Chapter 3
Lobby light hit dress before I noticed eyes.
We moved past revolving doors, deeper onto polished floor. Chandelier glow pooled warm, reflected off glass, off satin. My dress caught every bit of it. Emerald slipped, shined, cut bright against dark suits and muted cocktail dresses around us. Cowl neckline shifted when I breathed. Thin straps dug cold into shoulders. I had thought man picked it because color suited me. Now crowd proved otherwise.
Woman near column glanced, then glanced again. Her eyes dropped to green, lingered, lifted to my face. Man beside her did same. Not appreciative glance. Recognition glance. Like marker.
I tried to fold arms, cover chest. Hand still locked in his. Could not.
"Stop looking at me," I muttered.
He kept walking, pace steady, silver chain glinting at his open collar. Burgundy satin caught light too, but his shirt blended with warm lobby. My dress did not blend anywhere.
"They aren't looking at you," he said, quiet.
"They are."
"They look because green pops. That's point."
Cold spread up neck. I stared ahead at bokeh lights blurring behind guests, at night pressed black against glass doors now far behind us. We were mid-floor, exposed. No corners, no shadow.
"You picked this," I said.
He nodded once. Grip stayed firm, not cruel, just unbreakable.
"Yeah."
"Why green?"
He glanced sideways at me, then straight ahead. Expression restrained, almost bored. Like answer obvious.
"So he spots you instantly. Even across room. Even in crowd."
Words landed heavy. Breath caught. Satin suddenly felt too thin, too bright, cowl too low, straps too fragile. I had thought I dressed for night out. I dressed for signal.
"You dressed me to be found," I said.
He didn't deny. Small pull forward.
"I dressed you to be seen. Different thing. You wanted to hide in black. Black hides. Green doesn't."
My free hand went to hem, tugged. Pointless. Dress clung, slid over legs when I walked. Every step made fabric whisper. Anxious heat rose up chest, prickled under gold hoops.
"You didn't ask me," I said.
"You would have said no."
We passed another couple. Woman in navy stared openly now. I saw her mouth move to companion, eyes flick to my dress. I turned head away, but light followed. Chandelier spots made emerald almost neon against warm gold. Could not shrink. Could not hide behind man. He made me front-facing, visible from three sides as he guided me toward open center of lobby where bokeh lights doubled in glass reflections.
I understood then fully. He didn't need to drag me. He just needed crowd to do work. Dress did work. I was beacon.
"I can't be seen like this," I whispered. Plead, not fight.
"You already are," he said. "That's why we kept moving. Too late to change now. He looks for green. You walk in any other color, he misses you. Green, he knows it's you before you speak."
My stomach dropped. Hand in his sweated. His held dry. I thought about bathroom, coat check, anywhere to cover up. Nothing within reach without letting go, and he would not let go.
"Who told you he'd know green?" I asked.
He smiled slight, knew smile from video, eyes still forward.
"You did. Last year. You told me you wore this to meet him. Said he remembered."
I had. Memory snapped back - diner off highway, telling story I shouldn't have told, mentioning dress I shouldn't have mentioned. He banked detail. Now he used it.
We stopped near center, under brightest chandelier cone. Light poured down, made satin glow. I stood exposed, hand held, breath shallow, eyes wide, unable to dim myself. Guests flowed around us, but eyes kept catching, catching.
I stopped pulling. Realized struggle made dress move more, shine more. Stillness also shined. No option hid me.
He leaned slight, voice low.
May you like
"Good. Let them look. Means he will too."
I stood in emerald, marked, liability stitched to skin. Could not hide in crowd anymore. Crowd itself made me visible.
