Free Taking Shots (Assassins) by Toni Aleo

don’t know, that is a totally different situation.”
    “ No, it’s not. How many times have you all been out?”
    “ It doesn’t matter.”
    “ Yes, it does! Because you can’t tell me not to feel more for Shea, when you are with Jakob, Shea’s hockey twin!”
    “ I am not with Jakob. I’m fucking him, so you, shut up.” And with that, Harper stormed out the room leaving Elli to just smile after her.
    Jakob was getting to Harper and Harper didn’t like it at all.
     
    Elli locked the studio up since she didn’t have any evening appointments and left. The wedding wasn’t until seven, so it gave her time to go shopping like she wanted. She decided to go to her favorite designer’s shop, Melanie Renee, because the dresses there were beautiful. Ever since she had opened a Nashville shop, it was basically the only place that Elli shopped. She loved Melanie’s designs, they were perfect for her. They were something straight out of the 50s, with a crazy flair to them.
    Elli parked her truck in a spot and then proceeded to go in. She loved the feel of Melanie Renee’s store; it was so inviting, so classic. Totally white, with the only color being the clothes and accessories, big white lamps hung from the ceilings and the glass windows were from floor to ceiling, lining the front of the store. Elli went to the first rack, looking through it, when her phone singled a text message. It was Shea.
    I miss your small hand.
    She grinned so big that she thought her face was gonna break.
    “ Do we even carry your size here?” Elli looked up from her phone, her smile falling. Her sister, Victoria, stood before her in what she knew was a size extra small of the exact same dress Elli was wearing. Her sister was extremely beautiful. Long light brown hair that came to the middle of her back, straight as a board, big green eyes, with high cheek bones, and a cupid bow mouth. But even though Victoria Fisher was gorgeous, she was evil, had been making Elli’s life a living hell since the day she had been born.
    “ Obviously, y’all do since I am wearing the same dress you are, Vicky.” Elli knew Victoria hated being called Vicky, but she did it anyways.
    “ I didn’t know we carried cow here?”
    “ Wow, thanks, my dear sister,” Elli said as she moved through the racks. “Why are you here?”
    “ I work here.”
    “ Lord help us all! What happened to the big modeling gig?”
    “ It happened, now I’m down on money.”
    “ And you’re not living off momma and daddy?”
    “ No, I can stand on my own feet, thank you.”
    “ Sure,” Elli said with a dazed look. “Well, it’s been great talking to you, Vicky, but I’m busy and I know you wouldn’t want me to report to management that you’re harassing me, right?”
    Victoria glared as she walked away towards the counter. Elli tried to ignore the stares of her evil sister as she shopped, but it was hard, especially with her words going through Elli’s head.
    I didn’t know we carried cow?
    She kept looking through the racks because she’d be damned if she let her sister see that she had gotten to her. She was flipping through one of the last racks when she saw a champagne colored apron dress from the 1930s. It had a cute little bow tie in the back and it was just so cute! She found her size and carried it to the counter where her sister stood, glaring, of course.
    “ Can’t I refuse service?”
    “ You can, but I can have Amy on the phone in a matter of seconds.” Amy was the manager of the store and, luckily for Elli, she had taken pictures of Amy’s daughter last week, so Elli would be fresh on Amy’s mind.
    “ Whatever.”
    As Victoria took care to take the tags and security tag off Elli’s dress, she looked at the counter where there were cute head bows and flowers to go with the dresses in the store.
    “ I’ll take that champagne colored feathery bow too, please,” Elli said, Victoria grumbled something, and then rang it up. After giving her the