“Welcome to Tiffany’s. What can I help you with? Are you looking for anything specific?”
“Well, no, not really. Just something nice for…I need something for…my sister.” If Gary told her it was for his girlfriend, the woman would think he was a right tightwad if he didn’t spend big. “Nice but not too…well, you know yourself.” He felt like a right fool for thinking he could just randomly pick something out in a place like this.
“Ah, I’ve got just the thing. Follow me,” she said, walking ahead of him to another counter. “Now charm bracelets are always a popular choice, especially for the season,” she said, pointing out a row of silver bracelets. “People just love these. The perfect gift for a sister, I would think. Thoughtful, yet not too intimate.”
“Ah, can I have a look?” he asked nervously.
“Of course.”
Studying the bracelet, Gary quickly sought out the price tag and breathed an inward sigh of relief.
Yep, this would do nicely. Thoughtful, not too intimate, and more importantly, not too pricey. “Right so. That’ll be perfect…Amanda,” he added, reading her name tag.
“You’ll take it?” She chuckled, her blue eyes wide with surprise. “That was fast.”
“Yep,” Gary said with a little wink. “I don’t hang around.”
“You know, I just love your accent,” she said, looking closely at him. “Are you English?”
“Christ, don’t insult me!” he quipped, feigning horror, then seeing her dismayed expression, he shook his head. “Ah, don’t worry about it. Bit of an old joke. I’m Irish. From Dublin. Ever been?”
“Afraid not. Maybe one of these days,” Amanda said, laying the bracelet inside a soft felt pouch before putting it into a square blue box. Then she tied the entire package together with a white satin bow. “Here you go. I just know your sister is going tolovethis little blue box. Every woman does.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure she will. I’ll be the favorite brother this year,” Gary muttered, whipping out his Visa.
After ringing up his purchase, Amanda handed him back the card along with a small Tiffany’s carrier bag. Gary had to admit, he felt a bit of pride picking it up.
Tiffany’s no less. Rachel would be thrilled.
“Thank you, sir,” the assistant finished with a smile. “Enjoy your visit to New York. I hope you have a fabulous time here.”
“That I will. And you, gorgeous, have a lovely Christmas,” he said, winking.
“Why, thank you!” Amanda giggled, and Gary gave her one last appreciative glance before picking up the rest of his bags and heading back out onto the street.
Mission accomplished, he thought, a grin on his face. His arms weighed down with bags almost made him feel like a victorious hunter, home afresh from the field.
But now, he needed to find a quick way back to the hotel in SoHo.
Where was his motorbike when he really needed it? He groaned, frustrated. Even with all these bags hanging off him, having his Ducati just then would be a hell of a lot easier than trying to hail a cab amid the surrounding crowds already attempting the same feat.
Oh well. Gary decided, lifting his hand and stepping out onto the road like they were always doing in the movies.When in Rome…
Chapter 4
Completely shopped out, Ethan and Daisy had also just exited Tiffany’s.
“So how about it, buttercup? Do you want to head for the Disney Store now?” he suggested, although truthfully he hoped she was as tired as he was. It had been a long day, and he wasn’t sure he could handle much more of these crowds.
“No, I think we should head back.”
“I think you’re right.” He took her hand and was just about to say something else when a loud shout interrupted him.
“Thanks for nothing, gobshite!” came a yell to his left that rang out above the cacophony. The unmistakable accent was familiar to him, since Vanessa was Irish by birth.
They both turned to look. “Don’t worry about that, honey. Just some guy trying to hail a cab. Good luck to him in this crowd. So what do you—”
Again, a sound interrupted, but this time it was the blare of a horn followed by the piercing screech of braking tires. Ethan turned back to see the Irish guy now lying on the side of the road, shopping bags scattered on the street all around him.
