Love for Love

I went to work the next day a completely changed person. I felt different as if something new was running through my veins. Audrey must've noticed my happiness because she gave me the seductive eye as I walked into my office.

She rushed in after me, although not to quick as she was carrying a cup of tea that she had made for me. I sat down happily in my high backed chair, set up my computer, and took a sip of the black tea without milk that Audrey set down before me.

I continued to sip through my tea as Audrey waited expectantly for me to finish. She narrowed her eyes at me when I drained about half the cup of tea and making her wait agonisingly so she could question me about the previous nights events.

"How was the bar?" she started off, sitting down on one of the seats that we had brought for the office and had placed in front of the desk.

"Entertaining, at best," I replied, turning my attention to my e-mails in attempts to escape from her studying gaze.

"And at worst?" she said cheekily, only causing me to laugh.

"Comforting," I said to her round about questions.

"In more ways then one?"

"You got it sister," I said, pointing a gun made out of my hand at her and pretending to shoot it off.

"I noticed that you seemed a little more…radiant," Audrey said, trying to find the right word but clearly not having it upon her first attempt. "Vibrant. Different."

"And I feel like it too," I said, finding that I had received an email from Missy informing me that she expected a final report to be emailed to her on Friday so she could be prepared for Saturday's event. "Have you sent out the invitations yet?"

"I'm getting them delivered to the office by eleven," Audrey commented, her professional air returning although I could sense that there was a hint of interest in my private life at the moment. "They'll be sent out by the time you leave this afternoon."

"Well, make sure it gets done soon because I don't plan on staying here long," I commented, turning my attentions back to her. "I've have some personal planning to do before the event."

"I see," Audrey said, raising her eyebrow at me. "Am I invited?"

"To the party, yes," I said. "To the private event, no. Now, shoo. You have some work to do."

_____________________________________________________________________

I was out of the office by two pm, a little early for my taste but I needed to get some things done. It was two days before the big event and i still hadn't figured out what I was wearing. I considered ringing up Criss so she could give me some help but I decided to text her instead. It still might be too much of an early hour for her to be called.

I approved the invitations when they had arrived at eleven and sent Audrey, along with some help she called in from the "bull pen." Audrey told me to send her a picture of the dress that I had chosen but I said that she would have to wait until the event before she got to see it, just like everyone else. She gave me a pout as I left the office.

By the time I had returned home, and texted Criss in the meantime, I found her standing at the front door of my apartment and waiting to be let in. She had bags underneath her eyes from the flight and the lack of sleep she had received over the last day or so.

She wore a thick coat, a pair of jeans and some boots along with a beanie that protected her from the harsh London wind. She gave me an evil look over her Starbucks coffee, in which I wasn't surprised that she had managed to find.

I let us in to the small foyer of the apartment building and ushered her up stairs to the lounge room. She looked around, impressed with what I had done with it so far without my belongings having arrived from New York yet.

"How come you get the really nice apartment and I'm stuck with some shitty flat?" she whined as she went into the kitchen to sit at the table.

"Because you're here as I asked you to come, not Missy," I replied, throwing my laptop onto the kitchen table.

"No fair."

"Nothing's ever fair," I said, leaning against the sink. "You think you could come in to work tomorrow?"

"If it requires me to sit there and complain about the weather," she said. "Then sure. You'll see me there."

"I won't be working you too hard," I retorted, wondering about Criss' work ethic. "Besides, you'll be sharing the job with Audrey."

"Whose she?" Criss asked.

"Someone you'll meet if you come into work tomorrow," I replied with a smile. "I'll expect to see you there?"

"Fine," she complained. "Can we just get on with Saturday's shopping now because the floor is looking awfully comfy right now."

I let Criss finish her coffee before we left my apartment with wallets in hand. We roamed London for most of the day and getting lost in the process. Criss managed to find a pair of black stilettos that I knew that I would have trouble walking in but Criss wouldn't. She was a veteran in walking in ridiculously high shoes.

It was getting late and we still hadn't found a dress for either of us, which was slightly disappointing. It would have been safe to have found something now and would only put a lot of pressure on me if I left the dress hunting any later. Besides, I didn't just want to send someone like Audrey or Criss to buy me a dress because I wanted to see how it suited me and try it on.

It was nearing five pm on a non-late night shopping day when Criss and I stumbled across a boutique store that held very beautiful dresses upon the manikins in the front window. Criss saw it first, halting me in my tracks as we both stared at the dresses in awe.

I didn't have to drag her in there to look at them because she was following close behind, intent on finding something. When Criss looked at the price tag, however, she gasped and took a few steps back.

I gave her a questioning look, and said, "What's wrong?"

"I found the most beautiful beyond beautiful dress but it's so expensive," she complained, a look of annoyance crossing her face.

"Whatever the cost, I'll pay for it," I said, making my way over to her and trying to find the dress that she had picked out upon the rack. "You're doing me a favour by coming out her so the least I could do is cloathe you."

Criss reached out for a sparking black and silver cocktail dress that would stop about halfway down her leg. There were two white sequinned stripes down either side of the dress. I must ad mitt that I agreed with her choice completely. The dress would suit her perfectly.

She revealed to me the price tag and said, "For four hundred and thirty pounds? Really?"

"Yes, really," I dragged her to one of the changing rooms and shoved her in. "Now, try on the dress. I want to see if it looks as good not he rack as it does on you."

"Thanks," she said as smile crossed her face.

She closed he door as I began to walk about the store again. One of the sales assistants hovered nearby but didn't bother to approach either of us. I didn't really want her to, anyway, as I didn't want to get myself into that situation where I would have to explain what kind of party Criss and I were going to.

The word "Celebrity" heightened a lot of interest in people, especially if those people liked those celebrities. I didn't want to take that chance with this sales assistant because there was an off chance that she could have liked Tom too.

I searched through the racks of clothing for something that I could wear on Saturday. It took me all of the long ten minutes it took for Criss to put on these sequinned dress that she had picked out.

When she called me over, I noticed that shed had slipped on the black stilettos that she had chosen earlier to see if it suited the dress -- and they definitely did.

"You're getting it," I said, returning to the rack I was just at to pick out the dress that I managed to catch a glimpse of. "No if's or but's."

"No if's or but's," she repeated as she slipped back into the changing room and changed back into the clothes she wore previously.

I picked out a blue and black peacock style dress. Peacock feathers accents the bodies and slides down onto the mesh style mini-skirt, which was a mix of blue and yellow, and peaks just at the strapless neckline. The dress was short, but I liked it.

I felt the material in my fingers and was surprised at how soft it had felt. I hurried into the changing rooms beside Criss' and changed into the dress. I didn't have a pair of shoes to try it on with but Criss leant me hers when I emerged from the dressing room.

I struggled to keep myself up right in the shoes, gripping onto the edges of the changing room to help balance myself. Criss smiled at me, a glisten in her eye as she looked at me.

I turned around to look at myself in the mirror to be surprisingly happy with how I looked. The blue of the dress accentuated my hazel-blue eyes. The shoes that Criss had leant me kind of suited my dress but not enough. I would have to find something tomorrow when I had the time or wasn't pressured by the final report I had to write for Missy.

"If Tom doesn't love you in that dress, there is something seriously wrong with that man," Criss laughed as I turned back to her.

"I think you use the term 'love' loosely in this situation," I replied.

"You know what I mean when I say 'love'," Criss said, leaning over to me to slap my ass.

I glared at her as I shut my changing room door in her face and changed back into my work clothes. I emerged a few minutes later with the dress upon the hanger and handing Criss' shoes back to her. We then approached the counter where the sales assistant, who had been ignoring us for most of the time that we had spent in the boutique, served us.

I payed for the dresses before Criss could utter another complaint and ushered her out of the boutique. As we left, and I stumbled clumsily down the stairs, I bumped into Tom. I looked up to him, embarrassed and my hair all frizzy.

"Hey," I said to him, having not seen him since I left for work really early this morning.

"Hey, beautiful," he said darkly, kissing me deeply without any shame. I could tell that Loki was still apart of him, which I didn't mind.

When he removed himself from my lips, I finally noticed Criss' envious and hateful glare as she watched us kiss. I poked my tongue out at her, saying, "Just because you didn't take the chance when you had it."

"Shuttup," she said, taking her place by my side and extending her hand towards Tom. "Criss. Nicole's bestie. Nice to meet you."

He smiled wryly at Criss before taking her hand and saying, "Nice to meet you too. I've heard a little bit about you from Nicole."

"And I hope that they were all good things, as well," Criss said, eyeing me.

"Don't worry, there wasn't a bad word uttered," Tom commented, his eyes returning to me and his arm slipping around my waist. "You two up for some dinner?"