couldn’t even move for fear Hayely would notice him. All he could do was stare into the ornate glass at the vision it held. Hayely’s brown hair floated loosely in the water around her shoulders. Her head rested against the back slope of the tub and her long eyelashes fluttered against her cheeks. Thousands of bubbles hid the rest of her from view, and she giggled as one of them fell through the air and landed on her nose.
He tiptoed slowly back the way he’d just come. He would be late for his hair appointment if he didn’t leave now anyway. And it wouldn’t do Hayely a bit of good to think he’d been spying on her. But it had done him good. Every time he saw her, he saw something new in her to think about.
•
Hayely’s grey eyes fluttered open at the creaking sound outside the door. She didn’t move a muscle at first and then slowly pulled the plug on the bathtub. She’d been thinking of Gary even though she thought she shouldn’t. Was he really there? No, he couldn’t be.
She took a long time to blow her hair dry and then brought it up into a sophisticated twist high on her head. She’d found some tiny hairpins with pearls attached to the top. When she held her hair in place with them, all anyone could see was a delicate interlacing of pearls against her rich brunette hair.
She took the dress off its hanger and stretched it out across the bed. It was the white-gray color of moonlight captured in a fine chiffon-like fabric she’d never seen before. Satiny royal blue flowers flowed down the material, demanding to be shown off during a warm spring evening.
Hayely picked up the dress and held it against her in front of the mirror. The halter style top would fasten behind her neck with three slick blue buttons and cause the fabric to fold in soft, low waves across her chest while leaving her arms completely bare.
Her back would also be exposed. She’d never been bold enough to wear a backless gown before. It was cut out all the way to a scoop below her waistline just before it found her curves and glided sleekly the rest of the way down to her ankles.
The clerk, Carla, had talked her into a satin choker necklace and elbow-length blue satin gloves that matched the shade of the tiny flowers in her dress. Pure glamour, Hayely thought, pure Cinderella secretary going to the ball with her handsome construction worker prince. Fitting. It was all a fairy tale anyway. At the stroke of midnight, or six months in her case, everything would change.
When she’d procrastinated long enough, she slipped into the dress and buttoned those three little buttons at the back of her neck. She tucked her feet into a pair of strappy little royal blue shoes with what she thought was a very trendy heel. With a tug and a snap, the necklace and gloves were in place.
She inhaled deeply, loving the way the faintest shadow of cleavage showed over the folds of fabric when she did. She left the room that was still hers for a while longer, and descended the staircase with great care not to catch her hem under a heel. When she looked up, she saw that her deliberate pace had been well worth it.
Charlie and Gary both stood at the bottom of the stairs in their tuxes, looking ready to whisk her away to the banquet. She smiled at Charlie first and then turned her attention to Gary. He was freshly shaven and his hair had been trimmed shorter in a new cut that was very, very attractive on him. Without all the usual stubble and grime, the god-like planes of his face were even more captivating than in the picture she’d seen on the Internet.
•
“Wow,” was all Gary could say. Hayely really did look like a movie star from days gone by. Her bare skin glowed where she must have rubbed some kind of shimmery lotion into it, something that smelled divinely of sweet spring flowers. And that berry-colored lipstick stained her mouth a particularly kissable shade in his opinion.
Charlie elbowed him and said, “You look stunning, Hayely .
He tiptoed slowly back the way he’d just come. He would be late for his hair appointment if he didn’t leave now anyway. And it wouldn’t do Hayely a bit of good to think he’d been spying on her. But it had done him good. Every time he saw her, he saw something new in her to think about.
•
Hayely’s grey eyes fluttered open at the creaking sound outside the door. She didn’t move a muscle at first and then slowly pulled the plug on the bathtub. She’d been thinking of Gary even though she thought she shouldn’t. Was he really there? No, he couldn’t be.
She took a long time to blow her hair dry and then brought it up into a sophisticated twist high on her head. She’d found some tiny hairpins with pearls attached to the top. When she held her hair in place with them, all anyone could see was a delicate interlacing of pearls against her rich brunette hair.
She took the dress off its hanger and stretched it out across the bed. It was the white-gray color of moonlight captured in a fine chiffon-like fabric she’d never seen before. Satiny royal blue flowers flowed down the material, demanding to be shown off during a warm spring evening.
Hayely picked up the dress and held it against her in front of the mirror. The halter style top would fasten behind her neck with three slick blue buttons and cause the fabric to fold in soft, low waves across her chest while leaving her arms completely bare.
Her back would also be exposed. She’d never been bold enough to wear a backless gown before. It was cut out all the way to a scoop below her waistline just before it found her curves and glided sleekly the rest of the way down to her ankles.
The clerk, Carla, had talked her into a satin choker necklace and elbow-length blue satin gloves that matched the shade of the tiny flowers in her dress. Pure glamour, Hayely thought, pure Cinderella secretary going to the ball with her handsome construction worker prince. Fitting. It was all a fairy tale anyway. At the stroke of midnight, or six months in her case, everything would change.
When she’d procrastinated long enough, she slipped into the dress and buttoned those three little buttons at the back of her neck. She tucked her feet into a pair of strappy little royal blue shoes with what she thought was a very trendy heel. With a tug and a snap, the necklace and gloves were in place.
She inhaled deeply, loving the way the faintest shadow of cleavage showed over the folds of fabric when she did. She left the room that was still hers for a while longer, and descended the staircase with great care not to catch her hem under a heel. When she looked up, she saw that her deliberate pace had been well worth it.
Charlie and Gary both stood at the bottom of the stairs in their tuxes, looking ready to whisk her away to the banquet. She smiled at Charlie first and then turned her attention to Gary. He was freshly shaven and his hair had been trimmed shorter in a new cut that was very, very attractive on him. Without all the usual stubble and grime, the god-like planes of his face were even more captivating than in the picture she’d seen on the Internet.
•
“Wow,” was all Gary could say. Hayely really did look like a movie star from days gone by. Her bare skin glowed where she must have rubbed some kind of shimmery lotion into it, something that smelled divinely of sweet spring flowers. And that berry-colored lipstick stained her mouth a particularly kissable shade in his opinion.
Charlie elbowed him and said, “You look stunning, Hayely .
Similar Books
