EVIL QUEEN - Rebel Hart Page 0,74
come on. You know her better than any of us. Help us find something more Nikita.”
“Jaxy?” I called out. “Cute!”
Jaxon popped his hand over the top of the dressing room door, middle finger brandished before Colette dragged him away. I removed the dress and returned it to the hanger, then hung it on the wall.
“Nikki?” Avery called over the door.
“Yeah?”
“Hey,” she said, and her voice was quieter. “Thank you for doing this. She’d been looking forward to this all year, and then when everything happened, she didn’t think we’d be able to do it. I swear that every time we talked about prom dress shopping, she included you. You aren’t a replacement.”
“I can tell,” I said. “Thanks for including me.”
No other words passed between us, and none were needed. The Royal Court had always been an obligation for us, so learning how to just be friends was taking some serious practice, but we were getting there.
After about twenty minutes of flipping through my phone, Avery let out a yelp. “Oh my gosh! It’s perfect, but I’ve got a new plan.” She knocked on the door. “Nikki, close your eyes. We’re coming in.”
“Why would I close my eyes? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?” I asked.
“Please. It’s nothing we haven’t seen before. Just do it,” she retorted. “Oh, unlock the door first.” Not wanting to argue, I unlocked the door and then closed my eyes. Two other bodies packed into the dressing room alongside me—I assumed Colette and Avery—and then Avery said, “Okay, keep ‘em closed. We’re gonna dress you.”
“What?” I screeched. “No!”
“Come on! I want it to be a surprise. Please! Just trust me.”
“Jaxon picked it out,” Colette added. “Really, it’s gonna be absolutely perfect on you.”
I let out a sigh and held out my hands, and an instant later, Avery and Colette’s hands were all over me. It wasn’t a dress, given that someone was working a top over my head while someone else was working pants over my legs, but from what I could tell of the material, it wasn’t the cotton I was planning on. Still, it wasn’t entirely uncomfortable, not until whoever was handling the shirt pulled it all the way down. It stopped just above my midriff.
“Is it too small?” I asked.
“Nope, it fits perfectly,” Avery said.
I wrapped a hand around my stomach. “My stomach is showing, though.”
“It’s supposed to be that way, Nikki,” Colette replied. “Don’t worry. It’s super sexy.”
Sexy wasn’t ever a look I was striving for, but then Avery let out a quiet hum and said, “Nathan’s gonna lose his mind,” and it sent a chill rushing through me.
For Nathan, it’d be nice to be sexy.
Eventually, Avery and Colette’s hands left my body, so I asked, “Can I open my eyes now?”
“No, wait!” Avery yelped. She reached forward and undid the two braids I typically kept my hair in. “Oh, wow. Your braids give your hair this natural, beach-curl look.”
“It’s super cute, but it’s still missing something,” Colette replied, then screeched, “Oh! I know! Keep your eyes closed.” She clamored out of the dressing room. About two minutes later, she came back, and I felt her tying something around my forehead and knotting it behind my head. “That’s it!”
“That’s totally it,” Avery said. “Okay, Nikki. Open.”
Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked into my reflection in the mirror. A smile rose to my face without my control. I was wearing a pair of black, flared, sequined pants, but the sequins were small and understated, so it didn’t look gaudy. The top was a plain, stain, black top with spaghetti straps that gave a very subtle but very enticing view of my stomach. My blond hair with multi-colored strands dyed in was down in loose beach curls, and they tied a thin rope hippie-style around my forehead.
I looked over at Avery, and I had to imagine that I was blushing. “I look pretty.”
Both Colette and Avery cheered, and then there was a knock on the door. “Hey! I picked it out. Let me see!”
Avery and Colette slid out of the dressing room first, and then I followed them. When Jaxon’s eyes landed on me, they widened, and he got a bright smile on his face that was unlike anything I’d ever seen.
“Holy shit, Nikki!” He stood up. “You look amazing!”
“Yeah?” I asked.
Jaxon looked at Colette. “Clearly, I need to update my resume to include fashion sense.”
“Clearly,” Colette replied.
Avery and Colette had a much easier time picking out dresses. Then we secured Jaxon