strapless empire waist dress and paired it with black tights and booties, and tried to tease my hair out into big 80s curls. I didn’t look convincingly artsy, but I didn’t look bad. I didn’t normally wear a lot of makeup, but somehow, I had a feeling that the women there would be really decked out. I finished my ensemble with red lipstick and a lot of mascara. Almost instantly, my eyes started itching and I wondered if it was going to irritate my contacts.
“Are you ready?” I heard Dom calling from the hallway. In exasperation, I sighed, arranging my carefully-messy hair for an extra moment.
“Yes,” I replied curtly, stepping out of my room and closing the door. Domenic looked incredible; he was wearing dark wash jeans that clung to his muscular legs and a dark gray fisherman’s sweater. It made him look approachable but still gorgeous—kind of like a Brooks Brothers ad. His blonde hair was perfectly swooping away from his face, and I couldn’t stop marveling at how amazing his skin was. It looked as though he’d never had a single blemish in his entire life.
“Wow, Michelle,” Dom wolf-whistled, giving me a once-over that he hadn’t since we were in high school. “You look really hot.”
“Thanks,” I blushed, looking down at the toes of my booties. One of my ankles wobbled and I almost fell; I wasn’t used to wearing heels.
Domenic laughed. “Sorry, are you okay?” He reached down to help me get steadied. “I don’t want you to hurt yourself. We haven’t even left yet.”
“I know,” I grumbled, cinching my coat around my waist. “You’re driving.”
Dom drove us out of town for a few miles. The sun had set hours ago and the cornfields were all dark and empty, the stars twinkling overhead. The night was a cold one, and I could feel it seeping in through the cracks in the windshield. We rode in silence, and I watched my breath fog up my side of the glass, tracing little patterns. In the condensation, I could see the ghosts of all the other girls who’d been in the passenger side of his car, doing the same thing during cold weather. I could see a faint few outlines of hearts, too. Even though I’d started to feel better during the day and when I was getting ready, being reminded of Dom’s past felt like a huge slap in the face. It was painful; I couldn’t believe that he’d really changed. It seemed ludicrous to me that someone with a taste for sleeping around with hundreds of girls would change their mind and settle down. And he hadn’t really even done that; the date at the wedding proved me right.
“You’re being quiet,” Dom observed in a soft voice, turning onto a country road. I craned my neck and tried to look for civilization, but there was nothing that I could see. I had no idea where we were going; it looked like he was driving to an old farm. When he saw the confusion on my face, he nodded and began to explain; “This gallery is in a barn, the owner of the farm sold it to an art colony. I took some classes here after high school, it’s a really great place. You’ll like it.”
“Sure,” I said, staring outside. There were still piles of snow on the ground, but they were so covered with dirt that they just looked like giant pale rocks, looming at the end of the driveway. We pulled into a gravel clearing surrounded by rustic looking cabins and a giant barn. There were white Christmas lights strung between all of the buildings; twinkling, making everything look beautiful and festive even though it was early spring. I couldn’t help but be slightly impressed, although though I really felt like I’d overdone it. Looking down at my black dress, it occurred to me that most of the women would be in jeans and cowboy boots.
We got out of the car and walked over to the barn in silence. I could hear music playing and people laughing; it almost sounded more like a party than a gallery opening. When Dom opened the door, a group of
“Are you ready?” I heard Dom calling from the hallway. In exasperation, I sighed, arranging my carefully-messy hair for an extra moment.
“Yes,” I replied curtly, stepping out of my room and closing the door. Domenic looked incredible; he was wearing dark wash jeans that clung to his muscular legs and a dark gray fisherman’s sweater. It made him look approachable but still gorgeous—kind of like a Brooks Brothers ad. His blonde hair was perfectly swooping away from his face, and I couldn’t stop marveling at how amazing his skin was. It looked as though he’d never had a single blemish in his entire life.
“Wow, Michelle,” Dom wolf-whistled, giving me a once-over that he hadn’t since we were in high school. “You look really hot.”
“Thanks,” I blushed, looking down at the toes of my booties. One of my ankles wobbled and I almost fell; I wasn’t used to wearing heels.
Domenic laughed. “Sorry, are you okay?” He reached down to help me get steadied. “I don’t want you to hurt yourself. We haven’t even left yet.”
“I know,” I grumbled, cinching my coat around my waist. “You’re driving.”
Dom drove us out of town for a few miles. The sun had set hours ago and the cornfields were all dark and empty, the stars twinkling overhead. The night was a cold one, and I could feel it seeping in through the cracks in the windshield. We rode in silence, and I watched my breath fog up my side of the glass, tracing little patterns. In the condensation, I could see the ghosts of all the other girls who’d been in the passenger side of his car, doing the same thing during cold weather. I could see a faint few outlines of hearts, too. Even though I’d started to feel better during the day and when I was getting ready, being reminded of Dom’s past felt like a huge slap in the face. It was painful; I couldn’t believe that he’d really changed. It seemed ludicrous to me that someone with a taste for sleeping around with hundreds of girls would change their mind and settle down. And he hadn’t really even done that; the date at the wedding proved me right.
“You’re being quiet,” Dom observed in a soft voice, turning onto a country road. I craned my neck and tried to look for civilization, but there was nothing that I could see. I had no idea where we were going; it looked like he was driving to an old farm. When he saw the confusion on my face, he nodded and began to explain; “This gallery is in a barn, the owner of the farm sold it to an art colony. I took some classes here after high school, it’s a really great place. You’ll like it.”
“Sure,” I said, staring outside. There were still piles of snow on the ground, but they were so covered with dirt that they just looked like giant pale rocks, looming at the end of the driveway. We pulled into a gravel clearing surrounded by rustic looking cabins and a giant barn. There were white Christmas lights strung between all of the buildings; twinkling, making everything look beautiful and festive even though it was early spring. I couldn’t help but be slightly impressed, although though I really felt like I’d overdone it. Looking down at my black dress, it occurred to me that most of the women would be in jeans and cowboy boots.
We got out of the car and walked over to the barn in silence. I could hear music playing and people laughing; it almost sounded more like a party than a gallery opening. When Dom opened the door, a group of
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