On top of all that, I’m in for a special treat on my way home.Today’s the day I’ll swing by the boutique to pick up the dress I had made for Finlay and Emma’s wedding next week.
I unplug my Rudolph nose from the battery pack and yank it off my face.I turn from the medical center parking lot onto the state highway, laughing at how out of character this whole dress adventure has been for me.
When was the last time Phoebe Leeanne Travis got a fancy gown?
Never.
When was the last time she asked a seamstress to create a one-of-a-kind vision in velvet, just for her?
Again, never.
And when has this mild-mannered rancher’s daughter ever wanted a dress designed for seduction?A dress to make a man—oneparticularman—weak in the knees, unable to resist her feminine charms?
Another never.
I continue driving toward Sweetbriar’s downtown, asking myself for the hundredth time why I suddenly decided to take my shot.My answer never changes.I know the truth.
It’s now or never.
If I don’t at leasttryto get Evander MacLaine to see me as more than sweet little Phoebe from next door, I’ll always wonder what might have been.
He’s been back at Yosemite Ranch for more than two years now.When he broke his leg in the spring, I helped care for him.Something changed between us.I could feel it, and I think he could feel it too.
Sometimes I’d catch Evander looking at me.I’d see a flash of interest in those sexy violet eyes and an unasked question on his face.
He’d always look away.
And when he healed enough to be up and around again, I didn’t have an excuse to spend additional time with him.He certainly didn’t need me hanging around the way he had when he first came home from the hospital.So I wished Evander well and went on my way.
I couldn’t stop thinking about him, though.It was so bad that I knew I had to break it off with Rick, the doctor I dated when I lived in Arizona.Things had gotten pretty serious by the time I moved home last year.He even asked me if I’d consider marrying him someday.
We’ve tried to make it work long distance.
But when I met up with Rick in Tahoe for a romantic weekend just a few months back, it didn’t go well.More than once, he asked me if something was wrong.I seemed distant, he said.
On Sunday afternoon, I told him the truth.I told him that the long-distance thing wasn’t working for me.I told Rick that he’s a good man and that he deserves far more than I can give him.
He looked shocked.“Is there someone else?”
I said no, which is the truth.Because anything happening with Evander is unfolding in the privacy of my thoughts and in my secret heart of hearts.Not in the real world.
It was enough, though.I told Rick it wasn’t fair to string him along if I knew I couldn’t return the intensity of his feelings for me.We broke up.I hated to see him devastated like that, but it was the right thing to do.
And that’s when I decided I needed a killer dress.One that would make Evander sit up and pay attention.Because it’s Evander I want, not Rick, and I have to give it my best shot.
I’ve imagined the moment a thousand times.I’ll walk into Finn and Emma’s wedding in my curve-hugging red velvet masterpiece and Evander will glance my way.
He’ll go back to his conversation only to do a double take, his attention snapping right back to me.
He’ll stare.He’ll walk my way, helpless to resist.He’ll ask me to dance.
As we hold each other close, Evander will no longer be able to avert his gaze.That flash of interest will grow into something more.Something hungry and intense.All his questions will disappear.He’ll finally see me for who I am.
I giggle.
Hey, a girl can dream.And fantasize, apparently.
I find a parking spot and pop into the shop.My dress is hanging by the door, steamed and protected in a fancy cloth garment bag.
