Page 78 of Crushes and Confections

“The floor length,” I said. The burgundy would fit the holiday and showcase her hair. The plunging neckline would make her alphas and I salivate, and the flowing layers of satin and sheer fabric were phenomenal. I could already see her in it and she’d be stunning.

“What about jewelry?” I asked as Dawn took my choice to the front as well, and we stood, getting ready to follow her. “Silver would stand out and something that complemented the neckline.”

“Then take us somewhere we can find that next,” Vance prompted as he put a hand on my lower back and led me up front.

Adrien of course pulled out his card when I tried to pay and this time I bit my tongue. With two dress bags in hand we walked out.

“Suits first. We have to hit Black Tie Affair next,” I warned them as we loaded the dress bags and locked up the SUV. It was just down the street, so we walked. It was the benefit of shopping in Holiday Hollow and not going from town to town searching.

The experience in Black Tie Affair was far more relaxed. The old man who owned it had run the formal shop for years, and he had this down to a science. With a round of quick grunts and hard orders we were properly sized and shown the options.

“Alright, this is my time to shine,” I said dramatically, my eyes scanning down Adrien. “Let’s try the black tailored blazer set.” It was an inky black jacket and pants and we could pair it with a burgundy button-down easily. It didn’t require a tie and the dark colors were always my favorite on Adrien, especially with his dark hair and goatee.

For Vance, I chose a charcoal gray suit with a sharp black undershirt, tying in a pop of burgundy with his tie. It was soft and sophisticated and a nice contrast to Adrien’s choice.

Matching all of us in the same styles would be an injustice to our sexy selves, but we could coordinate with each other using the same color palette.

“And what about you?” It was more words than I’d ever heard from old Tom in all our interactions over the years.

“I’m eyeing the burgundy suit,” I said. With a black undershirt underneath it I would definitely look handsome, and it would look amazing with Claire’s dress. In my head, I could already picture us all standing together, standing out in the crowd. The exact kind of entrance we all deserved.

“This time I’m paying,” I growled out and they didn’t argue. Honestly, I appreciated it. When we left the store I felt accomplished and excited.

Adjusting to each other was a mix of fun and challenging. Including them in this entire adventure was a great idea. We still had a few more stores to hit, but those could wait.

“I’m feeling coffee,” I mused. “Anyone else need a little pick-me-up?”

“Absolutely,” Vance grinned. “We can hang out and just bring our sweet omega home afterwards.”

“My thoughts exactly.”

CHAPTER 25

Claire

“Thanks for coming with me,” I told Adrien as I surveyed the living room of my cottage again, making sure I got everything I wanted this time.

Even though I’d come over the other day to grab more things, I completely forgot one of my favorite alpaca blankets.

“Of course,” Adrien said, coming up behind me and wrapping me up in his arms. “Some very intelligent omega I know told me I should hire help at my shop so my schedule could be more flexible.”

I tilted my head back to look up at him, a grin on my face.

Yes, my control freak of an alpha had finally taken a page from my book and hired help as well. Of course since he mostly focused on chocolate, with only a handful or so of patisseries, his items had a longer shelf life. Which meant he still was solely making all the goods, but now had the luxury of modified hours.

“She sounds like a catch,” I teased him back.

“Absolutely,” he agreed. “In fact, she’s inspired me lately and I’ve made something dedicated to her. I brought some with me from the shop, care to try?”

I spun in his arms, a feeling of giddiness flowing through me as I nodded my head. He’d made a batch of the lime-infused cherry cordials he dedicated to Vance for us all the other night, and they were absolutely to die for. The fact that he’d spent the time doing the same for me, was probably one of the greatest gifts ever.

And speaking of the amount of amazing gifts they all had gotten me, that was saying a lot.

Adrien placed a quick kiss on my lips, and went to grab a long sleek onyx box I hadn’t noticed him bring in.

He passed it to me without a word, and I took care, sliding the gold ribbons off the corners before removing the lid and revealing the five perfectly uniform chocolate truffles inside.

“They’re gorgeous,” I said, admiring the pretty peach color, white accents, and gold foil.

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