Page 47 of The Reverse Cinderella

“Glad someone has confidence,” Piaget muttered as he left the apartment. She ignored the mess in the living room area and walked to her bedroom. Laid across the bed was not the most expensive dress she had ever worn. Piaget had sold all her other clothes at a consignment shop to get the deposit for this apartment. And food. And bus fare. Plus, whatever other essentials she could get including a computer and printer for school. She wished she had held back one or three dresses but then, she hadn’t thought of Tricia’s impending nuptials. She had been more worried about being homeless at the time. Now Piaget had this dress plus two more in the closet picked out just for this weekend. None of them were up to the standards her former life expected but they were all that she could afford. Truth was, she couldn’t afford it at all. Nor the jewelry, nor the shoes. Or the trip to the hairdresser on tomorrow’s agenda. But what was a girl to do?

With a sigh, Piaget plopped down onto the bed beside the dress. For sure she was having a Cinderella moment, only it was a lot more expensive since she had no fairy godmother. Not only that, but how was she going to change her handsome homeless frog into an acceptable prince for the posh and snotty society they would be encountering on the weekend? Maybe she should call it a reverse Cinderella moment.

He loves me,the thought pushed unbidden into her head.

He couldn’t. They barely even know each other. He couldn’t, could he?

He said he loves me.

Maybe it was just a slip of the tongue. Just something he felt comfortable saying. There were all sorts of levels of love. Maybe what he really meant was that he liked her. Loved her in a friendly, your cute sort of way. Warm and fuzzy but not a love you forever sort of way. Like she liked him. Sort of.

Why was she disappointed with that idea? Why was she lying to herself? She knew that she liked him a great deal. Maybe was edging closer to the love word every day.

He couldn’t really love her. Could he?

It had to be somewhat romantic, she reasoned, since he had a habit of kissing her and called her his girl. Boy, what a kiss. Even now her belly clenched just remembering it.He would be sooo much better in bed than Gary.

“You don’t know that! It’s just a kiss,” Piaget berated herself and got up. She had an application for the post of mayor to finish before midnight.