Page 8 of Bayside Heat
“Uptown Funk” was playing in the boutique when Serena arrived, immediately lifting her spirits. Colorful skirts and blouses filled racks and dressed mannequins. The walls were lined with upscale fashions of varying styles. At least it wouldn’t be hard to find a few nice outfits.
A tall blonde called to her from behind the cash register. “Hey there. Welcome to The Now.”
“Thank you!” Serena spotted the girls in the back of the store and weaved around the racks toward them. Chloe, having come directly from work, looked elegant as always in a simple blue shift and heels. Mira looked fresh and gorgeous in a cute maternity sundress, which was similar to Desiree’s more revealing outfit. Emery wore her usual yoga pants and tank top. Serena should have felt like she fit right in with her blousy top and miniskirt, but she was still so harried from her busy day, she was sure she looked as frazzled as she felt.
“Finally!” Emery said. “I was beginning to think you and Drake had decided to christen the music shop.”
“You’re getting more like Violet every day. We weren’t even there,” Serena said flatly. “He took forever interviewing a girl for my position. I’m sorry I’m late. It’s been an insane day.”
“Did he hire her?” Mira asked.
“No, the big dork. He said she didn’t have the right personality. She was too sweet and too friendly. Can we please not talk about Drake? He’s pissing me off. I can’t believe how much work there is to do before I leave. Between organizing the office so the next person can walk in and understand how we do things, setting up the new Bayside Music and Arts, and nailing down everything for my move, I swear I’m going to lose my mind.”
“Don’t lose it before the wedding, please,” Desiree said. She and Rick were getting married in September.
“No promises if Drake keeps being a pain,” Serena said.
Chloe sifted through a rack of blouses and asked, “How many lists have you made?”
“One for the music store, one for the resort, and one for the work I just finished up for Shift Home Interiors,” Serena said proudly.
Chloe arched a finely manicured brow. She was as blond as Serena was dark, but she wore her hair in a cute pixie cut and had a soft, pretty face to pull it off. “Keep going, baby sister. I know you’ve got more—like what to pack, what to buy, what you don’t want to forget…”
Serena groaned and began looking through a rack of dresses. “So I’m a list maker. It keeps me sane.”
“I make lists, too,” Desiree said.
“Not me,” Emery chimed in. “I’d lose them, or one of the cats would steal them.”
Emery and Dean’s cats, Tango and Cash, were always stealing things. Emery told tales of missing underwear, keys, jewelry, anything the little thieves could get their paws on.
“Serena’s been making lists since she realized there were certain kinds of boys she needed to avoid.” Chloe grabbed a sharp-looking royal-blue blouse and held it up to Serena. “I love this color for you.”
More precisely, she’d started her list with Drake Savage and all his finest points, followed by all of his faults.
“That’s a fantastic blouse.” Emery snagged an off-white skirt from a rack. “Pair it with this skirt.”
“Wait,” Serena said. “How much are they?”
Chloe gave her a get serious glare. “Serena, you have more money than you’ll ever need. You can afford nice clothes for your classy new job.”
“I don’t want to dip too much into my savings. How much is the blouse?” She’d been tucking away four hundred dollars a month since she’d started working full-time after college, with very few exceptions. She figured she couldn’t miss what she didn’t have, and she was right. She’d never missed the hundreds of dollars she stowed away in her bank account, and now she had a nice nest egg. Before the job in Boston, she’d dreamed of buying the cottage she was renting. She loved living around the corner from the beach, even if she had to trek through the woods to get to it. But dipping into her savings made her nervous. She’d allotted one month of her usual savings for new clothes, and if she was careful, she could build a whole wardrobe around it.
