Page 20 of Purple Scales & Coffee Tales

“Of course, sir.” The clerk bowed. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

I waited until he had left and stepped nearer to Maeve, who was inspecting herself in a mirror big enough to show all of me without having to duck.

“What do you say?” I asked her quietly when I stood right behind her, hands flexing at my sides with the urge to touch her, to pull her around and take her mouth in a soul-shattering kiss.

“It’s beautiful,” she murmured, searching for my gaze in the mirror.

“Youare beautiful, the dress merely drives the point home.”

Her cheeks reddened and she looked away to give herself another once-over in the mirror.

“I’ve never worn anything this expensive. It costs more than I pay for rent in a month.”

“We’ve already established that you’re not paying for it,” I reminded her and she gave me a shrug as if to say ‘Yeah, whatever.’

“It’s still a shit ton of money.”

“I’m not saying it isn’t. All I’m saying is that I would like to buy it for you. It’s the least I can do when you graciously offered to shield me with your life from all Kirkmuir’s money sharks. And,” I added because I could see the words forming on her tongue, “I am not trying to bribe you. This dress was made for you, and I want you to feel comfortable at this party.” Dipping my mouth to her cheek, I brushed a tiny kiss over her skin. “Let me buy this dress for you, boss.”

“God, you play dirty, Mr Atax.”

You have no idea.

“Mmm,” I hummed, making sure my breath brushed over her skin. “Another nickname? That’s number three, is it?”

Watching goosebumps erupt on her neck and race down her body was even more beautiful than the dress itself. Her nipples tightened against the raw silk and I could have sworn I heard her breath hitch in her throat as her aura flamed dark pink.

Goddess, help me.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt,” came the voice of our sales clerk from the staircase. Before he could turn away, I straightened up.

“Don’t worry, Alex. We’ll take it.”

“Taran, that’s too much money,” she hissed under her breath so the assistant wouldn’t hear her. “I really can’t accept that.”

“I want you to have it.” I shut down the argument with one last kiss on her cheek. “By the way, do you need shoes to go with this?”

She hesitated. “I don’t suppose I can wear my trainers or my pair of black flats. They’re pretty beat up from working.”

“Can you pack the dress for us? My driver will pick it up in an hour,” I instructed the shop assistant when Maeve was done changing back into her clothes, and handed him the hanger with the beautiful spring-green dress.

“Certainly, Mr Atax. We hope to see you and your mate back in our shop soon.” He half bowed, first at Maeve, then at me, and took her hand to administer a perfect hand kiss. Maeve’s face glowed like the setting sun as she stammered her thanks and goodbyes and followed me out of the shop.

I couldn’t help but smile. I liked that he’d called her that even though it was mainly wishful thinking on my part.

“Any shoe shop that catches your eye?” I asked her, waving my hand at the rest of the mall.

She hesitated, her eyes hanging briefly on an elegant shop front. “Let’s look around for a bit, okay?”

“How about this one?” I asked, pointing my chin at the beautifully decorated window a few shops down to the left.

“One pair of these shoes costs almost as much as the dress.” Her voice sounded pained.

Making a mental note to check with my property manager, who was in charge of paying the staff, and giving her a long overdue raise, I reached out to take her hand. “Come on, let’s see if they have shoes that fit with your new dress,” I said lightly and pulled her in the direction of Dawn & Petal.

“Hello and welcome. Would you like to look around or can I help you with something?” one of the salespeople approached us, looking smart in her blouse and slacks.

“Some assistance would be great,” I told her with a smile. “We need a pair of shoes to go with a dress.” Describing it briefly, I pulled Maeve after her into the back of the shop and guided her to one of the padded benches.

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