As the limo pulls to a stop, Martha announces "Okay girls, our first stop."
"First stop? You mean there's more than one planned?" Kate looks out the window and turns around wide-eyed to Martha "Are you crazy Martha? I'm a civil servant, I can't afford to buy anything at this store!"
"Oh my dear, don't be silly, who said anything about buying, we're here to try things on. We're here to be pampered and waited on." turning to Lanie "Think we can get her to relax a bit?"
"Oh Martha, we're talking hard-core here, this is going to take some work." smiling at Kate.
"Castle warned me and I didn't listen." sighed Beckett.
"Okay team, let's go!" said Martha opening the door and taking the driver's hand to get out.
"Lanie, what the hell have I done?" plead Kate looking at Lanie.
"Don't ask me, this was all your idea, I'm just along for the fun!" and she stepped out of the limo behind her.
"Kate, don't be a party-pooper, come on, this will be fun!" called Martha from outside the store.
"Okay, okay, I won't be the one to spoil all our fun. Martha, just remember, we're not used to this." said Kate as she gave in and followed along.
"Speak for yourself woman, I have no problem being catered to and pampered." laughed Lanie.
"Well, here we go!" announced Martha opening the door.
"Ahh Mrs Rogers! I'm so glad that you've come back to visit us!" said the woman in the store. Kate immediately assessed her, early 60s, too much make-up, way too much flashy jewelry.
"Rhonda, let me introduce some good friends of mine and Richard's. This is Dr Parrish." pointing to Lanie.
"Oh, please feel free to call me Lanie." she says shaking hands.
"Very nice to meet you Lanie, call me Rhonda, I run this establishment."
"And this is Detective Katherine Beckett." Martha says putting a hand on Kate's back.
Rhonda looks at Martha and raises her eyebrows "Oh my, Martha, do you mean that this is the detective?" she says extending her hand to Kate.
"Yes Rhonda one and the same." smiles Martha winking at Lanie.
Somewhat taken a back by the introduction, Kate shakes the woman's hand and looks at Martha then Lanie blushing. The fear of 'what have I gotten myself into' clearly written on her face.
"Well my dear" Rhonda says pulling Kate's hand and linking her arm around her's "What can we do for you today?" she asks as they start to walk into the store.
From behind them, Martha explains "Rhonda, Kate has a wedding to attend of an old high-school friend. We're looking for ideas. Richard is going as her guest and wants to make sure she's happy." Martha says smiling at Lanie who is smiling and glowing with the joy she's feeling for her friend.
"Oh Kate, we have some lovely new items that have just arrived from Paris and Milan, I'm sure we can find something you'll like." says Rhonda taking them into a back room with seats and mirrors.
Lanie looks around and quietly says to Kate "I've seen high-class places like this but they're in old movies."
Kate whispers to her friend "What am I going to do? I have no idea what I'm doing here."
"Kate my darling friend, first off, you are a homicide detective, nothing can scare you. Secondly, Martha and I won't let anything bad happen to you, you're just going to have to go with the flow for a while. If you relax and just enjoy yourself, I think you'll have a lot of fun. Don't you remember being a little girl and playing dress-up? I think this is just a different version of that game. You don't have to purchase anything and Martha is going to be fun to watch."
"Ladies, may I introduce Nancy. She is one of our more senior fitters. Martha, I think you've worked with Nancy before. If there's anything you ladies need during your visit, please feel free to ask. I have some things to attend to but I'll be back to check on you periodically."
"Thank you Rhonda!" says Martha "Yes, Nancy, we've met before. This is Lanie and Kate."
"Hello Nancy." the girls say together.
"Nancy, to get things started, I need to replace an outfit. It was a navy-blue ensemble I'd purchased from here about two years ago." says Martha winking at the girls.
"Martha, if you'll give me a minute, I'll get someone to look up that purchase and we'll see what we can do to replace it. Would you like something similar or would you like a new look?"
"Oh Nancy, let's be wild, surprise me!" says Martha, throwing her hands in the air like a diva.
"That will be fine Martha, if you ladies will excuse me for a minute, I'll be right back and we'll get started." says Nancy, heading for an entrance covered by a curtain. Moments later, a young woman comes into the room carrying a silver tray with three glasses of champagne. "Ladies, this is our reduced alcohol champagne for your pleasure, we ask you to relax and enjoy your stay with us."
Lanie and Kate exchange wide-eyed looks at each other as they take the glasses offered. Martha scoops up her glass and raises a toast "Ladies, a toast, to good friends, good clothes, good credit and our men." and they clink their glasses.
Whispering to her friend Lanie says "Rule 1, hang on with both hands, it's going to be a ride."
During a whirlwind experience, a number of outfits have been tried on by all three. At one point Lanie stands in the mirrors wearing a dark red evening gown with a deep plunging neckline and an open back.
"Oh dear. This won't do at all." says Lanie looking at herself in the mirrors.
"What's wrong with it? You look stunning in it!" asks Martha.
"Thank you but I'm afraid it might give too many guys the right idea." she laughs heartily giving a 'high-five' to Kate.
"I have yet to understand how that can be a bad thing but I'll trust your judgment my dear." concedes Martha lifting another glass of champagne in Lanie's direction "What about Javi? What would his reaction be?"
"Oh my.. That boy would pass out from the loss of blood to his brain." she giggled.
"Lanie, want to have some fun?" Kate says going to Lanie's purse and pulling out her phone "Martha, would they mind if we were to take a picture of her in that?"
"No, they won't mind at all. Lanie, ham it up for the camera." laughs Martha.
"I say, Miss Holly Golightly, may I have a picture please?" says Kate, getting into the act as Lanie strikes an elegant pose for the camera. She hands the phone to Lanie to see the picture, then it dawns on Kate how distracting this could be. "Lanie, don't send it to him yet, let me make sure he's not driving or on the shooting range." she says with a wicked smile.
Picking up her phone Kate hits the speed dial for Javi. "Hey Espo, you busy? Whatcha doin' right now?" she says while winking at Lanie "Oh good, put your beer down, pause the game, and sit tight for a minute... No, I'm not going to explain it to you Detective, that was an order." she's laughing so hard she almost couldn't say it to him "Okay Javi, just hang on for a second. You'll know when. Just wait. 'bye!" and she hangs up her phone smiling ear to ear, "Go ahead Lanie, he's sitting down."
Lanie, with a flourish that Ms Golightly would appreciate, hits the 'SEND' button on her phone "Well, there we go." and in unison, Lanie and Kate begin a count down "Ten...Nine...Eight..."
"I'm so glad to see you girls are finally getting into the act." smiles Martha, enjoying the fun they're having.
"Three...Two...One" and Lanie holds up her phone just as it begins to ring. Both of the professional, serious women, begin to laugh hysterically at the thought of the joke they've just played on their friend. Lanie hits the button for the speaker-phone. "Javi, so nice to hear from you today. What prompted this call? You're on speaker with Kate and Martha Rogers, so you better be careful what you say."
"I...ah...you...ummm..." comes the voice from her phone "Ahem ... Oh.. Hi Beckett, Mrs R. ... Lanie, could I talk to you privately for a moment?" Esposito says, trying to sound as collected as he could under the circumstances.
"Sure babe." Lanie smiles, presses a button on her phone and then puts it to her ear "Okay Javi, you were saying?" ... "Javi! Such language!" she winks at Kate "No, I'm just trying on some dresses with Kate and Martha." ... "Oh no, that dress didn't fit me well. I sent you that to ask you for an opinion. Javier Esposito! My goodness, I'm glad this isn't on the speaker-phone, you'd shock these nice ladies using language like that." winking at Kate and rolling her eyes "Javi" ... "Javi!" ... "Go have a cold shower, I need to try on some other outfits, this one is too reserved." ... "Javi! Stop that!" whispering "You'll make me blush!" ... "Good bye!" and she hangs up the phone.
"Lanie, you have just, perfectly I might add, embodied the famous quote 'Leave them wanting more and you know they'll call you back.', my hat's off to you m'dear, that was a masterful stroke." says Martha bowing like she's taking a curtain call on stage.
"Come on Martha, let's see that other outfit Nancy picked out for you." teases Kate.
"Only if you try on that dark green dress."
"Are you kidding? Martha, did you see the price tag on that thing? I don't make that in a week!"
"Kate, you forgot, you're not here to buy, you're here to try and enjoy." she says smiling.
"Lanie, any help?" pleads Kate.
"Sorry honey, I agree with her. I loved that pale blue number she showed me but that's only one of those dream things. I'll enjoy my evening playing dress-up and not let logic and reason interfere."
"That's the spirit Lanie! Now you're catching on! Kate... You're on. Time to rejoin the party." Martha announces.
"Okay okay Martha, I give. You've talked me into it but don't even suggest purchasing it."
"Oh dear, of course not, that spoils the fun!" chided Martha.
Moments later, the hardened NYPD Detective, Katherine Beckett, a tough, savvy, woman stepped into the changing room and stepped out as the lovely Miss Kate Beckett, a vision in a velvety green dress that showed off her shape and long legs as if it was designed specifically for her. The color perfectly accenting the colors of her eyes. Standing in front of the fitting mirrors, she looked at herself.
"Oh my god Kate!" squealed Lanie "You look amazing in that. That is so beautiful. You would stop traffic in that."
"And more than a few hearts my dear." agreed Martha.
Blushing from the unfamiliar attention she continued to look at herself in the mirrors enjoying the moment. For the first time in a very long time she felt like a woman who was free of all the death, destruction and peril that is inherent in her job.
"Ladies, if you'll excuse me for a moment, the champagne has taken it's toll on me." says Martha making an excuse for leaving the two women alone for a moment. As she goes through the curtain, she says to Nancy, "Richard wants me to get the pale blue outfit for Lanie and that green dress for Kate. They are to be sent to him at home via messenger today. Write blue and green on the respective packages and include the price tags on the outside. Is that a problem?"
"Oh no Martha, we'll have it done right away."
"Thank you. Here's his credit card. Don't let the ladies know about this of course. When the green dress is packaged, please include a wrap, shoes, and purse to make a complete ensemble for her."
"No problem at all Martha, and you can keep his card, we'll put it on his account."
"Thank you Nancy, I'd better get back out there to join in the fun.." Martha says winking.
Martha, letting the girls act silly for a few more moments, sits down and pulls out her phone, she types a quick text, hits 'SEND', puts away her phone and lifts her glass of champagne towards the other two and quietly says "To the poor slobs who are about to be rendered speechless and totally powerless at your feet." and finishes her drink.