Page 93 of Hitting the Gap

“True. How tall are you, anyway?”

It sucked that her first thought when Kia had said true was that she was talking about her weight. “5ft8.”

“I’m barely 5ft5.”

“Perfectly average.”

“Yep, that’s me, average.” Kia agreed.

“Other than your height, I’m pretty sure there’s nothing average about you.”

“Ah, aren’t you sweet?” She pushed off from the table. “Alright, you ready to do this?”

“Yep.”

They tossed their cups in the garbage on their way out of the cafe and onto the street out front.

“I figured we’d start there?” Kia pointed at a boutique shop with beautiful dresses in the window.

“Sounds good.” Bailey looked both ways for cars before jaywalking across the deserted street. As she pushed open the door, a little bell dinged, announcing their arrival.

The woman working in the store glanced up as Bailey walked in ahead of Kia. The woman’s gaze quickly scanned Bailey, then recoiled. It was like the derision on her face was so strongly offensive every sense felt the need to jump in and participate in its attempt to make sure Bailey knew she didn’t belong here. Fantastic. Looked like it was going to be one of those days. Thank god she wasn’t the one needing a dress.

Kia stepped into the store, and the employee tilted her head in acknowledgement.

As they walked past a rack of dresses, Bailey fingered the fabric of a beautiful purple silk dress. The color reminded her of the lavish bedding in Gonzo’s spare bedroom.

“You should try it on,” Kia said.

Bailey snorted. “I don’t think so.” In her experience, sheath dresses were not cut for curves, at least not her curves.

Kia wandered deeper into the boutique. She picked up a dark gray dress that at first glance appeared charcoal, but as the light hit the fabric, it shimmered like a crystal.

“That would be gorgeous on you,” Bailey said.

“You think?” Kia chewed on her bottom lip. “I’m supposed to be thinking color, not my normal black and gray.”

Bailey ran the shimmering fabric between her fingers. Up close, it definitely looked gray. She plucked it out of Kia’s hand and angled it slightly. The light hit the dress and it looked more green, then blue, then pink.

“Oh, it’s like a hologram,” Kia gasped. “I’m definitely trying that one on.” She draped the dress over her arm, then reached out and shifted through a few more dresses on the rack. As she pulled out a new dress, she turned toward the employee who was sitting at the counter playing on her phone. “Any chance you can start me a room?”

The girl rolled her eyes as she stood up. “Sure,” she sighed.

Kia made eye contact with Bailey. “Must suck to have to actually do your job,” she whispered. “Now I kind of want to make her work.” Kia’s tongue poked out between her teeth, and she grinned mischievously.

With three more dresses picked out, Kia made her way back to the change room. Bailey sat down on the plush lounge chair that was strategically placed facing the floor to ceiling mirror outside the dressing room.

“I want to see it,” Bailey called out. She turned her head and caught sight of herself in the mirror. Instantly, her hand shot out to fluff her hair even though there was nothing wrong with it. The light made her hair look more orange than its normal red. Frowning, she tilted her head slightly, allowing the light to catch her highlights and fluffed her hair again. That was better.

Kia walked out of the change room in a black sheath dress.

“Wow, that looks amazing on you,” Bailey said.

“Thanks.” Kia stepped in front of the mirror and ran her hand down the front of the dress, then cocked her head to the side as she studied herself. “I’m not sure.”

“We have a similar dress, but the neckline is much higher, so it would cover your chest tattoos. It might be more what you’re looking for,” the employee said.

Kia’s eyebrow arched. “Why would I want to cover up my sternum tattoo?”

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