Page 55 of The Alpha Escort Agency

Alice grins. “Are you going to let me choose my dress?”

“Nope.”

She groans. “Fine, I’ll try one on.”

“Thank you, sweetie.” Maria passes her a flute. “To love,” she says, clinking the rim of her glass against Alice’s.

“To love.”

“Talking of which?” Maria says, bumping her shoulder against Alice's. “Spit it out?”

“Spit what out?”

“The latest with Mr lurva lurva.”

“Hmmm,” Alice swoons back against the sofa. “The exhibition went really well. And afterwards ….” she smiles into the rim of her glass.

“Afterwards?”

“I went back to his.”

“What the hell?” Maria shrieks. “How have you waited this long to tell me?”

She shrugs.

“Is this getting serious then, Missy ‘I’m not interested in relationships right now’?”

“I think maybe, I mean we’ll see,” Alice pinches a curl between her finger and thumb and tucks it behind her ear. “We talked about him quitting the agency.”

“Wow.” Maria gawps at her.

“I know. I told him what he does for a living isn’t exactly compatible with a relationship.”

“Too right. Can you imagine telling your kids the story of how you met?”

“Maria!” She whacks her on the arm. “What’re you going to tell your kids about how you met Ed?”

“I will tell them that Mummy and Daddy met at a party.”

“In the toilets, where Mummy was puking her guts out because she’d drunk too much vodka.” Alice shuffles around on the sofa to face Maria. “I mean, trust you to bag someone like Ed in that way.”

Maria shrugs, then scowls at Alice. “If I let you do a speech at the wedding, you are not allowed to tell that story. My mum thinks I met Ed at church.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes, so don’t you dare break that illusion, okay?” She wags her forefinger at Alice.

Alice seals her lips with her fingers.

“Anyway,” Maria says, “back to you.” She squints at Alice. “So he just accepted that? I mean, that’s a pretty big bombshell to drop on someone, asking them to change their career.”

“Hmmmm.” She swirls the liquid around her glass, not sure how she explains it all to Maria.

“Ladies.” The attendant returns with another younger woman trailing behind her, their arms full of white material.

They enter one of the dressing rooms and get to work hanging out each dress.

“Would you like to come and look,” the lady asks.