Page 70 of How Sweet It Is

I grin like I can’t keep a secret. “Did I forget to tell you? I ordered a car, and it’s being delivered as we speak.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Are you ready to be picked up in style?”

She gives me a flat look. “What did you do?”

I laugh. “You’ll see.”

CHAPTER 33

CLAIRE MATTHEWS — SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19

Ilook in the mirror at my hair done up all fancy and turn to the stylist, a young woman named Selena. “I don’t know how you do it. It’s amazing. I look like a different person.”

She laughs. “It’s nothing. You have wonderful hair, Amelia. I’d love to give it a cut sometime. I think you’d look really good with short hair.”

“You do?” I look at myself again in the mirror. “I’ve always hated my hair, but if you can pull this off, maybe I should come back and let you cut it.”

She grins at me. “Oh, sweetie, just say the word.”

I eye her reflection. “You’re not from around here, are you?”

She shakes her head. “Just moved here. But I’ve been styling hair since I was a kid. I guess it runs in the family. My mom was a stylist.”

I stand and grab my purse. “You have talent. I don’t know what you’re doing here. You could do this in Hollywood.”

Selena stiffens, although I have no idea why. I didn’t mean it as an insult. She walks behind the counter. “You’re so kind. That will be an even hundred.”

I pull out the bills with an extra twenty and hand them to her. “Here, keep the change.”

I drive to my apartment and quickly get dressed. The hairstyling took longer than expected, and I’m running a bit late. At least Levi’s not here yet to pick me up. As I slip on the dark-blue dress that hugs my figure, memories come flooding back.

I’ve owned this dress since college graduation but never actually wore it. My sister was receiving the Presidential Lifetime Achievement Award for Volunteer Service the day of my college graduation, so my parents were at the White House with her. I decided not to walk the stage since no one was going to be there to watch me. After all, I was just graduating college at age eighteen. That wasn’t nearly as impressive as a presidential award.

I shove aside the bad memories. Natalie left Ohio and never looked back. I’m the one who stayed. I’m the one who saved the shop when my parents were almost bankrupt. I’m the one they depend on now.

I smooth the fabric over my hips and examine my reflection. The dress is elegant. It’s dark blue with a sweetheart neckline and cap sleeves. It’s understated, but it fits me better now than it did when I was eighteen. I tuck a curl behind my ear and reach for my earrings, small silver studs, the only thing I have left from my grandmother.

Just then, the sound of an engine cuts through the quiet. It roars, and I just know that’s got to be Levi. I frown and move to the window.

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

A low-slung electric-blue Lamborghini purrs into the parking lot like it owns the world. The sun glints off the chrome, and the thing practically glows. The door lifts like a wing, and out steps Levi Barrett, dressed in a tuxedo and grinning like a man who knows he’s about to cause trouble.

I grab my clutch and, after locking my apartment door behind me, head outside.

“What is that?” I gesture to the car, arching a brow.

Levi stops for a second, his eyes traveling over my dress, and his grin widens. He shrugs like he just picked it up with a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk. “My new ride. Pretty, isn’t she?”

“I told you not to do anything reckless with your inheritance,” I hiss under my breath as I descend the steps.

He leans casually against the car, all charm and dangerous smiles. “Buying happiness in the form of horsepower isn’t reckless.”

I cross my arms. “You do realize Kiki’s wedding is in Tobias’s backyard, right? We’re not pulling up to a Hollywood premiere.”

He opens the passenger door for me with a mock bow. “All the more reason to arrive in style. Come on, Spreadsheet. Live a little.”

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