Read Online Love Thy Neighbor by Sophie Wintner - Free Book Online

gazed at herself in the three-way mirror through a splay of fingers until she heard a knock on the door.
    “Hey, what’s going on in there?” Dallas’s accent still caught in her chest, making her swoon each time he spoke. “Let’s have a look at you,” he said.
    “I’m sorry.” She opened the door a crack. “These dresses, they’re gorgeous and you’re so sweet to bring me here, but these aren’t me.”
    “Are you sure about that?” He raised an eyebrow and dipped his strong chin. “You’re absolutely positive?”
    “I’ve never worn something like this. Like any of these.”
    “Maybe it’s about time you did.” He stepped inside the fitting room. With two fingers he reached over and raised her chin, making her eyes meet his. “Do you think I’d try to make you look foolish? Trust me. I know what I’m doing here. Okay?”
    Something in the way he said that made her nod, though she had no real basis for trusting him. She’d known him for what, about a minute?
    “Just try one of those dresses on,” he said again, moving his fingers from beneath her chin to the side of her face.
    Nikki’s heart about sprang from her chest.
    Ever so slightly, he leaned in like he wanted to kiss her when suddenly Lana knocked on the door. “How are you doing in here?”
    “We’re fine, Lana,” Dallas said.
    Nikki’s pulse raced as she tried to recover from their near kiss. What was that all about? Had she imagined it? He was still looking at her, and she was lusting for him with every fiber of her being.
    “Trust me. Try one of those on,” he said, stepping out of the fitting room, closing the door behind him.
    Reluctantly, Nikki wiggled out of her baggy jeans and blouse before slipping on one of the slinky black numbers. At first she didn’t think it would close, but then she got the zipper up and saw that it hugged every inch of her body. She turned to the left and to the right, placing one hand over her flat stomach and smoothing the other one over her hips. She was sure it looked terrible, but she was just grateful she got the damn thing zipped.
    Timidly she stepped out of the dressing room. “Well? I told you, this isn’t me.”
    Lana’s stern face broke into a smile.
    Dallas stepped to Nikki’s side, twirled her around. “You’re kidding me,” he said. “Look at yourself.” He pointed toward the mirror. “You have to stop hiding that amazing body of yours.”
    “Please don’t make fun of me.”
    “Nikki.” He turned her by the shoulders, making her look him in the eye. “I’m not making fun of you. I’m dead serious. Look at your legs, woman. You’d bring any man to his knees.”
    She wanted to believe that she was attractive and enchanting, but everything inside her sagged. It was like Matthew was standing there in front of her rattling off all her shortcomings: You can’t tell a joke. You can’t carry a tune. You can’t dance. You can’t stick to your diet. You can’t, you can’t, you can’t.
    Dallas placed his hands on her waist and this time turned her toward the mirror. “Look at yourself, Nikki. Just look…”
    Nikki gazed at the length of her body in the mirror. It honestly wasn’t as awful as she thought it would be. Maybe all that running had made a difference, but still, she felt like she’d been stuffed into a sausage casing. And even though she’d managed to fit into that tiny dress, she still felt supersize.
    “Lana, what do have in the way of shoes?”
    Lana pulled out a dozen boxes of stilettos, platforms, and strappy sandals, and when Nikki saw the price on one of the boxes, she almost choked. $675.
    Six dress changes later, the three of them agreed that the second Ted Baker dress was the way to go, along with the Stuart Weitzman pumps. Dallas plunked down an American Express card like it was nothing and when Nikki began to protest, he said, “I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t want to.”
    Nikki thanked him, thinking that was the end of their