Page 8 of Do It For Me
Her smile was the brightest I’d seen in a long time.
“Guess who sent you this!” she said.
I had to gather all my strength to not roll my eyes at her.
After breakfast, a shower, and getting dressed, I finally sit on my bed, my damp hair clinging to my back. I let out a sigh, staring at the present.
Carefully, I peel away the tape, not wanting to rip the paper. It’s the first time I’ve received something like this, and I’d like to keep it.
When I open the box, the contents steal my breath.
Inside, there’s a white summer dress adorned with light blue flowers intertwined like delicate vines. On top of the fabric lies a folded note:
“I will pick you up at 5:00 pm. I hope you feel comfortable in this.
—Dante
P.S. You don’t need makeup.”
I pat my cheeks, my heart is racing as if I’ve just run a marathon. It must be pure anxiety. There’s no other reason for me to feel this way.
Beneath the dress lies a handmade wool cardigan. My excitement takes over, and I try it on over the clothes I’m already wearing. The wide sleeves billow softly, and when I stand, it falls to my waist. It’s open-fronted, adorned with heart-shaped buttons, all in white.
A smile escapes me.
When Declan and I were engaged, he used to send me dresses like the ones my father always chose for me. They left me feeling exposed, vulnerable. But this dress covers me just fine, and if I don’t feel safe enough, I have the cardigan.
I hide everything when someone knocks on the door. My breath catches, but it’s just Mum. I exhale and sink back onto the bed.
“What was it?” she whispers.
“Clothes. He wants to take me on a date today.”
Her face lights up. Her happiness catches me off guard. Dante may not be my ideal partner—especially since this is just anarrangement—but he does know how to cheer people up. “Do you need me to do your makeup? Or maybe help you find some shoes? I might even have a pair you could borrow—”
“I can do it by myself, Mum. But thanks.”
Her smile falters. She presses a kiss to my forehead, wraps her arms around me, and then steps away. “I’ll make ya a light lunch. And don’t worry if you don’t want to come home early—I’ll make sure yer father doesn’t bother.”
She shuts the door before I can tell her I won’t be out long, or that I’ll never fall for any insinuations from him. Honestly, I wouldn’t even accept this date if Dante weren’t my fiancé.
He might kidnap me. He might not take me to dinner at all but instead drive me straight to his place. He might suggest we stay in the back seat of his car. He might lash out if I refuse to be more intimate with him. He might force me to.
A shiver crawls up my spine, and I force myself to swallow the growing lump in my throat. If someone raped me again, I don’t think I could survive it.
I’ve never kissed anyone orbeenwith anyone because I wanted to. My firsts—and only—experiences were brutal, violent. I saw things I can’t explain, things I’ve never spoken about. They did things to me that I’ve forgotten, though the memories creep back whenever something triggers them, and I must go through it over and over again.
I’m terrified because I don’t know if Dante has those tendencies. I don’t know if he’s anything like Roger, the man who bought me.
I don’t want him to be like them.
Especially since this is the first time in three years I’ve stepped out of the house with a complete stranger.
“I thought you’d wear the dress I got you.”
Oh no. Is he going to hit me because I didn’t? Shout at me? Maybe not here, in my house, but later? I don’t want to leave now.
“I—” I clear my throat. “I didn’t trust the weather, so I thought this was a better option.”
