“So, your non-answer means you hate it?”
“Not at all.” His eyes were on mine again. “You look good.”
“I’m talking about the dress.”
“It looks good, too.”
“Do you think Chris will like it?” Michelle asked.
“One hundred percent.”
“Perfect!” She squealed. “Tell your mom to save it for me, Katie! I’ll call you back in a few.” She ended the call.
“I’ll handle it now.” My mom rushed downstairs, leaving me all alone with Asher as he continued to stare at me.
“You can leave now, Mr. Brooks.” I stepped off the platform. “You’ve served your purpose.”
“Not quite, Miss Elizabeth…” He leaned forward and gently trailed his finger against the lace bodice. “Are you wearing anything underneath this dress?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“I don’t think you are,” he said. “Will custom lingerie go under this?”
“Yes,” I answered. “It’ll be accounted for at the next fitting.”
“Hmmm.” He trailed his right palm against my side, and I sucked in a breath. “I feel like this dress looks similar to something I’ve seen you in before.”
“No.” My breathing slowed as his fingers lingered against the side zipper. “That must be in your head.”
“I don’t think so,” he said. “You showed it to me in a hotel room two years ago…you said you’d buy it if your boyfriend proposed.”
“Again, it’s all in your head.” I could barely hear my own voice. “I highly doubt I would ever share something that personal with you—especially if I was dating someone else.”
“You were ‘off’ at the time…” He paused. “You’re off most of the time.”
“You’re making things up.”
“My memory is undefeated,” he said, gently tugging at the zipper. “It was the night you kissed me.”
“Now I know you’re lying,” I said. “Perhaps you’ve been fantasizing about things you’ll never have.”
“Or, things I’d had and wouldn’t mind having more of.”
Silence.
“I don’t like you,” I said. “And I never have.”
“That has nothing to do with this conversation.”
“If we did kiss before, I guess it wasn’t memorable enough to stay in my brain.”
“Allow me to fix that, then.”
His hand slid to my waist, slow—deliberate—like he was giving me time to stop him.
I didn’t.
He pulled me closer, just enough for me to feel the heat of his body through the fabric of the dress.
