Strings of the Heart (Runaway Train #3)(23)

“Exactly,” I replied, before hustling into the bathroom.

Once I was undressed, I hopped into the steamy shower. I managed to wash my hair, shave my legs, and bathe all in record time. After I dried my hair, I wrapped a towel around me to run out to get my dress off the bed. As I came out of the bathroom, I skidded to a stop. Cassie was no longer alone on the bed with my dress. Instead, she was making out with some woman I’d never seen before. “What the hell?” I couldn’t help saying.

Cassie pulled away and shot me a sheepish grin. “Sorry, Sonny. We got a little bored waiting on you to get out of the shower.”

Tightening my towel around me, I mumbled, “Please don’t let me interrupt you,” before starting to back up into the bathroom.

“Whoa, whoa, don’t go anywhere.” She motioned to the blonde waifish girl next to her. “This is Shelly. She’s going to do your hair and makeup.”

I glanced between Cassie and Shelley. “She is?”

Shelly smiled. “I own a salon just up the street.”

Cassie nodded. “She was coming over tonight anyway, so I thought she could help you out. You know, make you absolutely drop-dead gorgeous for Rhys.”

“Are you sure you don’t mind?” I asked Shelly.

“Of course not.” With a wink, she added, “I’m happy to do anything in the name of love.”

I laughed. “Okay, if you insist, I would love for you to make me beautiful.”

“You’ve already got that in spades, love. I’m just going to enhance what you have.”

Glancing down at my lacking cle**age, I asked, “Can you enhance this, too?”

Shelly grinned. “I’m not a miracle worker. I’m pretty sure that dress is going to help cinch you up and push you out. Go on and put it on, and then I’ll do your hair and makeup.”

I nodded. After taking the dress and the underwear I would need back into the bathroom, I slid them on. Since there was no way I could zip the dress by myself, I came back out to get Cassie to help. After I was zipped up, I was pushed down into a chair, and Shelly started working on me. Minutes ticked by as my hair was dried, curled, and teased, and then my makeup was done. “There. All done,” she finally said.

Whirling out of the chair, I hurried to get a glimpse of myself. As I stood back from the tall, oval mirror that I’d brought from home, I couldn’t help shaking my head in disbelief. Part of me fought the urge to reach forward and tap the glass to make sure it was really me. “Oh my God, Shelly, you’re really a miracle worker.”

She laughed as she fluffed and then sprayed some of the curls trailing down my back. “Once again, I only enhanced the beauty that was already there.”

My gaze dipped from my long and feathery fake eyelashes to my plumped-up lips shimmering with gloss down to the tight, strapless bodice of the couture dress. Shelly had been right when she said that the dress would help enhance my cle**age. For once, my B-cup was looking like a full C as it spilled over the top of the dress.

I don’t know when I had felt so beautiful—maybe my Sweet Sixteen party, if even then. I desperately needed to feel this level of desirable to boost my confidence to approach Rhys. He was used to gorgeous women brazenly throwing themselves at him. Although I could never see me throwing myself at him, I could definitely work on making him notice me. Then maybe things would really begin to change for us.

“You’re going to take his breath away, Sonny,” Cassie said behind me.

“Thank you. I sure hope so.” My gaze flickered to the clock on my nightstand. “Oh shit, I’m already ten minutes late!”

Cassie reached out to place her hands on my shoulders. “Easy, you’ve got to breathe or you’ll pass out.”

“But—”

“No buts. There’s a cab waiting on you outside, so you’ll be there in less than ten minutes with traffic.”

“There is?” I asked, as I hurried over to dig my slinky, black heels out of the closet.

“Yep, I called one for you while Shelly was working her magic.”

After I slid on the heels, I grabbed my purse. “Thank you both so very, very much for tonight.”

“You’re welcome,” they replied in unison.

When I got to the door, I turned around. “Oh, just one thing.”

“What?” Cassie asked.

“Could you please refrain from making out on my bed? I don’t even get to make out on it.”

Cassie laughed. “No problem.” Shooing me with her hand, she said, “Now get the hell out of here.”

“I’m going, I’m going,” I said, slipping out the door.

After I hurried out of the house and pounded down the steps, I slid into the seat of the cab, which in a corny way felt kind of like Cinderella’s carriage. “Take me to 429 Bull Street, and please try to hurry if you can,” I said to the driver.

He took my request to heart as we squealed away from the curb and started careening down Oglethorpe Avenue before making a sharp right. I gripped the leather seats while silently praying I actually made it to the Mercer Williams House in one piece. When we got to the turn to Monterey Square, we began to inch along. Peering out the window, I watched valets in white jackets run along the front of the house, handing tickets and then parking cars. “You can just let me out here,” I said to the driver.”