Page 14 of Tempting the Tiger

When Mary heard of the impending date, she insisted that Grace go upstairs and change for her date. Even though she smelled of vanilla and frosting, there was an underlying scent of a hard, working woman. As she stepped out of the shower, she started to panic. Opening her closet door, she realized she really had nothing to wear. Her clothing consisted of jeans or khaki pants and lots of bakery t-shirts.

As she moved the hangers from side to side, hoping that something would magically appear, she cursed. “Well, what did you expect? That’s what you wear every day.”

She sat on the edge of the bed, her body wrapped in the oversized bath sheet she used. It had been a splurge one January during a white sale at a name well known department store. She had been tired of trying to wrap a regular-sized towel around her oversized body.

Oversized body. That was what was really wrong. She had an oversized body. If she were pencil-thin, it wouldn’t matter what she wore. But, no. She had to find something that had enough fabric in it to hide some of her curves.

Damn it, what was she going to do? Tears started to form in her eyes. A knock sounded at the door and her gaze flew to the clock. It was too early for Keair. Always cautious, she peered out of the peephole before opening her door. She was surprised—and worried—to find Mary standing at the door.

“Mary, is something wrong?”

“No, no. I just thought you might need a little help getting ready for your date.”

“Who’s watching the store?”

Mary took a step forward and Grace moved to let the other woman inside. “I hope you don’t mind, I’ve got Joe watching it.” Joe was Mary’s teenaged son. He was a senior in high school and had helped out on more than one occasion since Grace had hired Mary.

“No, of course not.” Grace sighed and walked back to her bed. The apartment above the bakery was a studio apartment. There was no distinction between the kitchen, living room, and bedroom. The only room that had a door to it was the bathroom.

“So, what are you wearing?”

“You tell me.” Grace waved to the closet before unwinding the towel from her hair. Picking up a comb she began to untangle it. She considered her hair one of her best features. It was long and silky and the color of milk chocolate—or so she liked to tell herself. When she wore it down it fell past her shoulders.

“Well,” Mary said as she took in Grace’s clothing.

“Exactly,” Grace said. “What am I going to do?”

“Now, don’t panic. We’ll find something.” As Mary looked at the meager offerings, Grace dried her hair in the bathroom. Before she was done, Mary was thrusting underwear through the door and urging her to hurry. Grace didn’t know why. She’d decided to cancel the date. Surely, if she called Daniel he could get the message to Keair.

She put on her robe and stepped outside. On the bed, Mary had laid out three outfits. Or one outfit with three shirt options. She had found a pair of black pants Grace had forgotten she had. They were made of slick material and while not skin tight, they in no way hung off her curvy figure. She had forgotten she had bought them on sale last fall.

From somewhere, the other woman had found three blouses. None of which Grace was overly fond of and she said so. “Those really don’t fit me, Mary. They are all too little.”

“Pish-posh. You mean they actually fit you.” Mary waved away Grace’s objections and held out the first one. “This is my favorite. Hopefully, you’ll like it too.”

Grace, over any embracement she might have had in front of Mary—since the woman had literally rummaged through her panty drawer—took off her robe and put on the black pants. They fit snuggly but weren’t too tight. Next, she pulled the dark purple shirt over her head. It was made of lightweight knit and, while clinging to her breasts like a lover’s hand, fell softly over her stomach and hips.

“Perfect,” Mary smiled at her. “See for yourself.” She turned Grace toward the mirror on the back of the closet door that she usually avoided. In the floor-length mirror, Grace could see every inch of her body—a very discouraging sight.

“Not bad.” Grace acknowledged turning sideways. There were no uncomfortable bulges showing and the pants showed off her well-shaped legs. Her hair, now dry, hung in natural waves down her back.

“Now, let’s do your make-up.”

Grace caught up in the moment, agreed. “But not too much. I don’t want him to think I’m dressing up for him.”

“Of course not, dear,” Mary agreed, smiling to herself. Even though she had only seen the man once, she knew the man was smitten with Grace. Grace just didn’t know it yet.

Keair couldn’t believe how nervous he was driving to Grace’s bakery. He wondered briefly where the charismatic charm Bachar had accused him of having had fled. But then again, nothing had ever been this important. He was finally going out with his mate.

As he walked into the store, the bell above the door announced his arrival. He’d expected Grace to be behind the counter, waiting on him. Instead, a lanky teenage boy stood there, his focus on a group of teenage girls giggling in the corner.

“Hi, son. Can you tell me where I can find Grace?”

The boy tore his glance away from the girls, giving him a quick once over. “You her date?”

Keair smiled, liking the protective attitude. “Sure am. The name is Keair.” He held out his hand and the boy shook it with a firm grip.

“I’m Joe. My mom and Grace are upstairs. The stairs are to your right when you go back outside.”