Chapter 11

SHOPPING!

I went upstairs and put my eyeshadow, lipgloss, and mascara on. I wasn't a fan of make-up, but oh well. Today was special. A little foundation here, a little foundation there, a snatch of the purse, and I was ready to go. Oh wait! A spritz of perfume. NOW I was ready.

I practically skipped down the stairs. Shopping gets me in a weird mood…I don't know. (Maybe I'm just weird…?) Artemis was standing with his arms crossed waiting, leaning up against the door. His shirt was unbuttoned a bit and his hair was tousled and messy. I stopped in my tracks. I got this weird feeling in my stomach.

"What, is there something on my face? I thought we were shopping, not gaping mindlessly. Let's go. There's a chauffer waiting in the driveway." He said.

I swallowed and nodded. Suddenly I was at a loss for words. What's happening?? This isn't part of the plan!!

I walked the rest of the way down the staircase (tripping once on my sandal I must add). I opened the cherry wood door and closed it. "Lock the door behind you." Artemis shouted over his shoulder. I re-opened the door, locked it manually, ad closed it again.

"Happy?" I asked, annoyed.

"Yes, thank you. And yourself?" he asked, disturbingly sarcastic. I sighed. He was a pain in the ass, no way around it. I jumped into the Escalade Limousine. Sweet, I thought. Of course, I had to jump because I've always been a bit short for my age, but oh well. One learns to cope. What I HADN'T coped with however was the nervousness I still got around Fowl. He also took advantage of the knowledge he had of how I didn't want to blow my cover. (Obviously, he hadn't told anyone about my identity.) He patted the seat next to him. I threw him a look of disgust and sat down.

"You're lucky I'm doing this, Fowl." I grumbled.

"Doing what, Miss Greenwich?" he asked.

"Taking you shopping as an apology, that's what!" I snapped at him.

We sat in silence for about fifteen minutes. Something caught my eye in the strip mall we were passing. Was that…no…it couldn't be…but it was key…key to Fowl's fashion existence. It was…

Abercrombie and Fitch.

"Stop! Stop there!" I yelled, waving my arms.

The driver gave me an amused look and pulled into the parking lot of the A&F store. "My compliments Miss…I shall be here when you call, Master Fowl. Tah!" the chauffer said.

"Ever been here before, Fowl?" I asked.

"No, why…"

"Oh!! Then this is going to be even MORE fun than I thought!" I squealed. That was a first-I squealed.