CHAPTER 27

**CHLOE DUARTE**

“Two glasses of champagne would be great, thank you!", I dare to say when I see some customers also enjoying the drink.

“Of course, Miss Duarte!", she says with an embarrassed expression as she pours two glasses and hands them to us.

I take a sip of the bubbly drink and look around us carefully, there are fancy clothes, all kinds of heels, and handbags you can imagine.

I can see that in the back there is a display case where I predict it must be the accessories that the store also sells.

My curious eyes also land on some customers who are focused on their purchases, they are women and men who scream pure wealth from all sides.

“Wow, why is it rare that a rich person is ugly?", I smile at the grimace Samanta shows when she looks at a young man who passes us.

“Miss Duarte, James told me you were pretty, but I see he was being modest...", I get up from the sofa when I hear a feminine voice with a heavy accent behind us.

As I turn around, I meet a beautiful brunette woman who approaches me with a gentle smile on her red lips.

“Nice to meet you, I'm Amber Miller.", I am about to extend my hand but am surprised by a kiss on the cheek.

“Call me Chloe, please! And this is my best friend, Samanta.", They greet each other in the same way, but Amber's blue eyes soon scan me completely.

“James has asked me to take good care of you, and that's exactly what we're going to do here, dear."

“Since you are a friend of my best customer, I took the liberty of separating the best party dresses in the store, if you don't like or prefer something just say so and it will be done!"

Samanta and I follow her to a rack where several types of colored fabrics are hanging, Amber drags the equipment and picks up a white lace dress.

I approach and take it in my hands as she hands it to me.

It's a wonderful strapless dress, but when my eyes meet the price tag, my eyes automatically widen.

This costs a fortune and I'm pretty sure it's not even the most expensive piece in this store.

With a frown, Samanta also approaches me and when she realizes how much I am still staring at her, she exclaims dumbfounded:

“My goodness!"

“I know the prices are scary, but you don't have to worry, James asked me to show you the best models in the store."

“It's just that I'm not used to such high prices...", I murmur, holding the other dresses she hands me.

“So, enjoy! Come on, try these on and call me if you think any of them need adjusting...", I hand my cup to the other saleswoman and head for the fitting rooms.

The inside of the store is full of luxury, as I remove my clothes I imagine James trying on and letting Amber decide on the next style of her clothes.

I try on four long dresses that are divine, Amber got my measurements right, but I soon think that maybe James could have told her a little about my body height.

I analyze each piece in the huge mirror, there are several different colors and models, but all the dresses have their charm and scream luxury from all sides.

“Chloe, if you don't like these models I have some more here...", I hear Amber's voice outside and a few knocks on the fitting room door where I am.

“Girlfriend, you said you wanted a gold or black dress.", Samanta asks, remembering what I told her in the car about the color of the dress.

“Yes.", I shout, taking a wine”colored model off her body.

“Then I think I found the perfect dress, try these on!", I open the door a little and take the two black covers that protect the dresses she is holding.

Curious to find out what Samanta found, I unzip the first coverlet and find a black silk ike fabric.

I am delighted when I remove the dress and place it in front of my body and observe my reflection in the mirror.

“Wow...", I whisper observing every little detail of the long dark model with a generous neckline in front.

No doubt it wins the fight between all the dresses I have tried on in this store, it is absurdly sexy and very chic for a prom.

“What do you think, Chloe?", I hear Amber's voice as I still stare at the black dress.

“The black one is amazing!", I shout as I carefully put on the model that fits my body perfectly.

It's even strange to dress in a garment that is worth so much money, never in my entire life have I worn a garment that cost that kind of money.

I take the small label on the side of the dress and almost scream when I see the price, no doubt any dress from this store will make a huge hole in James' bank account or credit card bill.

But I know he doesn't care about this detail, he is a billionaire businessman who must earn the value of this dress every ten minutes.

Dressed in such luxury, I even think of denying his generosity, but I feel so good about myself at this moment that I quickly forget the idea.

“Girlfriend, let me see how it looks!", Samanta shouts hysterically from outside the door, making me open it laughing.

My best friend walks in and her eyes widen when she sees me, she puts her hands over her mouth with a dramatic expression on her face.

“He is gorgeous, but you can stop with the drama! He looks like he's even seeing me in my wedding dress...", I joke and a mischievous smile appears on her lips.

“Honey, if your fiancé were James Colucci I'm sure your dress would be a spectacle and you would be the most beautiful bride in the world!"

“It's strange to be surrounded by so much luxury...", I murmur, still staring at my reflection.

“But you also can't deny that it's very nice, what store serves good champagne to its customers?", he says, wiping a smile off my face.

“Ok, now try the gold one...", he says helping me to remove the black dress.

“I think the black one is the chosen one, I doubt that any other dress is as amazing as that one.", I comment watching my friend open the black cape and carefully remove the other gold dress.

“Oh my!", I exclaim as she stretches the fabric giving me a glimpse of a dress fit for a princess.

Do you know the kind of chic dress we are used to seeing in period movies and series?

Well, the golden dress that Samanta is holding up fits this requirement perfectly, it reminds us of a medieval style, but it is beautiful and has some modern details.

The perfect dress!

“I knew you would love it! Come on, put it on!", smiling like a fool I obey, getting into the dress with her help.

Still not looking at the mirror behind me, I anxiously wait for Samanta to finish closing and adjusting the zipper of the dress that is located in the back.