Page 31 of His Christmas Wife

Only after she’d issued her correction did she accept his invitation to clink their beverages together.

As Jennings smoothly accelerated toward downtown, she took a sip. “Oh my word.”

“You approve?”

“This is not made with a ten-dollar bottle of bubbly.”

“No. It’s not.” He grinned.

“Aren’t you supposed to use the cheap stuff when you add orange juice to it?”

“That’s the recommendation, yes.”

“Well, after tasting this, I respectfully disagree.”

“Someplace we have common ground.”

By the time they reached the French Quarter, tension seemed to have drained from her shoulders. He hoped that meant the shopping excursion would go well.

After parking, Sam hurried around to open the vehicle door.

On the sidewalk, she paused to look around. Streetlamps were decorated with garland and wrapped with thick red ribbon, and wreaths were hung in the storefront’s plate glass windows. “This looks expensive.”

“I could hardly take you to a strip-mall jeweler.”

“You most certainly could have. And should have.”

Greta had turned her nose up even at this fancy location.

“You will be able to return it, right? After the sham is over?”

Sham?The word and her emphasis on it both rankled.

Struggling to restrain the flare of his temper, he strode to the Charme du Vieux Carré’s door and pressed the bell that was tucked away to the right.

“They’re not open?”

“Not on Sundays, no.”

“Rules don’t apply to you, Mr. Frost?”

“We’re going to be married—”

“Pretend married.”

“So you should call me Evan.”

Her lips parted, but any response was forestalled by the proprietress’s arrival.

“Evan!” Breezily, Isabelle kissed each of his cheeks while Kaylee looked on, blinking at the sight.

Distracted from his annoyance, he returned Isabelle’s greeting. “You look radiant.” And she did.

Though she didn’t appear to be over forty, she was somewhere past seventy-five. Her hair hung to midback, and her black dress floated to the floor. Her jewelry, in custom-created, classic pieces, was understated.

“Come in, both of you.”

Moments later, she turned the lock behind them.

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