Page 31 of The Heiress
“All right,” Laura said, her purse tucked under her arm and her keys jingling. “Let’s go, shall we?”
I blinked rapidly and nodded, head down, hiding my swell of emotion.
The traffic was heavy all the way into Covington, and Laura kept her focus on the road ahead. I swayed to the beat of the music on the radio, rehearsing words in my head, words I was too chicken to say. But I had to assume Phoenix had spilled the beans on me, and in addition to knowing I’d lied to my parents and Mrs. Pritchard, Laura had probably already formed a poor opinion of me.
But first, shopping.
Laura wanted me to call her Laura because she was no longer Mrs. Carter, and she said Miss Caversham sounded like she was a school teacher. Laura knew the best clothes shops and though I probably didn’tneedanything new, I’d forgotten how retail therapy could boost your mood. Trying on cute outfits, laughing at hideous combinations and ill-fitting clothes—and now finding a bargain. I’d bought two sweaters, two tops, a scarf and a pair of hiking boots (Laura convincing me I’d need them for the senior river trip.)
“Let’s look inDaisy Chain,”Laura said, leading me into a pretty store, both of us laden with bags, Laura’s including three pairs of shoes.Daisy Chainappeared to be high end fashion, Laura leading me to the formal gown department.
“Never too early to think about prom,” she said with a wink.
But my heart sunk—prom should have been something me and Mom shared, choosing the perfect dress, hair, makeup, nails, the whole shebang. Instead, I’d be sending her photos. Hey, that’s if I got to go.
I flashed Laura a wistful smile, but she either didn’t recognize my expression or chose not to.
“Or...there’s the Winter Wonderland Dance coming up at the Country Club just before Christmas,” Laura said. “Let’s see what we can find.” She raised her eyebrows enthusiastically, and I didn’t dare dampen her joy, following her to the rack.
From their beautiful house and new cars, I assumed that Laura and Phoenix lived a comfortable life, well a more-than-comfortable life, but it didn’t stop Laura from checking the sale rack. I’d never worried about prices before, but it seemed there was a lot of satisfaction in finding a bargain.
Laura held up a pretty pale pink dress. It had a beaded bodice and an asymmetrical chiffon skirt flowed from a flattering waistline.
“This looks like you,” Laura said, and the thing was, she was right. It was exactly the type of dress I would choose for a fancy party or ball. “I think this color is perfect for you.”
Laura herded me off to the changing room, exclaiming, “And there’s half off the ticket price!”
“I don’t even know if I’ll be going to the dance,” I said in bewilderment as both Laura and the assistant, Vicky poured on the compliments and insisted the dress was made for me. Little did they know that at home I had a wardrobe full of designer gowns.
“We can probably take an extra fifty off of that price,” Vicky offered, sensing my hesitation.
Well, yes, I was hesitating because it was highly unlikely, like I was 99.9% certain that I wouldnotbe going to the dance. The beautiful gown would hang in my closet in the dorm taunting me, but my more practical side, the part that was an heiress and sometimes took an interest in business things, knew that spending money supported the local economy. It was one reason Mom never had qualms about buying things—money made the world go round, she said.
“Of course someone will,” Vicky said when I protested that I wouldn’t be going. “It’s early days yet. I’m surprised a beautiful girl like you doesn’t have a boyfriend.”
I blushed at the compliment but knew how salespeople worked. Vicky was just doing her job in trying to make a sale. Dad often said his success came from connecting to people, he couldn’t have built an empire without connections, people were the key.
To save any more fuss and unwanted conversations about boys and dates, I bought the dress. I would store it in my closet.
Laden with our purchases, we headed back toward the car, pumped up on the adrenaline one gets after buying new clothes, something I hadn’t realized I missed.
“We’ll go pick up a picnic,” Laura said. “I hope you’ve worked up an appetite.”
I nodded. “Yes, how about you?”
“I am feeling a bit peckish,” Laura said.
“Do you want to stop for a latte first?” I asked, spying the Covington Kitchen Cafe up ahead. I checked my watch, holding up my wrist for Laura to see that it was before noon. “I had a yummy pumpkin spice latte here last week.” And I added with an appreciative, “My treat.”
Laura tapped my shoulder. “You’re a sweetheart, but it’s not necessary.” She led me in through the doors of the cafe, saying, “It’s amazing how shopping works up a thirst, and they do a delicious apple donut here that Phoenix is a big fan of. I can grab one for him.”
It was such a small thing—yet for some reason my heart fluttered to know that Phoenix liked apple donuts. Along with espresso coffee and bacon. And tennis. But not avocado. He’d bypassed the avocado at breakfast.
Laura ordered us both lattes, refusing to let me pay, and she decided the food in the cabinets looked so good that she bought a selection of sandwiches, salads, brownies and donuts to go, which would save a trip to the deli.
Dashing over to a newly vacated table, Laura and I were relieved to sit down, having walked the length and breadth of Covington’s Main Street. Only as we unloaded our bags did I realize how much we had bought. Mom would call it a successful haul, but with Laura the thrill was all about the bargain deals.
“Well, I can’t remember when I had such fun shopping,” Laura said, placing her purse on the table.
