Page 36 of Bling

“Ready?” he asked, holding his hand out to her.

She nodded and let him lead her out to the car where they had a quiet ride to her place.

Back in her apartment, it was back to the real world with homework, dirty dishes, and a never-ending pile of laundry. But she had memories of the way Garrett commanded her body at Solitaire to keep a subtle smile on her face as she folded towels and proofread a research paper for Catarina.

The next morning, Sarah nudged her awake. “Aunt Izzy wake up. Someone is here for you.”

She brushed Sarah’s hand away. “What time is it?” she muttered.

“Six-forty-five. Come on. They said you have to sign for a package.”

“At not even seven in the morning?” Isabelle asked as she sat up.

Her niece nodded and she sighed as she dragged herself out of bed. “I’ll be right there.”

Pulling on a pair of sweats, she hurried into the living room where a man stood with a clipboard.

“I’ve got a delivery for an Isabelle Alvarado from Jasmine Darlington.”

Isabelle smiled. That would be her dress. “Perfect, thank you,” she said as she scrawled her signature.

“Great. Where do you want everything?”

“You can just bring it here to the living room,” she said.

The delivery driver nodded and spoke into a radio. “I’ve got acceptance of the delivery, bring it in.”

Two more men wheeled a large container into the room. It was about the width of a refrigerator box and just a bit shorter than the average fridge.

“What’s this? I thought it was just my dress.”

The driver shrugged. “We just get paid to make the deliveries, ma’am. Call the boutique if there’s a problem.” He turned and walked out as the men with the box unhooked their furniture dolly and broke the seal on the wooden monstrosity for her. Isabelle’s mouth dropped open when she saw what was inside.

“Holy fuck,” she whispered.

“You’re not supposed to say that word in front of us, Aunt Izzy.”

Isabelle turned to see Sarah standing in the hall.

“Sorry. I just don’t understand what all this is.” She pulled her phone out of her sweats to text Garrett.

He called a minute later.

“What is all of what?” he asked.

“This delivery from Jasmine. It’s much more than a dress and some jewelry, Garrett.”

“I asked her to outfit you with a few things for work. Do you not like them?”

Isabelle let out a frustrated growl. “The dress is one thing, but this is way too much. I’m capable of dressing myself.”

“I didn’t say you weren’t. I’m saying I would like to see you in some of the clothes she sent you. Consider it part of your work uniform.”

“How do I explain this to my family?” she hissed as she stepped into her bedroom and shut the door. “That stuff must have cost a fortune.”

Garrett sighed. “I see I’ve upset you when I was trying to surprise you. Please, Isabelle, don’t stress. It’s just clothes. Clothes I would very much like for you to wear because you deserve to be dressed like a queen. Now, if I’m not mistaken, you have a job to get ready for and your boss expects you to be on time, so enough arguing.”

He ended the call without another word, and Isabelle stared at the phone in disbelief.”

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