how it looks.”

Shadow obliges, and when I scroll through the pictures, I know I look good. The dress highlights my long legs. Still, I’m not comfortable parading around a bunch of men dressed this way.

I toss my phone onto the bed. Apparently, I threw it harder than I intended because it bounces onto the floor.

Storm had been standing quietly, but at my outburst, she moves toward me. The concern in her eyes melts some of my anger.

“Dude,” she says, clasping my arm. “It ain’t worth it. We’ll do this shorthanded.”

My chest tightens. I know how much Storm loves me, and this is more proof. “We’re already seriously understaffed.”

“I should’ve gotten servers from the Broken Lantern who wanted to earn some extra cash.” She turns to Shadow. “That’s the bar we passed on our way here. Maybe I still can.”

“Find a dress that’ll fit me, and I’ll do it,” Shadow says.

Storm and I both snap around and stare at her.

“What?” a red-faced Shadow says. “I don’t want Dimples to do something that’s making her so upset. Before I got my job at the nursing home, I worked bars.”

“Absolutely not,” Storm says.

Shadow’s face goes from red to crimson. “Really? You’ll let Dimples prance around wearing that, but not me?” There’s fire in her eyes.

I try not to smile at the little spitfire. Nobody challenges Storm like this, but Shadow seems to have no hesitation.

To my surprise, Storm holds both hands in front of her and backs up. “Whoa. Everyone needs to take it down a notch. Or three.”

I put my arm over Shadow’s shoulders. “I appreciate your kindness, but it isn’t your problem.” As much as I hated saying the words, it’s not fair putting my responsibilities on Shadow, and I won’t.

“But you’re not okay with this.” The compassion in Shadow’s eyes is going to break me if I’m not careful.

I step away from her and approach my dresser, where my small jewelry box sits. While I’m looking for a necklace, it serves the purpose of allowing me to keep my back to her and Storm. “I’ve lived through worse. I’ll be fine.”