Page 74 of Wanted

“You smell so good.” Those words come out of nowhere, I can barely remember what he asked me, how could I possibly concentrate when I have this sight right in front of me.

“Have you heard a thing I said?” he says, smirking, since I handed him the airtight glass container with my concoction, he has been using it, as well as the soap with the same aroma. “There is a line of masculine products created by a beautiful and talented woman, and they’re exclusively made for me.”

“Oh, yeah?” I play the game by getting a little closer to kiss his shoulder, as he does so many times with me. It really does smell so good. The combination of bergamot, honey, and mint suits him tremendously.

“Yes, just like the girl, they’re exclusively mine.”

His arm wraps around my waist as he kisses me, playfully covering my face with the traces of cream left on his. These past few days I haven’t been feeling the best, but I made sure to hide it well. I don’t want him to worry, the stress of everything we have been through must be wreaking havoc on my body, I must have caught one of those pesky viruses. No matter how much I sleep, I’m tired and yesterday the smell of watermelon had me throwing up what I had eaten for breakfast.

“We don’t have time for this,” I complain, his mouth trailing kisses down my neck and his hands already untying the knot on my robe.

“We can be fast and furious,” he murmurs, his lips still on my skin. “You smell great too, I want to be at the office knowing I’m covered in your scent.”

“Easy, tiger, we both have things to do,” I say, putting my hands on his strong chest. “Catherine is coming to pick me up soon and you’re going to your office.”

It’s Thursday, Catherine called me two days ago telling me she had secured an appointment, apologizing for not being able to do it sooner. Knowing how busy she is, I greatly appreciate that she’s making time to be my partner in crime in this adventure.

“You didn’t tell me what time she’s going to pick you up.”

“Before nine o’clock,” I reply. “According to her, she had to pull some strings so that they could see us on such a short notice, so we should leave early.”

I hear Lionel muttering under his breath, complaining about my stubbornness.

But I’m delighted to do this with relative independence, I really like to feel that even when I hold his hand I have freedom. This new relationship that we are building is turning out to be much less suffocating than the previous one.

And much more exciting.

“Don’t forget to buy the dresses I told you about,” he insists again.

“Aye, aye, Captain,” I tease him a little, I know he has commitments that he must fulfill and that now he wants to do it accompanied by his wife, so I need to dress for the role as Catherine told me. It’s not like I can go to investor dinners wearing long skirts, T-shirts, and Chucks. My usual outfits work for my everyday tasks, but not in this world I’ve been transported to.

Catherine Cole looks as stylish as if she just came out of a fashion magazine at eight-thirty in the morning, even though she’s wearing an informal outfit, as she labelled it.

“Are you ready?”

“Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed,” I reply. “By the way, can we stop by an ATM? I would feel much more comfortable doing it, I’m on a budget.”

“No problem, my friend.” Then she turns to the man who is driving the brand-new luxury SUV. “Joe, you heard Mrs. Kral.”

Catherine talks nonstop as the driver moves swiftly through the madness of rush hour traffic in the city. “I’ve arranged to go to a sample store downtown, and my stylist friend will meet us there. She’s going to help us discover this new version of you. Then we have an appointment at a hair salon in Santa Monica, with the same person who regularly does my hair and he’s a wizard with hair.”

“You have everything figured out,” I say with a smile.

“I do this for a living.” Her lips tug up, proud of what she does. “This is the world I move in, my little grasshopper, I have to be the best to stay on top.”

Her energy is contagious, and one thing is obvious to me. Empowered women, empower other women. I want to surround myself with more people like her and I want Alison to meet her too, she’d like her very much. I should call and invite her to stay in the city for a few days, but I think it’s a little early to have someone else joining us at our home, even if it’s for a short time.

And I don’t want to limit my time with Lionel, we have barely gotten used to the idea and we both have to work.

Maybe Lionel sells millions of dollars a day and I, hopefully, only a few hundred. But not once has he made me feel less important. On the contrary, he has put his company’s resources at my disposal because he wants to see me succeed.

“We’re here,” she announces when we enter a garage. Then two security men guide us to an elevator and from there through a maze of corridors to a room with white walls and a concrete floor where a short-hair girl dressed in jeans, black booties, and a white button-down shirt greets us with a smile.

“Cat, how nice to see you.” She turns to my friend first, then turns to look at me with curious eyes. “And you must be Stella. Welcome to the Los Angeles fashion district, we’re going to have a lot of fun this morning, I’m June.”

Next, she guides us to a bubblegum pink velvet sofa in front of a triptych of full-length mirrors and beyond what appears to be racks full of clothing. At a glance, there is everything from long dresses to jeans.

I take the list from my handbag that I started yesterday afternoon before Lionel returned home. According to the research I did on Pinterest, what I need is a capsule wardrobe, basic garments that can be combined with each other, changing accessories to create many looks on a budget.

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