Burning Wild

Chapter Seventeen

"Stay still before you end up looking like a 1990's hooker," Mariana said, holding my head in place as she yanked another hair from my eyebrow.

"Tell me again why I agreed to do this?" I muttered, regretting my decision to let Mariana give me a makeover.

"Because you wanted to look nice for my brother," she smirked, causing my face to heat.

I couldn't deny the truth in Mariana's words. I conceded to letting her make me up for the party, but I would be lying if I said that Jake wasn't on my mind when I agreed. He'd hardly seen me outside of sweatpants and oversized t-shirts, and I figured it would be a nice change.  

But I was rethinking my decision after being stuck in a chair for half the day. My skin was raw and red, swollen with irritation. Mariana hid the inflammation beneath a pound of makeup. After three hours of waxing, tweezing, and exfoliating, I officially knew what being a plucked chicken felt like. By the time Mariana was finished glamming me up, I was annoyed and hungry.

"Are we nearly done?" I asked, no longer trying to hide my exasperation. 

"Almost... just adding the finishing touches," Mariana said. She grabbed a can of setting spray and nearly choked us to death by the amount she applied to my hair. "Okay, what do you think?"

She spun me around in my chair so I could see my reflection. I gasped as I stared at myself in the mirror, hardly able to believe that it was really me. The woman gaping back from the glass looked incredible. She was beautiful, dressed like a model, and not at all like the plain and unflattering woman who was usually looking back at me. 

The dress that Mariana put me in was amazing. I don't even remember buying the V-neck cocktail dress, but I'm certainly glad that I did because the shade of red looked great against my bronzed skin. The bodice was made of lace that wove in and out in delicate patterns to create a floral design. The soft fabric flowed down my legs, the satin pleats falling just above my knees.  At my waist, a crimson sash was pulled into a bow, emphasizing my curves in all the right places.

My dark locks flowed in curled tendrils to the middle of my back, pinned out of my face with sparkling barrettes. She had colored my lids with black eyeliner that made my hazelnut eyes pop. They were made to look even bigger by fake lashes. Red matte tinted my lips, making them look full and luscious.

Mariana had seriously outdone herself.

"I look..." I mumbled, struggling to find the words.

"Amazing!" Mariana finished with an excited squeal.

Mariana spritzed a fancy perfume at my collarbone for one final touch before leading me from the bathroom.

I wasn't one for heels, but I had to admit that the open-toed shoe made my scarlet pedicure pop. Still, I could hardly walk in the black wedges Mariana had let me borrow. It was hard to navigate the stairs and I clung to Mariana's hand the entire time, terrified that I might fall.

When we arrived downstairs, Jake was pacing impatiently. Despite his apparent irritation that we were running late, he looked handsome, dressed in dark slacks and a tan blazer. His hair was freshly cut and slicked to the side, and he had trimmed his face so that only a dark goatee was visible.

Mariana handed me a silver clutch. "Okay, we are ready to party!" she cheered in excitement.

"About damn time," Jake muttered, looking at his watch. "What took so..."

Jake's voice trailed off as his eyes met mine. He took me in from head to toe, his mouth dropping open like he was a cartoon character. His reaction made Mariana giggle. I felt heat creep into my cheeks, but I couldn't help the satisfaction I felt at his awestruck gaze. I found myself standing a little taller now, a little pep in my step as I maneuvered my way out the door in my pumps.