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.”“Anyway, do you like this one?”Val wrinkled her nose.“I hate one-shoulder dresses.I always feel lopsided.”“Okay then,” Stacy answered with a snicker, as she put the dress back.They continued to flip through the racks.Val bit her lip.Should she tell Stacy about kissing Nate again? Finally, she decided she needed someone to talk to and Stacy was likeliest the least judgmental of anyone she knew.“Hey.” Stacy looked up from where she was admiring the beaded bodice of a dress that would look great on her but not on Val, who’d fall out of the thing.“Did I tell you Nate kissed me again?”“No.And I can’t believe you didn’t say something earlier.We’ve been together for almost two hours now.When were you planning to slip this little piece of information in?”“Apparently right now,” Val answered, rolling her eyes.“Oh.Yeah.Well, why did you wait so long?” Stacy tugged Val to a pair of chairs outside the dressing room.She waved toward the dresses when Val protested.“We’ll get back to that in a minute.Right now you need to tell me what happened.Don’t leave any details out.”Val recounted the tale of Nate kissing her in her office and then that little brush of a kiss later.Stacy stayed silent throughout, and when Val finished, she said, “Let me ask you a question.” At Val’s nod, she continued.“Would it be that bad to give in to the attraction? I mean, he’s not staying, right? So where’s the harm in having a little fun?”“I don’t do that.I don’t have casual sex,” Val protested.“You say that like I just told you to go hump a football team.Sex for sex’s sake doesn’t have to be dirty.”“I know.I just…” She wasn’t sure how to explain her feelings.“I haven’t had sex since Brian and I broke up and I’m afraid that once I start my judgment will be clouded.”“In what way?”“Like I won’t be able to tell if he really likes me or if he’s just using me for sex.”“So what? Do you want him to like you?”“I don’t know.Yes.No.This is all becoming so complicated.I think the whole problem is that I don’t want to like him, but I do.I can’t help it.Even when he’s driving me crazy and we’re arguing about how to handle stuff I still want to climb over the table, grab the lapels of his perfectly-tailored suit and kiss the daylights out of him.”“Wow.You should do it, then.”“Right.Not that easy, by far.Let’s get back to dress shopping, shall we?”“So are we looking for something that’ll make Nate sit up and take notice?”“God, no, I don’t want him to be any more aggressive than he already is.”Stacy laughed and Val shook her head at her friend.It was easy for Stacy to be so carefree about all this stuff.She didn’t have a hotter-than-sin, overly confident, all-male specimen to contend with for hours every day.Together they picked out several dresses and Val headed to the fitting room to try them on.The first, a sleeveless white silk gown with a gathered bodice, was nice but too clingy.Stacy remarked, “That thing looks like it was painted on.”That was all Val needed to hear.She peeled the dress off, handed it to Stacy to put back on the hanger, and went to the next, a long black dress with an open back.That one was discarded as soon as Val turned around to look at herself in the mirror.“Way too sexy.”“What do you mean? Except for the back it’s pretty staid.”“Yeah, and the back’s the problem.It goes down almost to my butt!”“It does not,” Stacy argued.“I’m not wearing it.Next.” They went through a bunch more dresses until Val slipped one over her head, turned toward the mirror, and gasped.The gown was satin with a chiffon overlay.It looked silver, but as she moved the satin shimmered in greens and pinks.The little chiffon wrap with the dress made her feel more covered up, even if it was only an illusion.She checked out the price tag.“And I can afford it.Even better.”They gathered all the rejected dresses, leaving them on the rack outside the dressing room.After paying for her purchase, she and Stacy stopped by the makeup counter and Val bought a few special colors to do her eyes for the party.With their shopping done, they strolled back down the main aisle of the mall, talking, until they came to the entrance by the food court.Val hugged Stacy.“Thank you so much for putting up with my craziness.”“Anytime, girl.You know that.” Stacy pulled away and waggled her finger.“But I want at least one picture, even if it’s from your cell phone.”Val laughed.“I’ll see what I can do.”Chapter NineNate called and told her he’d come pick her up.She protested, as the gala was only a few blocks from the hospital, whereas her little house was almost a half-hour outside the city, but Nate wouldn’t hear of her meeting him there.Finally Val relented, figuring she had bigger fish to fry with him than where they’d meet that night.Through some stroke of magic, Val was able to get into her favorite salon for a manicure and pedicure before Michelle, her stylist, put her hair up in an elegant twist.Driving home, she was careful to keep her nails and her hair from getting messed up.But when she stepped out into the typical Buffalo wind, one strand of long, black hair flew across her face and she shrieked, running into the house as best she could in her flip-flops.Slamming the door behind her, she put a tentative hand up to assess the damage.Not too bad—nothing she couldn’t repair with a few strategically-placed bobby pins and a metric ton of hairspray.By the time she’d shimmied into her dress, fixed her hair, and applied her makeup, Nate was due to arrive.She didn’t even have time to be nervous, but when the doorbell rang her heart jumped in her chest anyway.Forcing herself to move slowly, she went to the door and opened it, then had to concentrate on keeping her tongue in her mouth as she looked at Nate.He was attired in a navy-blue tuxedo that looked like it had been made specifically for him, but unless he typically traveled with a tux she doubted that was true.The man certainly knew how to wear clothes.The wide shoulders tapered down to a three-button waist, and his powerful thighs were lovingly encased in the pants.The look was topped off by a traditional white tuxedo shirt and a navy-blue satin tie that matched the crisp lapels.Overall, an entirely delectable package.Too delectable.They both stood there, admiring each other, until Nate cleared his throat.Val was brought back to reality in force then.“I’m sorry, come in.I just need to gather a few things and I’ll be ready to go.”“Take your time
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