her satin-covered thigh.
“Later, baby. I promise. I’ll make it worth your wait.”
“Oh, I know you will,” she whispered back.
“McQueen?” Amanda looked up as Helene nodded toward the entrance to the ballroom. “Ladies?”
“Oh yeah. I’ll come with.” She squeezed Sam’s hand before she stood up. “I’ll be right back.”
They made their way across the dining room to the ladies’ restroom just as a wave of people emptied out of the space. They’d probably just missed some great restroom gossip. Amanda gathered up her dress and successfully used the facilities before she stepped back out to the sinks to wash her hands and check that her makeup was still in place.
Amanda reached under her gown for one quick adjustment of her Spanx, turning as she heard a woman farther down the sinks gasp. She looked up and saw Rina, one of her favorite pop singers, standing by the hand dryers gawking at Amanda’s feet.
“Oh my God. Are you wearing cowboy boots?”
“Yeah,” Amanda laughed. The gown and the cape were so long and her boobs were pushed so high up to her chin, she figured she was owed one bit of comfort for the evening. She’d gone back to one of Sam’s favorite suppliers, the Country General Store in the valley, and picked out a comfortable hand-stitched pair in ice blue. They fit like a dream. While other women were ready to ditch their heels, her feet were the last thing she’d been thinking about.
“Fucking amazing,” Rina replied.
“I’m digging the nun getup, but I’m a little lost on the theme.” Amanda had seen Rina and Kata, the other half of their pop duo, making the rounds earlier in their matching embroidered habits.
“There’s no greater love than my love for the Lord,” Rina said, clasping a rosary in her hands as she bowed her head deeply.
“Amazing and kinda blasphemous. I’m here for it.”
“Thank you. You seriously look amazing. And those titties! They are sitting, girl.”
Amanda looked down at her cleavage, which had attracted a lot of attention during the night. She didn’t mind though ’cause she was mostly focused on the look of lust in Sam’s eyes whenever he glanced her way. She knew she was in for a great time as soon as they got back to the hotel. She stuck a finger between her breasts, giving them a little jiggle. “I should have hidden some snacks in there.”
“Ugh, for real. All this damn fabric and I forgot to line the pockets with candy or a turkey sandwich. We’re getting pizza as soon as this thing is over. Whatever they are about to feed us will not be enough.”
“So are we!” Helene yelled from the stall.
“Love it. See you back out there,” Rina said with a smile before she twirled around and headed for the door. She stopped short just as she almost bumped into the next woman entering the restroom. Amanda tensed as Dru walked past Rina without a hint of an excuse-me. Dru almost skidded to a halt as soon as she saw Amanda. She was wearing a skintight, knee length leather dress with a red heart stitched over her chest. Her hair was pulled back in a severe braid that was draped over her shoulder. She looked amazing if not uncomfortable as hell. Amanda almost wondered how she was going to hike the full-body condom up so she could use the bathroom.
A moment of tense silence filled the air and the distance between them. Amanda knew what was coming. A rude comment about her weight or her dress or her hair. How silly she and Sam looked? How foolish? Who did they think they were? But just as Dru fixed her mouth to spew her venom, a toilet flushed and then another. Amanda realized she simply couldn’t hear her over the layered sounds of rushing water.
“Girl,” Helene said as she stepped out of the stall. “Empire waist everything. This dress is comfortable as fuck.” She and Ignacio had come as Romeo and Juliet, and Helene looked beyond stunning in her light, flowy gown that did amazing things for her breasts. She stepped to the sink doing a double take as she spotted Dru still seething near the door. Helene scoffed and went back to washing her hands. She dried them, then turned to Amanda as more women filtered in and out of the room.
“Ready?”
“Yup.”
They pushed past Dru and out the door without a word or another look in her direction. They eventually made their way back to their seats, but not before Helene graciously introduced Amanda to a number of friends and VIPs she had yet to meet. It took some getting used to, hearing Helene introduce her as an up-and-coming screenwriter, but she forced herself to smile and accept her kind words, dressing for the job she wanted, taking on the title with pride, if not a bit of terror. She’d get there one day. She could do it.
Sam stood and pulled out her chair for her, helping her get her gown back under the table. “All good?” he asked, gently running his fingers over the back of her neck once she was settled in. Yeah, she was definitely going to put it on him the first chance she got.
“Never better.”
Don’t miss Zach and Evie’s story in
A COWBOY TO REMEMBER
Available now
And keep an eye out for
JESSE’S STORY
Coming soon
From Rebekah Weatherspoon
And Kensington Books