And she had been. The dress snugged against Margrit's curves as if it'd been made for her, a six-inch kick pleat behind the knee allowing her room to walk despite the hip-and-thigh-hugging fit. Margrit pinned her hair up before leaving the dressing room, letting a few corkscrew curls to fall down her back, and came out with a guilty smile. You were right."

"I'm a genius," Cameron said with satisfaction.

Margrit ran her fingers over the raw silk, tempted but still hesitant. "You sure I shouldn't just go for basic black?"

"You should never wear black." Cam put a fingertip against Margrit's bare shoulder, leaving a white mark against cafe-latte skin when she released the pressure. "Not with skin tones like that. You've got drama inherent in your coloring. Crimson and cream, that's what you should wear."

"I have a lot of those in my wardrobe," Margrit admitted. "I always thought of them as being battle colors, though, not playing up my skin."

"Really." Cameron's eyebrows quirked, a smile darting into place. "You have a lot of wars to fight, Margrit?"

"Against the man, every day, sistah." Margrit made a fist and thrust it toward the sky. Cameron laughed then Cam caught Margit's hand to study the slight point the dress's long sleeve came to over Margit's wrist.

"You need a ring. How much time do we have?" She looked for a clock, then clucked her tongue. "I know a great costume jewelry place a couple blocks from here. Let's pay for this and go."

"I like how you say that like we're both paying for it. It's seven-thirty," Margrit said in despair. "I'll be late."

"Nobody expects you to be on time," Cameron repeated. "And we are both paying for it. See?" She ushered Margrit to the saleswoman and handed over Margrit's credit card as if it were her own. "You'll show up at eight-thirty and make an entrance. It's what all the stars would do."

And it was what she had done. The evening had passed in an exhausting, exciting blur. Margrit proved a terrible New Yorker, blushing and stuttering at coming face-to-face with a handful of genuine celebrities. Tony caught her once, his wink making her blush harder.