Chapter 137 Dress of Dreams
With just a few days left until the big award show, Andrea couldn’t get too stuck in her head about how the movie was going. She had to go try on dresses. While she’d already seen a few from different designers and had one in mind, she had to try some on.
The designer she’d decided to go with was an eccentric middle-aged woman with an affinity for ferrets. Kelsey came with her to Lanshia Parque’s studio in the arts district. Andrea wished Case could go with her, but since he was busy getting ready for his race that weekend, Kelsey was there. At least Andrea had someone by her side.
Lanshia’s assistant was a small woman with giant glasses and the sort of voice that came out as a squeak when she spoke, which made Andrea wonder if she hadn’t been yelled out a few times. Her name was Mia, and she greeted them upon their arrival and ushered them into a small waiting room saying, “I’ll let Ms. Parque know that you’re here.”
“Thank you,” Andrea said with a smile. But the second Mia left the room, she blew out a breath and asked Kelsey, “Do you smell that?”
“Smell it? How could I miss it? I have lungs, don’t I?”
“What is it?” A pungent smell filled the small room. It was possibly coming from the room next to them. Andrea was sitting by a door. The odor could’ve been wafting from beneath it.
“I’m not one to take bets, but if I had to, I’d say… ferret.”
“You think?” Andrea asked, her eyes bulging.
“I’ve heard she owns fifty or sixty.”
“Get out of town!”
Kelsey nodded. “But… everyone says she keeps her animals away from her dresses, so none of her products smell so… animalistic.”
“Wonderful.” Andrea wondered if it was too late to find another designer.
“There you are, darling!” a loud voice burst through the door ahead of the tiny woman with white hair and bright red lips. She was wearing an odd outfit—faux orange leather leggings and a turquoise tunic that went almost to her knees. A belt decorated in seashells was slung around her waist and her boots seemed to be made of faux fur pellets—maybe ferret. “How are you?”
Andrea stood, and Lanshia took her hand, kissing her cheeks, though her lips never quite touched. “It’s lovely to meet you.”
“It’s my pleasure, darling! I cannot wait to show you what I’ve designed for you. I think you’ll love it!”
“Well, I just loved the red dress you sent me pictures of.”
“Yes, yes, that one is beautiful. I have it for you to try on, but when you said you were interested, I came up with something else—just for you.” With a wink, Lanshia spun on her boots and led Andrea into another room. Kelsey followed behind them.
Thankfully, the new room did not smell like ferrets at all. It was a large space with several mannequins in different stages of dress. Several seamstresses and designers were working on different gowns and outfits, and a clothing wrack full of dresses hung in the back.
“This… is what I call the Spark!” Lanshia made a sweeping motion in front of a black dress with a long full gown and lots of ruffles. It had a scoop neck and was form fitting toward the middle with a seem that split up to the mid-thigh. It was breathtaking—but even more eye catching where the accents. In dozens of places all over the dress, there were patches of red, orange and yellow obscured by the black lace. When the light hit the dress just right, the accents danced like flames. It reminded Andrea of a dress she’d seen in a movie once that actually burst into flames. It was stunning, and she couldn’t wait to try it on.
“What do you think?” Lanshia asked.
“I think… it’s gorgeous. Can I try it on?”
“Of course! Right this way, darling!” Lanshia snapped her fingers, and one of the women working on a gown nearby hurried over to take the dress off of the mannequin and carry it to a dressing room.
Andrea followed and thanked the woman, stepping inside to get into the dress. She knew she’d never be able to get the zipper up herself because of where it landed, but lucky Kelsey was there to help her.
Studying herself in the mirror, Andrea’s mouth dropped open. She’d never felt so beautiful in all of her life.
“Wow—you look amazing, Andrea,” Kelsey said. Then, she whispered, “And you smell good, too.”
Andrea giggled and swiped at her. “I do look good. And I feel good. This is definitely the dress.”
“Definitely,” Kelsey agreed. “You wanna wear it home?”
Andrea laughed. “I wish I could, but no. I’ll be making sure the bodyguards keep an eye on this baby until after the ceremony on Sunday. Sarah doesn’t come anywhere near my apartment before this show is over!”
“No doubt!” Kelsey agreed.
Andreas stepped out to show Lanshia, and the entire room sucked in a breath and then oohed and ahhed all at the same time. There was no doubt in her mind Andrea had found her dress.
“If you and Case ever get married, you should let me design your wedding dress!” Lanshia exclaimed.
“Deal!” Andrea said, with a huge smile. At the moment, a wedding dress was the only other type of gown she’d rather be wearing. She might not win on Sunday, but people would remember her for sure because of this dress.
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