‘‘You let them dress you up for a few years,’’ Gillian remembered. ‘‘You only stopped when Shona moved away.’’
‘‘Well, I wasn’t going to do it myself,’’ I replied.
‘‘I was thinking about that.’’ Gillian sounded so innocent back then. ‘‘Would you do it again if I asked you? I could get you into a really swish place and you’d be mixing with some of the people you see in the movies and television.’’
‘‘I’m not sure…’’
‘‘I think you could try it.’’ She ignored the beginning of my objection. ‘‘With a bit of practice and the right coaching, you’d probably be quite convincing again.’’
‘‘I don’t think…’’ I tried again.
‘‘I’ll call Shona tomorrow,’’ Gillian continued. ‘‘I’m sure she’ll be ready to help. She’s majoring in something to do with theatre.’’
‘‘But I don’t want…’’
‘‘Nonsense, you’ll enjoy every minute of it.’’ Gillian was in full assertive mode. ‘‘Last time you were a young teen. This time, I need you to be about twenty or twenty-two.’’
‘‘You need me to be twenty-two?’’ I asked.
‘‘I need you to look something about that age,’’ she replied. ‘‘I need you to be quite glamorous too. That should be fun for you.’’