Without making it obvious, I take in my surroundings. There are no fewer than three phones pointed in our direction that I can see, and I haven’t even turned in a half circle.
“Great,” I growl as I cover the phone with my hand and say to Bella, “We need to go. I’ll explain why later.”
“Are you still there?” Naomi asks.
“Yeah.”
“Girl, you need to buy a hat. Your hair is a hot mess, but that blue dress you’re carrying around looks gorgeous.”
Patting the top of my head, I feel the stray hairs sticking up from putting dresses on and taking them off all day. I immediately release the messy bun that was supposed to be holding my hair in place and shake my head so my hair falls around my face. Not that I can hide from the people who have already recognized me.
“Thanks, Naomi. I have to get Bella, and we need to get out of here. Looks like we’ll be venturing deeper into the mall for jewelry and shoes.”
“Just go to a real jewelry store. They won’t let a bunch of people in there because shit costs so much.”
After sliding my phone back in my purse, I whisper in Bella’s ear, letting her know what’s going on. I feel her body stiffen next to me as she hands the ugly fake flower on a hairpin back to the sales associate. We casually walk to the register, pay for our dresses, and are attempting to get lost in the crowded mall ten minutes later.
“Pull your hair down and try and hide your face. We’re going to slip into the next shoe or jewelry store we see, okay,” I whisper as I slide my arm through hers, and we shimmy through the crowd.
“There’s a jeweler. Do we really want to go in there?”
I don’t even answer her, cutting off a stroller and pulling her through the open doors.
A tall man in a suit stops us instantly. I’m sure we look rough, both of us wearing yoga pants and our hair now a hot mess. Oh, and don’t forget the cameras that are following us. After explaining the short version of our situation to him, he closes and locks the doors to the store, and Bella and I have the time of our life trying on jewelry and each picking out a few beautiful pieces to wear during the show.
We have to return them later, but who the hell cares. The store gets free advertising and we get to be adorned in beautiful jewelry.
I’ll be wearing a necklace I could never afford. Not in this lifetime. And it’s the perfect addition to my dress. It clasps tight around my neck, but then splits off into two long strands that run down my chest and come to rest between my breasts. It complements my look without drawing all the attention.
Bella’s not only wearing a beautiful choker-style necklace but also a hairpiece. The hairpiece is a darker shade of pink than her dress that will help it stand out against the natural light color of her hair. Her necklace is white gold and accentuates her bronzed skin.
While they package our borrowed items, Bella and I try on wedding rings for fun. Our styles are dramatically different. She likes the large stone on a basic band. I prefer the smaller center stone with little stones around it, accentuating its beauty.
Then there are the rings that we both think are ungodly ugly. Too big. Too abstract. But those are the most fun to try on. Bella puts one on that we find out is five carats and draped with two more carats around the center stone. When they tell her the price, she immediately takes it off and carefully sets it back on the velvet mat.
After signing paperwork that basically says they will hunt us down and kill us if we don’t return their merchandise—not really, but that’s what it feels like—we are escorted out of the store, where a security guard was waiting for us. He stayed with us as we finished shopping, stopping at two store stores before finding the perfect pair of heels.
Once we’re safely back in the town car and on our way back to the ranch, I let out a little giggle.
“What’s so funny?” Bella asks as she fingers her necklace.
“Today. It was awful, and then it was great, and then it was silly. I know we were only escorted because of the price tag on the jewelry, but it still makes me laugh.”
“That poor guy too,” she adds. “I’m pretty sure he’ll never look at a shoe store the same again.”
Probably not. I tried on at least fifteen pairs of heels at both stores, Bella too. I needed the perfect pair, and after knowing the jewelry we were going to be wearing fit perfectly, I wasn’t going to settle for less.
Thankfully, I found a pair of white peep-toe heels that weren’t too tall.
So much for wearing flats because of the grass. They better lay out something for us to walk on or both of us might end up flat on our asses on live television. Bella bought four-inch heels. She wanted the back of her dress to brush the ground but not look like the train of a wedding dress and wanted to be able to look Lennon in the eyes.
She’s about three inches shy of that, but she’s closer than normal.
“Are you excited for tomorrow now?” Bella’s voice is hesitant.
“No, but I’m excited to get dressed up,” I reply honestly.
“But it’s the finale, Presley. You should be excited. You made it to the end. It’s almost over. You could win.”