Page 19 of Bride By Committee

She couldn’t resist stealing a final glance at Harry. Now that she reflected on the matter, maybe it wouldn’t hurt to consider a few revisions to her blueprint. After all, experimentation led to improvement. And compared to Harry, her blueprint left something to be desired.

“Quiet, everyone,” Sunny announced. “We have a lot to discuss and not much time.”

“I can’t be away from the office too long.” Rosy spoke up. “Madison gets downright cranky when I’m not there to help.”

Sunny gave a brisk nod of approval. “You make an excellent assistant. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t have known what to get Madison for her birthday. We’re all very grateful.”

A chorus of agreements came from the other Sunflowers and Rosy grinned. “Just remember that when it comes time for the big surprise I get full credit.”

“Done.” Sunny clutched Bartholomew’s book close. “Phase one and two have been successfully completed. Harry came and the two have met.”

“More than met,” David said with a chuckle. “I don’t suppose you arranged that elevator malfunction?”

Sunny smiled modestly. “The building engineer owed me a favor. Getting them both alone on the same elevator was the tricky part. But it ended up being one of my better efforts, Imust confess.”

“So what’s phase three?” Dell asked. “How can we help?”

“It shouldn’t be too difficult. Not for a Sunflower. Fortunately, Madison tends to be a bit oblivious to everything other than her current project.”

“It’s a regrettable trait she inherited from her father,” Daniel offered.

Sunny dismissed the comment with an impatient shrug. “Nothing we can do about that. Instead of bemoaning the unfortunate influence, we’ll use it to our advantage.”

“How?” Rosy demanded bluntly.

“We’ll give her something important to focus on. And while she’s distracted by that, we’ll put our plan in motion.” Sunny beamed. “And I have just the perfect distraction. We’re meeting at dinner tonight and I’ll lay the groundwork then.”

“She’ll be so pleased with our ingenuity.”

“She’ll thank us.”

“This will be the best birthday yet.”

Sunny quieted her relatives with an upheld hand. “After all Madison’s done for us, she deserves the best present we can find. Having met Harry, Ican happily confirm that he’s the absolute best. Ithink we can all be confident that our little marriage project will meet with complete success. We can also be confident that Madison will be eternally grateful for our interference.”

“Grateful enough to increase our allowances?” Harley wanted toknow.

Sunny grinned. “Trust me. I’ve taken care of that, too.”

Harry stood in the lobby of King Tower and watched as Madison entered the building. He shook his head in disbelief. She had to be one of the loveliest women he’d ever seen. Not that she seemed aware of that fact. Perhaps it had to do with her level of focus. Since her appearance wasn’t important to her, she didn’t give it more than cursory attention. And yet, she exuded a careless elegance that held intense appeal.

She wore her hair loose and he discovered that it was longer than he’d thought. The dusky ringlets spilled over her shoulders and down her back in carefree abandon, framing her face and setting off the bright gold of her dress. She didn’t wear a lot of makeup. Of course, she didn’t need to. Her lashes were thick and black, drawing attention to large, inky-dark eyes and a generous mouth he’d explored for far too short a time. He’d have to correct that oversight.Soon.

He knew the instant she noticed him. There was a slight break in her stride as she approached and her eyes turned as luminous as starlight. Then her lashes flickered downward to curtain her pleasure. But there was no disguising the softening of her mouth or the way her breathing kicked up a beat. Even when she glanced up again, her wary regard betrayed an intense awareness of him as a man. She stopped several feet away, as though hoping the discreet distance would establish a ring of protection.

He demolished the ring with a single stride, invading her space and allowing all the chemical reactions she denied so fiercely to be set in motion. Masculine collided with feminine, sparking the air betweenthem.

Harry took his time before speaking. “You came.”

“Don’t try your intimidation tricks on me,” she ordered briskly.

He lifted an eyebrow in question. “Intimidation tricks?”

“You told me about them on the elevator, remember? Showing up early. Letting your size make people nervous. Staying quiet so everyone else rushes into speech and—” She broke off abruptly.

“And betrays themselves?”

“You are a difficult man, Harry Jones.”

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