Page 33 of Salty, Spiced, and a Little Bit Nice

That afternoon, Kim took me to a vintage boutique inside the Plaza. Jenna met us there, and they led me to the back of the store, where there were racks upon racks of secondhand dresses and gowns. We found a few that still had tags, which they gleefully thrust at me. Both of them grabbed a few dresses for themselves before ushering me into the changing room.

“Where’s the party?” Jenna’s voice carried across the partitionfrom the stall on my left, as I removed the first dress off the hanger.

“Not sure.” I slipped into a cute, patterned navy dress. “I’m just going as a favor for a friend. He needed a plus-one.”

“Is this ‘friend’ the building industry expert we met the other day?” Kim asked, her voice coming from the stall on my right. There was a soft curse, followed by the sound of a zip being pulled up. “Ouch.The tall, cute one?”

Next, I tried on a mint-green plaid shirtdress and instantly decided to add it to my collection. “Alec? I guess heiscute, if you like the guarded, brooding type.”

“Who doesn’t?” Kim chuckled. “I’d sign up, too, but he’s obviously taken with you.”

“Me?” I paused halfway through zipping up the last dress. “No, he’s not.”

Jenna said, “Ha!” as Kim’s chuckle turned into a scoff, her voice announcing, “You need to get some prescription glasses.”

We all stepped out of our changing rooms, and they both nodded in approval at the black wrap dress I’d just put on. The material hugged my body, and the V-neck plunged deeper than I was used to, exposing a hint of cleavage.

Kim gave me a wolf whistle. “You look stunning.”

“I second that,” Jenna said.

“It’s not too much?” A splinter of nervousness poked at me. “I don’t really need to look good, just presentable. This isn’t a date or anything.”

“Still, it doesn’t hurt,” came Kim’s cheerful reply. “Sexy dress, flirty heels, new hairdo. It’ll make you feel good, and you can’t go wrong with that, right?”

At their prodding, I bought all three dresses, a pair of black stiletto heels, plus a pair of jeans that still looked brand-new, and managed to leave my bank account with minimal damage.

“Let’s do something about your hair.” Kim scrunched up her nose as she gave it a thorough appraisal. “When was the last time you colored it?”

“Never?” I raised my eyebrows at Kim’s disapproving look. “What’s wrong with that? I’ve always had dark hair.”

“Then it’s high time for a change.”

They led me out of the vintage boutique and into a nearby Korean hair salon, where I spent the next hour having my head massaged and my hair trimmed, curled, and highlighted. When the hairdresser finally whipped off the barber cape with a flourish, I gaped at the mirror, not believing it was my reflection that was staring back. Shimmering ribbons of ash-brown strands now swirled through my locks, and the ends of my hair had the prettiest waves I’d ever seen. I looked different and refreshed, nothing like my old self. I evenfeltdifferent. Like my new hairdo made me powerful enough to take on anything in the world.

Like I was finally taking control of my own life.

“You look amazing,” Kim announced, as we headed to dinner. “Trust me, Mister Building Expert won’t know what hit him.”

“He won’t notice. It’s a business function. He’ll be busy networking.”

Kim snorted. “If he doesn’t notice anything, then youbothneed glasses.”

Jenna gave me a wide smile when she caught my eye. She was an Asian Australian who had migrated to the States for work a year ago. “A magnifying glass, maybe?”

“My eyesight is fine,” I said, as we arrived at the restaurant. “Trust me, getting involved with him is a horrible idea. There’s too much baggage between us.”

“Why?” Kim’s eyes were curious. “What happened between you two?”

“It’s a long, boring story.”

A waiter ushered us to our table. Ocha Izakaya was a delightful mix of traditional and contemporary, with simple, modern wooden tables and chairs, soft lighting from the Japanese-style lanterns hanging above, and prints of mountains and cherry blossoms decorating the walls.

“We’ve got all night.” Kim picked up the menu, gave it a cursory once-over, then slid it toward me. “Try the spicy salmon sushi tacos. Highly recommended.”

“I’m having the tempura udon,” Jenna said. “Also highly recommended.”

I chose the sushi tacos and the dragon avocado roll, then looked up at both women, who were watching me with expectant looks on their faces. Maybe I should try changing the topic…

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