Page 30 of Gentle Fox

"Welcome to Sophisticated Sheen. My name's Valerie. Let me know if I can help you find something today."

The woman was easily ten years older than me but looked amazing in a plum pantsuit set with hints of silver in her jet-black hair. Everything about her appearance was elegant but with soft eyes. She was the kind of woman who looked like she should be sitting across from her country club friends while they drank tea. But really, those friends were just there to pretend they were high class, when in reality they were down to earth. I can't say why I was getting that vibe from her but something about her demeanor didn't match her outfit.

I walked straight over to the mannequin in the window and fingered the satin dress.

"That color would look amazing with your skin tone and the caramel highlights in your hair."

Valerie knew her stuff. The russet color of the dress was one of my favorites because it did in fact look great against my skin and made the color in my hair pop.

"Go ahead and try it on."

"I have no need for a dress like this. I came in because I recently moved to town and wasn't able to bring a lot with me. I need a few staple pieces so I can stop wearing the same thing over and over."

Valerie wasn't hearing any of it. "You don't need a reason to wear a dress that looks good on you but I can see this is important to you, so how about I make you a deal? Tell me your sizes and what kind of style you're looking for, and I'll pull a few things while you try that beautiful dress on."

I bit my lip and avoided eye contact with Owen. I didn't want to know what he thought about the dress.

Liar!

Of course I was lying to myself. It was the theme of the day. I was in denial about plenty of things, my future being top of that list.

So why the hell stop now?

"Oh, why not?" I rattled off answers to the questions she’d asked before accepting the dress. I knew without even trying it on that it would fit perfectly. It was like the dress was waiting for me.

Valerie escorted me to the dressing room but didn't wait around. That woman took her deals seriously. I could see her flitting around the shop pulling pieces at random. A few caught my eye and it was clear Valerie knew my style. I had a feeling I was going to be leaving with quite the wardrobe. In a manner of seconds, the woman already had an armful of things.

"You planning on trying that on sometime this evening?"

I glanced over my shoulder to find a smirk on Owen's face. Damn dimple and all. He probably thought it would keep him out of trouble.

Let's be honest. It would.

I stomped into the dressing room without answering him. The laugh that followed me only further put me in a rage. I unzipped the back of the dress and hung it on the fancy clothing rack. The dressing room was nothing like what could be found in department stores. There was the cutest fabric bench seat in the same teal as the store logo. A bejeweled coat rack sat in one corner and a heavy drape was the only thing separating me from the rest of the store.

I shed my clothes in record time and slipped the satin material up my body. The fabric felt like heaven against my skin.I twisted myself into a pretzel to reach the zipper, only to find it stuck.

Just my luck.

Taking a big deep breath, I tried again but it was no use. Unless I wanted to rip the beautiful material, I needed help.

I dropped my head back and looked up at the ceiling. With my arms dropped down to my side, I took one second to throw a mini tantrum. The kind with a full-body shake and one stomp of the foot.

I finally called out. "Valerie?"

Unfortunately, with the way my luck was going, it wasn't the store owner who answered.

"She ran in the back because she had something back there she thought would be perfect for you. What do you need?"

To restart the day.

Actually that wasn't true. Waking up in Owen's arms felt good even if it was wrong on so many levels. My trip to the bakery was the highlight of my day. It was just in the past hour that things went south and that was only because now, I was stuck in my head and didn't know how to get out of it.

"The zipper is stuck. Can you ask Valerie when she comes back out to help me, please?"

I didn't even get to finish my sentence before the heavy drape was being pushed aside.

"What are you doing?!" I all but shrieked.

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