Page 8 of Barefoot Chaos
"What's up, Esa?" I wasn't sure how much of that she'd seen.
"What the hell was that?" Her smile turned slightly evil.
Okay, clearly she'd seen a lot. "I'm not sure what that was, but I do know I'm gonna track down Ms. Woodland." No sense pretending otherwise. When my intuition said to go for something, I knew better than to ignore it. And right now? My intuition was screaming Hessa's name.
"Not that I know anything, but just make sure you come to Chocolate Dreams on Wednesday. I have a feeling she might be there..." Esa raised an eyebrow before spinning around and walking back to her booth and packing up her table.
Looks like I had plans Wednesday night.
Hessa
I walked into Nordstrom, my purse shaking in its boots. You know, if it had feet. My wallet had never been taken out of my purse in Nordstrom before and she could feel the highly priced charge in the air. Before I could question my decision, Esa waved her arms in the air across the aisle by some dresses that looked more appropriate for prom.
I made my way over, seeing another woman by her side. A really beautiful woman. With the trendiest outfit clinging to her every curve. Hair, make-up, and accessories so on point I wondered if she stepped right out of a fashion magazine. The butterflies in my stomach took flight, and I felt completely out of place in my khakis and plain shirt.
"Hessa! I'm so glad you're here! Hessa, this is Bailey. Bailey, meet Hessa." Esa put her arm around me again and waived her other hand to Ms. Gorgeous.
Bailey smiled warmly. "Nice to meet you, Hessa. I've heard great things about you! I can't wait to come up with outfits for you today. Are you looking for things for work or personal life?" She linked arms with me and pulled me out of the dress section, waiting for my answer.
"Um, I think a little of both. A few work pieces, but mostly I need casual wear and maybe a few date night outfits." My stomach was settling just being around Bailey. She may be gorgeous and intimidating, but she was equally friendly.
"All righty. Let's get the casual wear stuff first and then once we're warmed up we'll get the date night outfits. Sound good?"
I nodded my acceptance. From there, it was a whirlwind of Bailey grabbing hangers and then I found myself in a huge dressing room. I was embarrassed to change in front of Bailey, but she just buzzed around getting things off hangers and arranging the clothes on me, which took all the humiliation out of it.
We decided on three pairs of jeans (ripped jeans are in style, who would have thought I'd pay for brand new jeans with rips already in them), four shirts, one fake leather jacket that makes me look like a straight badass, and two pairs of ankle boots. Bailey threw in a few bras and a pile of underwear.
"Oh, I don't know. I don’t find thongs very comfortable." I just can't see paying more money for those torture devices.
Bailey tilted her head, a knowing smile on her face. "Where did you purchase the thongs?"
"Target?" Yes, I said it as a question, knowing the answer wouldn't be the right one based on Bailey's calculating gaze.
"Come here, Hessa." Bailey stood there with thongs overflowing her two hands. "Grab a handful, would you?"
Well now, this was getting awkward again. We were all alone in the fitting room, caressing lacy underwear. My girlfriends in college were the studious-nose-in-a-book kind, not the feel-up-underwear-and-talk-about-sex kind.
Although, the thongs I held now did seem to have a different feel to them.
"Do you feel that material? Without looking at it, can you even detect a seam?" I was about to answer her, but decided correctly the question was rhetorical. Bailey looked dead serious and was on a roll. "No, you can't. Why? Because that's quality right there. You get what you pay for, and I believe your lady parts deserve the very best. Don't you?"
I swallowed, hoping she was done. "I think I'll get some thongs."
She nodded at me and I felt palpable relief, knowing I'd finally landed on a correct answer.
"How's it going in there?" Esa's voice came through the fitting room door, breaking the tension. "I've got coffee."
"Bless you, my friend." I swung the door open and snagged a cup out of her hands before letting her step into the room.
"Perfect timing. I'll go find some date night outfits while you two take a break." Bailey grabbed the other cup out of Esa's hand and swept out of the room.
"Hey! That one was mine..." Esa pouted for all of three seconds before she swung her gaze to me, brightening to a grin. "So. Date night outfits. Got any dates lined up? Let's talk about it."
Between the two of them, I felt like I'd stepped into an alternate universe where conversation boundaries didn't exist and energy levels never dipped.
"No. No dates lined up right now. But I'd like there to be." It was humbling to admit. Here was Esa, younger than me by a couple years, and she was engaged.
"I have a feeling that's going to change for you soon, Hessa-dear." She winked at me and lowered her voice. "I saw you have a 'moment' with Kai the other day at Career Day."
