I groan. “No, there’s nothing going on. At the moment, I don’t think we’re even speaking to each other.”
“Do you want to tell me what happened?” She makes a circling motion with her finger. “Consider this room our cone of silence. Anything you say won’t leave here, I promise.”
I release a sigh, and before I can stop them, the words tumble out of my mouth. “When Gabe came here to install a bunch of cameras, electronic locks, and other security measures I’m not sure are necessary, we ended up arguing. I said some things that upset him, then he said some things that only upset me even more, and then . . . I kissed him.”
Avery’s eyes go wide. “You kissed him?”
“Technically, he kissed me. The point is, it happened. And trust me, neither one of us is happy about it, either. But now it’s been two days since he stormed out of here, and I can’t decide if I’m relieved or furious as hell that I haven’t seen or heard from him.”
“Maybe some of both,” Avery suggests gently, and I sense she knows something about this feeling herself. “He’s a good man, Evelyn. I don’t think he’s without his own demons, but then how many of us can say we are? Some people are worth all the effort it takes to love them, or to show them that they’re worth loving.”
I mentally reel back. “I’m talking about a couple of arguments and an angry kiss. Love is the furthest thing from my mind. Or his, I’m sure.”
She smiles, giving a faint lift of her shoulder. There is something sly in her gaze now, and in the faint tilt of her lips. “Anyway, Gabe won’t be able to avoid you forever. Especially if you and I start spending more timetogether working on lingerie designs.”
“It won’t be a problem,” I assure her. “You’re my client, Avery, and I promise none of this will impact my work or the quality of my time spent with you. I’ve actually cleared my other clients to devote myself completely to this project. I won’t disappoint you.”
She shakes her head. “I know you won’t, and that’s not what I meant. What I’m trying to say is that I want to expand the scope of our agreement, Evelyn. I’d like you to design all of the lingerie for my wedding and honeymoon. If you’re interested, that is.”
I’m gaping, but I can’t help it. “Avery.” I reach out and squeeze her hand, but then my gratitude and excitement overcomes me and I can’t resist giving her a hug. “Thank you. I would be honored.”
“I can’t imagine trusting it to anyone else,” she says, smiling as I release her. “We can talk some more about it next week.”
“I look forward to it.”
“Me too,” she says. “Now, I’d better run. I have a hundred things to do before tomorrow, but this was by far the best part of my day.”
We leave the dressing room together and walk out to the front of the boutique. There are a few customers browsing the shop, but it is the gray-haired gentleman in the prim suit seated in one of our consultation areas that draws my attention.
“See you tomorrow afternoon,” Avery says, giving me a quick hug before heading for the front door.
I wave to her, then step behind the cashier counter where Megan is eyeing me uncertainly. “What’s Mr. Hennings doing here today?”
“He says he had an appointment with Kat.”
“I thought she was off today.”
“She is. But apparently she forgot to tell Mr. Hennings.” Meg taps the computer screen to bring up the shop calendar. “He’s right here on her schedule, Evelyn. Anyway, he asked to wait for you.”
“All right. I’ll handle it.” Suppressing my disappointment in Kat for this uncharacteristic slip, I paste a smile on my face and walk over to greet the kindly older man. He stands up as I approach, inclining his balding head. “Mr. Hennings, good afternoon.”
“Ah, Miss Beckham. Hello, my dear.” He takes my offered hand in his grasp, his palm soft and a little humid.
I draw mine back and fold my arms. “I just heard there was a scheduling problem on our end today. I apologize for the mix-up. I know Katrina will feel terrible about this too.”
“It’s no trouble at all,” he assures me. “Mistakes happen. I hope you don’t mind that I’m intruding on your day. I see your talents are very in demand lately.”
A guilty pang jabs me at the remark, especially considering my work with Avery has limited the time I used to spend on his account. “First of all, you’re not intruding. I’m just sorry you came all this way and Katrina’s not here. Is there something I can help you with?”
“If you don’t mind, I was hoping to check on the progress of that delightful little negligee we discussed a couple of weeks ago. The one that’s almost the precise color of your pretty eyes.”
I know Kat would groan at the old man’s feeble attempts to flirt, but I’ve learned to take it in stride. I invite him back to my office and he follows, pausing tothank Megan for the tea she brought him while he waited for me to finish with Avery.
His round face lights up in a smile as soon as he enters my office and sees his rosebush situated on the edge of my desk. “You found the perfect spot for it.”
“Thank you again for your lovely gift, Mr. Hennings. It really wasn’t necessary.”
He gives me a dismissive wave of his hand. “You create such beautiful things, I wanted to make something beautiful for you.”
