Page 93 of Hold On Me

“Are you still taking Penny to that fancy New Year's eve gala?” She cradles the cup close to her chest like a protective mum does to her baby, and it makes me smile. If anyone is addicted to caffeine it’s her.

“I want to. If she’ll still go with me, that is.” Reluctantly, I let my guard down fully and sigh. “Help me, Angie.”

Her grin is toothier than a shark, and I instantly regret asking her, but she doesn’t give me a chance to take it back as she slams her cup down and places her hands on my desk. “Finally! I thought you’d never ask. I was the catalyst for getting Jaxson and Edie together, you know. I can work my magic here. So here’s what we’re going to do. You’re going to give Penny some space. Send her a message confirming the gala. Skim over what happened last night. Don’t make it a big deal, and let her come to her senses on her own.”

It’s not a bad idea, but the mention of the gala throws up another problem.

“The only thing is, I’ve booked an appointment at a boutique in the city for her to pick out a dress. We couldn’t do it when we were there, so I scheduled for us to go on the weekend. It’s only a forty-five minute flight, but I don’t know if this is just going to further her frustrations with me.”

I grimace with my words. Angie grins in mischief, her eyes dancing back and forth between me and the window, clearly devising a scheme.

“This is perfect. I’ll take her. Jenson ploughed a lot of money into this charity as part of his ‘community outreach project’ and we’re both invited. I need a dress. We can spend the day having girl time and then she can offload all about you. I take it the dress is all paid for?”

“Yep.”

“Okay, we could let her think she can pay you back for it, stop her from getting all butt hurt about it.” She’s pacing the length of my office and jumps when I speak.

“No deal,” I scoff as she frowns back, but this is something I’m not going to back down from. “I told her when I invited her that I’d buy her a gown. It’s non-negotiable. She needs a dress and I know how expensive these things are. I won’t have her out of pocket because of me, especially if she won’t let me help with rent and everything else. She’s already agreed to this, so it’s happening.”

“Fine. If she’s already agreed. I just don’t want her to freak out about going to the city on your dime and getting a dress.”

She places her hands on her hips, and as a smile curves across her lips, a gleam in her eye makes me squirm on the spot. “Jenson’s buying me a dress too. He booked the fittings at the boutique as a romantic gesture and you’re borrowing him your private jet. Really all you’re paying for is the dress. And that was prearranged.” She jumps and claps like she's just saved the bloody world, and all I can do is look at her in bewilderment.

“So, you coming to the gala means she won’t be pissed at getting onmyjet and havingmepay for a dress? How?”

Her eye roll is epic, as is the sigh that leaves her lips and makes me feel like a fool. “If she thinks Jenson has booked the boutique for both of us, and paid for my dress as well, she won’t feel like you're doing it because she’s broke. She’ll see it as Jenson being romantic for me and you helping him out and getting her a dress at the same time.

“It’s perfect. I’ll tell her we got invited at the last minute. Then I’ll be in a panic saying I have nothing to wear. Jenson will message me saying he’s spoken with you and booked me in at a boutique in the city, and you’ve offered your plane to get me there. Then I’ll demand Penny comes with me. Since you’ve already told her you’re buying her dress, it just makes sense forus to go shopping together. She can’t argue with that logic. She won’t be able to say no.” She shrugs her shoulders and bats her lashes at me.

“Why do I feel like I’m being hustled? You get a free trip to the city, a day off work and what do I get?”

She lets her jaw drop open, her hand flying to her chest in horror. “You get my unending help in fixing this between you and Penny. As the best friend, I’ll be able to talk you up and make her realise how perfect you are for each other.”

“Only one problem with your plan. Jenson can’t go, he has a game on Sunday.” She rolls her eyes again, and this time it irritates me. “Stop rolling your bloody eyes at me. Do I need to have words with Jenson? Tell him what a brat you are.”

“Oh please do. I’ll take my punishment like a good girl.” She cackles as I open my mouth to speak and close it again, the words failing to come out. “I know Jenson has a game, but it's a night game, so he can still attend. Plus, it’s for charity. It’s not like he’ll be drinking anyway. Between the two of us, we’ll have Penny eating out of your hand.”

“Talking to me will suffice.” I run my hand over my face and groan. “Fine. You win. I’ll schedule the jet for the two of you. But I swear, if you don’t do a good job, I’ll have you demoted to jockstrap cleaner.”

She strolls to the door, her laughter following her as she goes and salutes me as the door opens and closes behind her. I feel like I’ve been played, but at this point, I’m prepared to do anything if it helps me with Penelope.

46

PENNY

Stomping into the changing room, I slam the door shut behind me, fully expecting to be in a normal curtained cubicle like you’d find in any other shop. But I’m faced with a room big enough to fit a double bed in, with ceiling to floor mirrors covering the walls. A plush chaise lounge is in the corner and a few dresses hang on the rail next to it. What the hell am I doing here?

For the second time in a month, I’m in the city, flying in on a private jet, without a cent leaving my bank. This isn’t real life. I shouldn’t be living the highlife when in a few months I’ll be unemployed, eating Ramen and living off my savings.

I could kill Angie. The day after Christmas, she came to me in panic mode about this damn gala. The same gala I was trying to get out of going to since my boss/boyfriend decided to try and save me again and then tell me he loved me before stomping off. But now she’s going, so I can't back out at all.

I turn my attention to the sparkly black dress I saw on the shop floor and run my hands over the delicate lace and small diamante beads. It’s stunning, and has no price tag. Which means it costs more than my rent. And once again, because of Angie, I can’t complain about it because, and I quote,“Jenson isbuying my dress and Ben is buying yours. Get over it and stop pouting.”

I can’t prove it, but I know she’s cooked this up with Ben so I have a gown that’s adequate without having to break my bank account open. It’s another way for him to swoop in and save me when I don’t need saving.

Quickly discarding my clothes, I drag the black dress from the hanger and pull it on my body. It has a zipper at the back, so, holding it against my chest, I open the door expecting to find Angie, but a young shop attendant is there instead. “Oh, sorry. I was just looking for my friend to help me with the zipper.”

She offers me a big wide smile that shows me most of her teeth, and her green eyes shine. “That’s what I’m here for. It's all part of the service. May I?” She motions for me to go back into my room and follows after me. She does the zipper up and looks at my reflection over my shoulder. “Hmmmm, I think we can do better. What do you think?”

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