Page 25 of All Dressed Up

Rachel smoothed her blue shirt. “Thank you. What a lovely skirt.”

“Thank you.” Amber laughed. “It’s nice to not wear spandex yoga pants in the evening for a change.”

Will took a sip of his beer, listening to the pleasantries being exchanged by the two. How did they know each other? Maybe Rachel was taking one of Amber’s classes.

Perhaps, but Rachel didn’t seem to want to continue the conversation. Silence circled them for an awkward beat when Donovan interjected, thrusting his hand in front of Amber to shake hers, “Hi, I’m Donovan. Rachel’s brother.”

“I’m sorry,” Rachel said. “I’m being rude. Amber, this is my twin.” She touched Donovan’s arm. “We should go. We’re going to be late.”

“For what?” Donovan asked.

Rachel gave him a death stare. “You know. The event we’re going to.”

“Right. Wouldn’t want to be late forthatevent.”

“Have a good night,” Rachel said and spun on her heel before Will or Amber could reply.

Strange. Will said goodbye to Donovan, his gaze following Rachel right out of the bar. If he wasn’t mistaken, she looked incredibly uncomfortable. Why did they leave? He hadn’t seen them in here earlier. Maybe they’d been in a corner and he hadn’t noticed.

Although, he was pretty sure if Rachel had been in the bar, he would have known it. Like it or not, his radar for her was always on high alert.

But she was gone now, and his date was here. He needed to be a gentleman and give Amber his full attention. He turned back to her and grabbed his beer bottle, clinking it with her margarita glass. “Here’s to a better night than today.”

*

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I am not jealous.” Rachel stormed across the street back to Buttermilk Blooms. When she agreed to grab a beer and nachos with her brother, the last thing she expected to see was Will and Amber having drinks.

Who goes on a date after their shop is almost engulfed in flames?

Okay, maybe that was an exaggeration, but still. Were things moving forward between the pair?

She shoved her front door key in. Were Will and Amber nowa pair?

They can’t be.It’s only been a couple of days.She reassured herself, flipping on the lights. Her flower shop now looked like a bridal runway show with all of Will’s wedding dresses on two portable racks she’d borrowed from the consignment shop a few stores down from hers. Cheryl Collins, the owner, told her she could keep them as long as she needed and had even given her a portable full-length mirror in case Will needed one wherever he eventually set up temporary shop.

“C’mon. You can admit it to your older brother.”

She shook her head. Donovan liked to remind her that he was a few mere minutes older every chance he got. “There’s nothing to admit.”

He hopped onto her counter, not ready to let her off the hook anytime soon. “Oh, please. I know when a woman is jealous and that, my dear sister, was the biggest display of jealousy that I’ve ever seen.”

“No, it wasn’t.” She shook her head.

“Then why aren’t we sharing a huge plate of Mitch’s nachos right now?”

She could only give him a blank stare. There really wasn’t a good answer for her rush out. At least not one she wanted to admit to her brother. They hadn’t been in the tavern a full minute when she’d spotted Will with Amber and walked right up to the bar, not sure what she was going to say to them.

“Yep. Big blinking neon sign.”

She blew out an exasperated breath. “Oh, stop it. You win. I’m jealous. Will’s on a date, and it’s not with me. Are you happy now?”

“Do you want it to be you?” he asked with less teasing in his tone.

“No... I don’t know... maybe.” She shrugged. “Even if I did, it doesn’t really matter. It’s their second date this week, so he obviously likes her.”

“How do you know they’re on a date?”

She walked over to the rack and pulled out the mermaid-style wedding dress she’d shoved in there earlier so she didn’t have to look at it. “Becausethiswas what Amber found in Mary’s stupid trunk before she had her first date with Will on Monday night.”

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