Chapter 11

Melany

MY STOMACH FELT like a million hummingbirds were flying in figure eights at the same time.

A girls’ night in with wine, food, and makeup tutorials had seemed like a good idea at the time, but now that I was standing outside Devon’s apartment, listening to her and her friends’ laughter from the other side of the wooden door, I wanted to tuck tail and run.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t do that, because I’d stupidly invited my best friend along to prevent any unnecessary word vomit from occurring, and she was currently blocking my way.

I tried to make a break for it, only to have my attempt foiled.

“Nuh-uh. No running away,” she chastised, taking hold of my shoulders and spinning me back around to face the door. “We’re already here, so we might as well go inside.”

I looked over my shoulder and pouted. “But—”

Her mouth formed a straight, tight line before she started in. “I did not manage to score a sitter so I could get the hell out of my house and surround myself with people who don’t have a penis just so you could get cold feet and bail. I need this, Melly. I need girl time desperately. I need to use a bathroom that doesn’t smell like urine. I need to be in a place where I don’t have to be careful where I step for fear of landing in something squishy and/or wet. We’re doing this, and you’re damn well gonna like it.”

I caught sight of the small twitch in her eyelid, the one that developed just after giving birth to her second son, the one that became more prominent whenever she thought about living in a house overrun by boys.

“Okay,” I placated on a whisper, knowing the next phase of a Constance meltdown was crying and wanting to do everything in my power to prevent reaching that level. “Okay. I’ll have fun, I swear.”

Connie’s bottom lip began to tremble. “Thank you,” she croaked, her eyes gleaming with unshed tears. “It’s just… boys are so gross!”

“Shh, shh, shh.” I looped my arms around her neck and pulled her in for a hug, patting her back soothingly as she sniffled against my shoulder. “I know, honey. I know. Boys are disgusting.”

“The worst,” she spoke, her voice muffled by my shirt. “Today I found rotten orange slices in Deacon’s backpack.” Her head shot up, and she looked at me with big eyes. “They’d been in there for a month, Melly. A month! Do you have any idea what that smelled like? And he just forgot about them!”

She was starting to get hysterical, and I knew I had to diffuse the situation quickly. “Hey!” I chirped cheerfully. “I bet there’s wine inside. Why don’t we get in there and get you a nice big glass, huh? Mmm,” I hummed. “I bet it’s really good!”

“O-okay.” She sniffled again, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. “I could do that.”

I took her elbow and knocked loudly. “It’ll make you feel all better,” I told her in a tone similar to one I’d use on a fussy toddler.

As soon as Devon opened the door, I gave her wide, dramatic eyes and shot a sideways glance at Constance while mouthing, “Wine. STAT.”

Devon took one look at my friend and, recognizing a woman in need, thrust the glass she was holding in Connie’s direction with a cheerful, “Welcome! You must be Melany’s best friend. She told me you’d be here. I’m so glad you guys came!”

I turned to look at Constance just as she finished draining the glass with a contented, “Ahhh. Thanks for including me.” She grinned, back to her normal self. “It’s nice to have grownup time every once in a while.”

Devon stepped back and waved us inside. The next few minutes were a bit overwhelming as drinks and introductions were passed around. I recognized Pepper from the boutique, but met the other two women Devon dubbed the Locklaine Girls, Navie and Delilah. The four women were completely different in every way—from looks to personality—but they all seemed to get along great and had no problem bringing Constance and me into the mix.

They were all loud but no less friendly, and I told myself that I should be comfortable, that these were nice women.

I was just starting to relax when I heard, “Ooh wee! If it isn’t the woman with the ass that could turn a man straight!”

All eyes went to the familiar, flamboyantly dressed man who was walking out of the kitchen. He was the one who worked for Pepper, the one who’d made me blush so red I thought my cheeks would catch fire.

“Tomas!” Pepper cried. “Don’t embarrass her!”

“And what the hell were you doing in my kitchen?” Devon asked. “You better not have made a mess.”

He rolled his eyes and plopped down in an armchair so skillfully he didn’t spill a drop of the bright pink liquid in his martini glass. “Bitch please. You vaginas can drink your wine. I’ve got class, so it’s cosmopolitans all the way.” He turned from Devon and gave me a wicked grin. “How you been, beautiful?”

“Uh… g-good.” A giggle came from beside me. Constance was finding Tomas’s eccentricities hilarious. I probably would have too if he didn’t make me so nervous.

“Mm-hmm, I’d say.” His eyes did a scan of the tight skinny jeans and scoop-neck tee that hung off one shoulder. “You went from those hideous skirts and ugly-ass shirts to showing off that smokin’ hot body.” He lifted his glass in salute. “Good for you, sweetness. Good for you.”

Constance giggled again and took a drink from her refilled wineglass. “She does have a smokin’ hot body, doesn’t she? I’ve been telling her for years!”

Tomas gave her a curious glance, his eyes dancing beneath the shadow cast by his fedora… that’s right, his fedora. And the dude was rocking it! If Tomas thought I was pretty, then he’d go insane for Constance. With her dark hair, honey-colored eyes, and delicate features, she looked like a living Disney princess. “And who are you?” he asked.

She lowered her glass and smiled brightly. “I’m Melly’s best friend. I’ve known her almost my whole life, and can I just say I’m thrilled she’s finally coming out of her shell? It’s about damn time! Bonus, I get to come along for the ride and escape a household of dirty, smelly boys.”

Tomas grinned cheekily. “Oh, I think I’m going to like you, honey bunch.”

Constance winked and drained her second glass of wine. Thank God we were taking a cab home, because I had no doubt she’d be smashed before we left. “You get me one of those cosmos and the feeling will be totally mutual, sugar.”

“MORE BROWN.”

“No. Adding more won’t look natural.”

“I think she needs a touch more bronzer.”

“She looks pretty just like that.”

“God, these are the best cosmos ever. I LOVE GIRLS’ NIGHT!”

The makeup lessons had gone really well… at first. Then, with the more alcohol consumed, things started deteriorating fast. Luckily, I was tipsy enough not to care. It hadn’t taken long at all for me to warm up to these wonderful women and Tomas. They were just too funny and outgoing not to like. Plus, I had the benefit of liquid courage, so I was feeling rather confident. For the first time in as long as I could remember, I was actually having fun… in a group… of people! It was so out of character for me, yet refreshing. It gave me a taste of what life could be like if I ever got over my neurosis.

I laughed as Devon dragged the blush brush across my cheek. “That tickles.”

“I think…,” Devon said, her words slurring a bit as she squinted at me through one eye. “I think the lessons are over for tonight. I’m seeing two of you and don’t know which one to put makeup on.”

Her blue eyes got big before we both burst into a fit of giggles. I brought my glass to my lips and tipped my head back, only to find it was already empty. “Damn,” I mumbled. “Someone drank all my wine.”

Navie’s tinkling laughter sounded from behind me. “I think that someone was you, girly.”

“Oh. I guess it was!” I laughed.

“Women,” Tomas grumbled from beside me, leisurely sprawled out on the sofa like the queen of Egypt. All that was missing was someone fanning him with palm leaves. “Can’t hold their liquor to save their lives.”

Pepper threw a Q-tip at his head, missing by a few feet, and teased, “Tomas the Great. So superior to the rest of us mere mortals.”

He wiggled his fingers in her direction and replied, “Glad you’re finally realizing, sweety-kins,” but I was too focused on something else to pay attention to them.

“Your hair’s so pretty,” I whispered drunkenly, as I leaned forward and rubbed strands of her hair between my fingers. “I’ve always wanted dark hair.”

“Ooh!” Delilah, the sweet, quieter one of the group, exclaimed. “You should totally do it! I bet it would look great with your coloring.”

“You think?”

“Definitely,” Devon replied. Then she gasped and shot up from her chair. “I actually have a box of color under my bathroom sink!” She got strange looks from everyone around us. “What?” she shrugged. “I thought I found a gray hair a few weeks ago. Thank God it was a false alarm.”

“Uh…,” Navie spoke up. “Is hair-coloring while drunk really a good idea?”

Tomas set his drink down and made a show of throwing his legs off the couch and standing tall, cocking one hip out. “I’ll do it. I’m more sober than all you bitches, and hair is totes my thing.”

Pepper wrinkled her nose up at him. “I thought fashion was your thing.”

With his hands propped on his hips, he shot her a look. “It is, but before I realized the world needed my skills as a fashionista, I learned how to do hair. Have you seen all the women in Manhattan walking around with frizzy, over-processed hair? It’s an epidemic!” He shuddered before carrying on. “I felt it was my duty to save the city, one bottled blonde at a time. Now I’m just saving them from such things as Mom Jeans and Uggs instead.” He reached down to grab my hand and pulled me up. “Come on, hot stuff, let’s transform you.”

A while later, we were all in Devon’s bathroom. It was a decent-sized space, but with so many people crammed in, I felt a little claustrophobic.

Tomas’s fingers worked diligently, separating sections of hair and coating each strand in the dark mixture. I sat in front of the vanity in one of the dining room chairs Devon had dragged in, with a towel wrapped securely around my shoulders, staring at everyone through the mirror as they watched Tomas work.

My drunken state had dwindled into a light buzz before almost disappearing all together, and I was starting to think coloring my hair wasn’t the best decision. It was just so… different. But it was too late to turn back now.

“You look like you’re freaking out,” Constance stated.

“I think I might be,” I said quietly. “I’m not as drunk now as I was when we decided to do this.”

“Don’t freak out,” she warned. “It’s just a bit of color, nothing permanent.”

“And with the makeup and new clothes, you’re going to be beating the men off with a stick,” Tomas added.

I blew out a breath and mumbled, “I don’t want to beat anyone with a stick.”

Clearly ignoring my change of mood, Devon grinned widely into the mirror at me. “Soooo?” she dragged out. “What’s the deal with you and Chance?”

I spun to look at her only to have Tomas jerk my head back and issue a stern, “Stop fidgeting.”

“Ooh, yes!” Pepper hissed, rubbing her hands together. “I’ve been wondering the same thing!”

“W-what do you mean?” I asked their reflections. All other conversations had ceased and everyone’s attention was on me, causing my skin to prickle. But I was determined to push the nerves back. These were good people.

Devon’s smile grew knowing as her head cocked to the side. “I mean you two are spending a lot of time together. He’s taken you shopping and to lunch… so, what’s going on?”

My face scrunched in confusion, but I was careful not to move, for fear of what Tomas would do to me. She rolled her eyes, understanding that I wasn’t following, and elaborated. “Is there something romantic going on between you two?”

I couldn’t help it. I burst into laughter at her ridiculous question. “No! Oh God. We’re just friends. But that was really funny.” I swiped my tears of hilarity away and found her staring at me with a weird expression on her face.

“Why would that be funny?”

With a snort, I answered, “Picturing him with me,” I cackled. “Trust me, there’s nothing going on there.” My laughter died down, all humor vanishing from my expression when I realized no one else thought the idea of Chance being into me was as funny as I did. “Seriously. We’re just friends.”

Devon’s features seemed to wash over with sadness as she looked at Constance. “She really doesn’t have any idea, does she?”

In return, my best friend shook her head solemnly. “Not a clue,” she answered like I wasn’t even in the room.

“Not a clue about what?” I asked, my gaze pinging between them like a tennis ball.

“But in her defense,” Constance continued, “I blame her witch of a mother.”

“Really guys… not a clue about what? And what’s my mom have to do with it?”

Tomas’s hands landed gently on my shoulders, and when I tipped my head to his reflection, he was looking down at me with sympathy in his eyes. “Let’s get you rinsed and, hopefully, you’ll see what we all do. Everyone out!” He ordered like a drill sergeant with a clap of his hands. “I need to get her over the bathtub.”

They all scurried out without so much as a backward glance, and he went about leading me to the tub and leaning me over so he could wash the color out of my hair. For the next half hour, he kept me with my back to the mirror as he used a pair of scissors he’d miraculously unearthed from the tote bag he carried to cut my hair. He then blow-dried and styled my hair to within an inch of its life before declaring it “absolutely perfect.”

When he finally allowed me to stand from the chair and face the mirror, I was unable to hold in the gasp at what I saw before me. It was like looking at a completely different person. The dark color of my hair made my once plain, pale brown eyes shine like amber. With the soft, natural way Devon had done my makeup, my complexion looked dewier, my cheeks just a touch pinker. I looked… really, really pretty!

“Oh wow,” I breathed, as I studied my reflection. “Oh wow!”

Tomas came to stand behind me and grinned, grabbing hold of my biceps and giving them a friendly squeeze. “I’m thinking you finally see what we all see,” he said softly, making my eyes well up with tears.

“I look… I look…”

“Absolutely gorgeous,” he finished. “Not that you already weren’t. We just helped to highlight some of your best features. You like?”

I spun in a circle and wrapped my arms around his neck. “I love,” I whispered. “Thank you for making me pretty.”

He pulled away and held me at arm’s length. “You were already pretty, sweetness. We just helped to make you realize it.”

The rest of the girls came in, all oohing and ahhing over my new look, but it was the tears I saw in Constance’s eyes that made mine well up again. “My BFF finally let her outside match the beauty on the inside.” Her voice cracked on the last word as heavy emotion took hold of us both.

I moved from Tomas and wrapped my friend in a tight hug as Pepper declared, “This is cause to celebrate. Who wants shots?”

Not one to argue, I went along with everyone else and proceeded to get obliterated. But doing it with friends made the inevitable hangover totally worth it.