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feeds it to Bell after she gives her a shake with her
paw, and then she leaves.
     
     

Chapter Four

    Allie
     
    “So, are you working together all of next
week, or just certain events?” Kelly asks from behind the dressing
room door.
    My eyes roll because I can hear the smile in
her voice. She isn’t going to let this go.
    I learned early on in our friendship that
having a best friend who lives in the apartment across from you is
the best and worst idea ever. I should have known after I gave her
the brief overview of Parker last night that that wouldn’t be the
end of it.
    The idea of him was stuck in my brain all
night and in an effort to get rid of those thoughts, I’d done some
intense reading before bed. I wish it had help, but instead, all it
did was cause me to consider telling Parker I’d changed my mind.
But then I thought about my ex and how after our relationship
ended, I’d had to find another job. I love my job now and I don’t
want a different one.
    “A little of both, but don’t get any ideas. I
can’t take the chance of dating another coworker.” I slide the side
zipper up on the white dress and face the full-length mirror.
    Crap.
    Even my light pink panties are visible. I
turn in a slow circle and absorb the outfit my dearest, yet totally
insane, best friend picked out for me just moments ago. It’s skin
tight, which I hate. It’s a halter top dress that has a low back
and a hemline that barely makes it past my ass. I make the full
circle and stop when I’m facing the mirror head on. Is this white
or clear? I can’t really tell.
    I flip my hair behind my shoulders and then
cringe at how revealing the front of this dress is. If my boobs
were any bigger, they’d fall out. I shake my head until my hair
falls around my face again and start for the zipper. There’s no way
I’m letting anyone catch me in this dress.
    “Get out here, Allie, I want to see that
dress!” Kelly shouts in a whisper as she knocks on my dressing room
door. Holding back my groan, I step out to find her wearing what I
think is a black dress, but looks more like a short skirt pulled up
past her chest.
    “You look hot,” she beams at me and her white
teeth glow against the spray tan she got earlier today. I stayed
home maintaining a pale skin tone. A tan in the middle of winter
never made much sense to me, but Kelly loves it.
    I cock on eyebrow out of habit. “Seriously,
Kelly, I look like a stripper,” I point at my revealing chest then
to my ass before back at her. “We look like strippers.”
    “Hey now, we look like hot strippers,”
she laughs. “New Years Eve is in four days. If we’re going to get
you out of this
I-don’t-need-a-man-but-I-really-want-my-coworker-and-won’t-admit-it
phase, than dressing sexy is the first step. You can’t even enjoy
working with a completely good-looking and smoking-hot man. What am
I going to do with you? Tsk-tsk.”
    Instinctively I roll my eyes at her again and
smile. “That’s a little dramatic, don’t you think? I mean, you know
exactly why I can’t date him and my physical appearance has nothing
to do with it. I don’t need a sexy dress to find a man.”
    “It sure won’t hurt. I think you should buy
it for the last night of Date in the Dark,” she suggests, ignoring
my comment. She turns in front of the mirror, flushing her short
auburn hair up then combing it back down as best she can. “Should I
wear my teased or straightened?”
    “Teased, and no, I’m not buying this dress or
attending that silly event.”
    Kelly’s arms flop to her side and then rest
on her lean hips. “Oh, come on, Allie, live a little. It’s going to
be fun. The best part is that they can’t see you. You could be
anyone you want, wear whatever you want, and they’d never
know.”
    “Yeah, until the lights come on at midnight
on the last night.”
    “True, but—” she smirks at me, “—you’ll be
wearing that, so he won’t care in the slightest.”
    “No,” I say, but