Page 7 of Sinister Devotion

Just like that, we're separating for the day and Bonnie's holding the passenger side door open for me to get in. She knows how much I despise riding in the back seat alone. It's second nature now, but when I first came to Julian, I refused to get inside a car without sedation.

Dad died while I was in the back seat of our car at a random traffic light on our way home from a school play. He only wanted the thieves to know I was in the back seat. He was silenced with a bullet. I was ripped out of the seat belt and tossed onto his dying body where I lay until the police arrived. The shots rang out in the middle of the night and just like that, my world was forever changed. Julian swept me into his world and did the best he could because he was all I had left. My mother died when I was two. The nightmares come and go, but thankfully I'm not as scared as I used to be.

Bonnie's a lifesaver in more ways than one. She's more than a bodyguard to me and treats me like a little sister at times. As long as it doesn't interfere with her job, she's so cool about everything, except when it comes to training every morning.

"Hey, the address for the designer is close to Danny's job. Do you want me to see if she can swing by? Give you the opinion of someone closer to your age? I have no idea what Julian had in mind or what his last assistant picked out."

I nod. "You're right. I'm just finding out about all of this. Imagine if the dresses arrived and they were hideous."

Bonnie laughs. "I don't think they'll be hideous. Julian has impeccable taste when it comes to his wardrobe and he hasn't done too bad with sorting you out."

"That's where his mother comes in. She's the voice behind my political pantsuits. I mean, they look great for working in the office, but for my birthday party? I don't know why they thought they could throw this event without telling me. It's not even like it was a surprise. It's more like I was an afterthought."

"I'm sure it's not that. There's a lot to consider when throwing these lavish events." Bonnie's trying to make it make sense and failing. "How about we focus on your involvement now?"

"Are you coming to the party? You can bring Danny, too," I tell her.

"I'll probably be working the event," she says.

"No. Julian already said he's finalizing the guest list. Again, I'm nothing but an afterthought, and I want people I actually enjoy talking to at my party. It's already going to be a nightmare trying to get people I went to school with to come at the last minute. I'm going to be fucked if I have to talk to Fiona's bitchy ass all night."

Bonnie nearly chokes with laughter. "She's not that bad."

I put on my best Fiona impression with a snooty voice. "I won't execute these contracts in good faith. Blah, blah, blah. The way she looks down her nose at me as if I'm the reason she's having a bad day."

"I'm sure your spot-on impression has nothing to do with it." Bonnie laughs as we pull up to a boutique dress shop.

Danielle "Danny" Edelman is standing out front as soon as we park, with her raven black hair shaved on the sides and spilling down her back. She has the same brown eyes as Bonnie and throws her arms around me.

"Hey, girl. Long time since we hung out. What's going on here?" Danny asks as we walk inside the boutique.

A bell chimes above the door as soft music plays around the empty store. Racks of gowns and dresses have a variety of the beautifully designed pieces. Some are simple, while others are obnoxiously sparkly. I see a woman with wispy red hair emerge from the back of the store, but her voice reaches me before she does.

"How ya doin, honey? I'm Eileen. Are you the birthday girl?" she asks.

"Yeah, I'm Claire," I tell her, waiting for her to realize she called me spoiled over the phone.

Eileen doesn't sound like she's from any part of California. There's a New York or Chicago twang in her tone and mannerisms. "Wonderful, wonderful. And who are these beautiful young women with you? Your friends, doll? The budget is for three dresses, but I'm sure you can talk your Dad into splurging on a few more for them."

Danny puts her hands up, shaking them in protest, with her eyes wide with disgust. The dresses are too over-the-top for Danny's style, a style that is closer to biker goth rather than spoiled Princess.

"Julian's not my father," I tell Eileen.

"My apologies. No judgment. Let's get you fitted and back to your day. Come see what's been picked out for you." Eileen waves me toward the back of the room, where three gowns are on mannequins.

One is velvet, black, thin sparkly straps over the shoulders with a high slit up the side. It's pretty, but it feels too dark for a birthday party. There's a pearl and silver chiffon dress with a corset bodice and flowy skirt. I run my fingers along the material and it's wonderfully soft to the touch. I don't bother to look at the emerald green dress on the last mannequin.

"This one," I tell Eileen, my hands unable to let go of the shimmering soft chiffon. "This is the only one I want to wear."

Eileen hesitates. "Uh, honey, if I'm being honest, I spoke to Ms. Marzano and this event is more of a political event, networking for her son. This one is definitely a birthday dress, but maybe we should tone it down?—"

Bonnie steps up for me. "If it's not the best option, or an option at all, it shouldn't have been put on display for her to choose from. This shouldn't be some kind of test to see if Claire's going to pick the right dress. Get her sizes for the one she chose, or we walk out and she doesn't wear any of them."

"Tell 'em, Bon-bon," Danny whispers beside me with a chuckle. "She's always like this. So protective. I guess that's why she gets paid the big bucks."

I chuckle. "Yeah, I guess so."

Eileen doesn't push back and takes me to the seamstress, where they get everything they need from me. Afterward, I'm starving, having forgotten to eat my own breakfast.

---