Like a Boss - Annabelle Costa Page 0,25

the way.”

I stick out my tongue at him and he laughs. I guess he’s right though. If you’re going to go someplace fancy, you have to dress fancy. But I have to wonder what sort of world we’re living in where there are people who would pay four-hundred dollars for a white shirt.

Irene emerges from the back carrying what appears to be a simple black dress, but Irene announces it is, in fact, “an Oscar de la Renta metallic floral lace gown.” It looks pretty unexciting, but Luke seems to like it, so I try to seem enthusiastic.

“It’s fab,” I say. Fab? Where did I come up with that word? Even Luke is looking at me with a bemused expression on his face and mouthing “fab?”

“You two can go in the back so she can try it on,” Irene suggests.

“Um,” Luke says. “Actually, we’re not… I mean, Ellie should just go herself…”

I can’t help but notice the twinge of a smile on Irene’s face on confirming that Luke and I aren’t a couple. Does she like him? And why does that thought fill me with the same burning, uncomfortable sensation in the back of my head that I felt when I looked at Michelle?

It’s not jealousy. I swear it’s not.

I go into the changing room, shrug off my jeans and sweater, and slide the dress onto my body. There’s a mirror in there, which is great for making sure I don’t look like an idiot before I go back outside.

Except I don’t look like an idiot at all. I look amazing. Like a movie star on the red carpet or something. I always made fun of people who shopped at expensive stores when you could get the same clothes for a quarter of the price. But I was wrong. This dress is gorgeous. It transforms me from a dowdy software engineer into… well, someone beautiful. I can’t stop staring at myself.

My elbow brushes against something and I realize it’s the price tag. I look at it and my heart sinks. This dress costs over five-thousand dollars. How is that even possible? I’ve never owned anything that cost that much, even a car. I can’t let Luke buy this dress for me. I can’t. It’s out of the question.

I emerge from the dressing room. Irene and Luke are chatting and he says something that Irene thinks is funny and she slugs him in the shoulder playfully. I have to admit, I’m still wearing the dress. I can’t seem to take it off. I figure, just a few minutes longer and I’ll say goodbye forever.

Luke’s jaw drops open when he sees me. “That’s the dress,” he says. “We’re taking it.”

“But Luke…” I get closer to him and lower my voice, hoping Irene won’t hear even though I know she will. “It costs five-thousand dollars.”

He doesn’t even flinch. “Yeah, so? That’s how much dresses cost.”

How does he know how much dresses cost?

“That’s actually one of our cheaper dresses,” Irene adds haughtily. I’m really beginning to dislike this woman.

“I’m just not sure I feel comfortable…”

“Don’t worry about it—it’s only a few thousand dollars.” Luke glances at his watch. “Come on, we still need to get you shoes.”

Chapter 12

I feel slightly ill as I think about how much money Luke just spent on me as we drive to his apartment. I didn’t know shoes could cost that much. We also had to buy a pair of black pantyhose, since mine all have rips in them. I generally just wear slacks to work.

Luke seems unconcerned though, as he sends out an email on his iPhone. It’s amazing how he types with his knuckles, since he can’t use his fingers. I didn’t even realize I was staring until Luke looks up at me and says, “What?”

“Nothing,” I say quickly. “Just… it’s hard to hit the keys on those things, isn’t it?”

“I train myself to do everything I need to do,” he says.

I nod at his crisp white dress shirt. “How do you fasten the buttons?”

He smiles crookedly. “I can’t. My cleaning woman makes sure all my shirts are buttoned for me, and I just put them over my head. I’ve got a little button threader if I have one or two buttons left.”

“It’s… impressive.”

“Well, thanks… I think.” He shoves his phone back into his pocket. “After what I went through after my injury, it was really important for me to be completely independent. The level of my injury… if it were any higher, I would need help