“Try this pair.” Lisa snatched a pair from the display and handed them to Hannah. “They’ll be perfect. Trust me.”

“Trust me” was the same phrase her mother had used when she’d talked Hannah into buying a totally ridiculous velvet skirt one Christmas, and Hannah was leery as she examined the shoes. They met all the requirements, but the thin leather strap that buckled around the ankle would draw attention to her legs.

“Just try them, Hannah. If you don’t like them, you can choose something else.”

“Fine.” Going shopping with Lisa was a lot like shopping with her mother. “I wear a nine and a half narrow.”

“I’ll get a clerk.”

Lisa hurried off and within a few moments she came back with a man with black hair and a mustache. He was wearing white pants and a striped shirt and he looked exactly like Hannah’s conception of a Venetian gondolier.

“This is Tony,” Lisa introduced him. “He’ll help you.”

In record time Hannah’s feet were measured, and Tony had slipped the shoes on her feet. Hannah stood up gingerly, took a few steps, and started to smile. Lisa was right. The shoes would be perfect with her black cocktail dress. “I’ll take them.”

“Not so fast,” Lisa warned. “You have to walk around the store first. You promised.”

Hannah sighed and walked up and down the aisles. She was glad she did, because she noticed a sign near the register that advertised a second pair of shoes for five dollars. She rushed back to Tony and gestured toward the sign. “A second pair is only five dollars?”

“That’s right. It’s still our grand opening. You want to look at a second pair?”

Hannah shook her head and pointed at Lisa. “No, she does and I’m paying. She’d like to try…” Hannah glanced around. She’d noticed that Lisa had been staring at a pair of shoes when they’d first walked in, and there had been a wistful expression on her face. She located the shoes, a pair of gold sandals with five-inch heels, and hurried over to retrieve them and carry them back to Tony. “She wants to try this pair.”

“You’ll be wasting your money,” Lisa objected. “They’re beautiful, but I wouldn’t have anywhere to wear them.”

“So what? I want you to have them. Every woman needs a totally fantastic pair of shoes once in a while, even if they just sit in her closet.”

“But, Hannah…”

“Don’t forget that I’m your boss,” Hannah interrupted her. “And I’m ordering you to get those shoes.”

Lisa began to laugh. “You win. Do you have them in a six, Tony?”

Twin Pines was only ten miles from the Tri-County Mall and the snow was still falling as Hannah pulled into a recently vacated spot near the entrance. It wasn’t snowing hard, but she wondered what it would be like to get snowbound at a casino. Perhaps it was a good thing she hadn’t brought any of her credit cards with her.