Georgie knew Adalia wanted to see the statue, but this was borderline obsessive. “You promise we can go home after you see it?”
Adalia nodded her head enthusiastically. “Yes. Cross my heart and hope to die.” She made an X over her chest with her fingers.
“Fine,” Georgie grunted. “I’ll give you five seconds, then I’m leaving, even if I have to walk home with one shoe.”
Adalia pulled Georgie through the back door while Josie followed closely behind, as if to make sure Georgie didn’t escape.
A few employees congregated in the kitchen, talking and grabbing snacks from the kitchen counter. They stopped and stared at Georgie with open mouths.
“Oh Lord,” Georgie moaned. “Why are they looking at me like that?”
Coming to a halt, Adalia grimaced, then tugged the hem of Georgie’s dress out of the back of her panties.
“Oh God…have I been flashing everyonemy underwear?”
“Calm down,” Adalia said, reaching up and trying to smooth Georgie’s hair. “People see worse at the beach.”
“Excuse me,” one of the men asked, rushing through the back door. Ted from packaging, if she remembered correctly. “My wife is wondering where you purchased your underwear.”
Georgie stared at him in disbelief but found herself answering, “Moon Goddess.”
His face brightened. “She thought so, but she was wondering if it was from the Neptune or the Venus line?”
Could this night get any worse?
She plastered on a smile. “Neither. The Athena.”
Ted nodded, his head bobbing like a hand pump. “Okay, then. Thank you.”
“Do you think Buchanan will sell underwear like that?” Josie asked in her breathy voice as Ted rushed out the back door. She sounded hopeful.
Georgie reached up to cover her face with her hands, but her fingertip touched something thin and metallic on her forehead. When she pulled her hand away, she found a quarter-inch, circular piece of silver glitter. It was then that she looked down and realized she was covered in it.
“Where did the glitter come from?” she asked, looking Adalia in the eyes.
Her sister’s brow shot up while her mouth tipped up in an apologetic smile. “The bounce house.”
“It floats when you jump,” Josie said. “Just like in a fairyland.”
“Of course it does.”
“You really should try it,” Josie said. “We could both go right now.” She grabbed Georgie’s hand and started to drag her toward the back door.
“While that sounds fun,” Adalia said, intervening, “I think Georgie should go back to the fortune room and take a moment to collect herself.”
Josie’s eyes flew wide with excitement. “Oh! I can read her future.”
Adalia’s head tipped to the side. “Let’s let Georgie handle her own future.” She steered Georgie past the sculpture, which was fully clothed and holding an empty beer can, and down a short hall, past a line of people.
Did all of these people need to pee already?
Stopping in front of a closed door with a sign in front of it that read,Find out your future…if you dare. At least ¼ may learn something devastating, Adalia stopped and plucked a piece of glitter from Georgie’s cheek.
“No cutting in line!” someone called out.
“You want your fortune?” Adalia asked in a threatening tone. “I’ll give you your fortune—your entire career depends on this woman, and if she wants to go first, you’ll let her.”
Georgie shook her head. “But I don’t want to go first.”