Page 30 of With Love, from Cold World
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It was closer to forty-five minutes, which she hoped wasn’t rude after Kiki had been kind enough to offer to helpher get ready. But it had taken longer than she’d expected to locate her black lace strapless bra, and underwear that was at least also black, if not an exact match. She still thought it was a bit silly to put that much care into items of clothing that Daniel would never see, but Kiki also seemed much better at this kind of thing, so Lauren figured she’d trust whatever she said. Maybe sexy underwear beneath her clothes would give her more outer confidence. Worth a try.
Before she’d left Cold World, she’d seen Asa briefly. He’d been walking with Marcus, explaining something that involved a lot of hand gestures. His gaze had slid to hers, so quickly his head didn’t even move, and then they’d walked right by. She wished she had slow-motion footage of the moment, just so she could see how he might feel toward her. Still angry? Disgusted? Or completely indifferent?
“Come in, come in,” Kiki said now, ushering her inside their house. Elliot was seated at the dining room table, typing on a laptop, and they lifted a hand in greeting.
“Hi, Lauren,” they said. If they felt any lingering weirdness over the way she’d left the beach outing, they didn’t show it.
“Hey,” she said. “What are you working on?”
“An analysis of every Carly Rae Jepsen song in order of worst to best,” they said. “Worst being relative, of course.”
“Hard-hitting journalism,” Kiki said, and then held up her hand when Elliot seemed primed to launch into an argument. “You know I’ll read it and enumerate every ranking you got wrong. But my girl’s on a timetable right now, and we need to get down to business. Lauren, follow me.”
The red dress was hanging up from the doorframe to Kiki’s en suite bathroom, and Kiki pulled it down and shooed Lauren in to get changed.
Closed inside the bathroom, Lauren started unbuttoningher sweater. “It must be really fun to live here,” she called through the door. “Just because of all the conversations you get to have.”
“I guess,” Kiki said. “This Carly Rae thing started because Elliot said her version of ‘Last Christmas’ was the best one, which Asa took as sacrilege because he’s a Wham! purist. John tried to make a case for Jimmy Eat World, but if he has to lean on phrases likeguitar tonehe has to know he’s already lost.”
“But that’s what I mean,” Lauren said, pulling her shirt over her head. “You have people you can debate that kind of stuff with. Which version did you vote for?”
“I,” Kiki said, “do not care. Christmas music is annoying. It’s bad enough we have to listen to it at work. But also, Arlo Parks’ cover is the best and anyone who disagrees has no taste.”
Lauren shimmied out of her skirt. Generally, she agreed with Kiki about the music selection being particularly annoying this time of year. The music didn’t pipe into the office area, which was fortunate because she couldn’t take having to listen to “Wonderful Christmastime” on an endless loop. But she had to admit, she did like the original Wham! version of “Last Christmas.”
She switched out her underwear before sliding the red dress over her head. It was made out of a jersey knit, which did make it feel alittlemore casual at least. And because it was off-the-shoulder, it didn’t actually show any cleavage—just a lot of her shoulders and collarbones, the rose pendant necklace she always wore. The dress ended in a swingy skater skirt around her thighs. She opened the door to show Kiki.
“I feel like I should wear my tights,” Lauren said, glancing down.
“Absolutely the fuck not,” Kiki said. “It’s bad enough that you wear those to work every day. What is this, the 1950s?”
“It’s not a modesty thing,” Lauren said. Although maybe it was, a little. “I just get cold easily. Have you been in my office? I can’t even use a space heater because of that time the one in Dolores’ office caught fire.”
“Daniel’s gonna catch fire when he sees you in that,” Kiki said. “Seriously. You look hot.”
Lauren turned back to examine herself in the mirror. “I look overdressed.”
“You see what Dolores wears to work,” Kiki said. “Hell, you might beunderdressed. But we’ll keep your hair down and loose, you barely need any makeup, and you can wear your same flats. That will all keep the look more chill.”
“Thank you so much for your help,” Lauren said. “I really appreciate it. I’m hopeless at this kind of thing.”
Kiki crossed behind her to reach for a few hair products on the counter. Lauren hadn’t spent much time hanging out the last time she’d come over, so she hadn’t fully clocked that Kiki had what was probably the main bedroom with the attached bathroom. She knew Kiki had moved in after Asa and Elliot, so maybe that was a nod to her being the only woman in the house. Lauren wondered where Asa’s bedroom was—on the other side of the house? What would it even look like?
“Asa doesn’t seem to like Daniel very much,” Lauren said.
Kiki snorted. “Yeah, I kinda got that impression when he told me about your date.”
“It’s not a date exactly,” Lauren felt compelled to remind her. Even if she’d been thinking of it that way in her head, she’d hate it getting back to Daniel somehow that she’d beengoing around calling it that. “What’s Asa’s problem with him? I thought Asa got along with most everyone.”
That was part of what was really bothering her about the whole scene in her office, she realized. Asa might be maddening and mischievous and wisecracking, but he was friendly to everyone. The exceptions to that were Daniel, who he seemed to barely tolerate.
And, lately, her.
“Don’t worry about Asa,” Kiki said, spritzing some volumizing spray into the palm of her hand before running it through Lauren’s hair. “He can’t exactly judge you if you want to date someone hot, have a little fun.”
Lauren frowned into the mirror. She hadn’t even necessarily been thinking about Asajudgingher for her choices, but now she was. What had he said to her back in her office? That she was willing to sell out for the chance to date Daniel? That wasn’t true. She was helping him with his so far completely unrealistic idea only because it was part of her job, to analyze expenses and budgets for Cold World. And if she’d always found him attractive, and secretly crushed on him from afar, then whynotuse the opportunity to get to spend more time with him?
