Waking Sleeping Beauty (2 page)

Walking beside him down the corridor lined with conference rooms and offices, she leaned over and whispered, “Word is all this may be temporary if we don’t get our stuff together in the next few weeks. Sales are up now, but will they remain up now that Charlie’s easing back on her schedule because she’s expecting?”

“That’s why she called,” he murmured in agreement.

“Who better to yank us back into the stratosphere than Marcus Goode, well-respected, world-renown businessman who built an empire from one restaurant in little ol’ Dallas, Texas to dozens of restaurants and exclusive resorts in dozens of the most beautiful places on Earth?”

“Put like that, I shouldn’t have any problems, right?”

She winked at him. “None at all.”

Grinning, he noted that Peg would be a welcome respite to the buttoned-up businessmen he’d dealt with on a daily basis.

When they entered his new office with the black furniture and glass top desk, he stilled just inside the doorway. The enormity of what he was doing hit him then. He, Marcus Goode, would run King’s Department Store for the next twelve weeks to honor the late, great Charles King, the man who took him under his wing when he was just a boy and his mother worked as a saleswoman. He would repay the King family for all they had done for his family.

“Marcus,” Charlie cried out his name.

He turned just in time to see her rush to him and throw her arms around him. Hugging her back, he said, “It’s been too long, my friend.”

Pulling away, she said, “I’ve missed you, too. It’s no fun getting into trouble here without you beside me.”

Chuckling, he nodded. “Ah, the good old days.”

“The dirt some people still have on us.”

He recalled how years ago as kids they would poke their noses into every department, every little cubbyhole, and every nook and cranny. The things they used to see and hear astounded him to this day. “And we have on them,” he said quietly, maybe too quietly.

Her smile faded. She remembered.

He could never forget that day.

All of a sudden, his father had taken to picking up his mother from work. Only this day, he’d arrived early and hadn’t told anyone. Marcus and Charlie were playing in the corner of the storage room, killing time when a noise yanked them from their game of hide and seek. He looked up and discovered his father kissing another woman. Shock rooted his feet to the spot. But the loving words the woman and the man he’d respected all his life exchanged had crashed over him as if he’d been struck by a bolt of lightning.

Love? Forever? But he was supposed to love Marcus’ mom for the rest of his life.

In the back of his mind, Marcus recalled the woman worked in the same department as his mother did. That’s when he felt his friend grab his arm and squeeze tightly. He looked at Charlie’s little face and saw the tear fall from the corner of her eye. He turned away from her hurt because he couldn’t even face his own at the time.

They sat huddled there long after the grown-ups had left.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“Not as much as I am.” His heart was breaking.

She swallowed hard. “I’ll never tell.”

He nodded, knowing she wouldn’t either. “Thanks.”

He came back to the moment with a crash. She never did tell. And for that, he was eternally grateful. It was part of the reason he agreed to temporarily take over King’s for her until she could find a permanent replacement. Lifelong friends who had each other’s back did things like that for each other.

“I’ll never be able to thank you enough for stepping in like this. You were the only one I trusted.”

“I’m glad I could help.” He’d rearranged a great deal, essentially handing over his business to his capable team, to be with his mom during her convalescence. He’d have had nothing to do for all these weeks if Charlie hadn’t called. “It’s not like I could just sit and twiddle my thumbs while Mom’s going through rehabilitation.”

“How’s your mom? I spoke to her a few days ago, but I don’t think she understood everything I said.”

“She has her good moments. She’s getting better.” Deep inside, he knew she struggled, not because of her hip, but because another man had broken her heart. Her boyfriend had dumped her just a day before she fell. Somehow she’d been so distracted over losing him that she didn’t pay attention to the step down and she landed heavily on her right hip. But the physical pain was less taxing to her than her heartache. The depression was far worse. His mother was in love with love.

He’d tried for years to cure her of it; however, he’d failed miserably.

But he’d held fast in his own life. He’d have nothing to do with love. It was a curse.

“Look, Marcus, it’s great to see you, and I wanted to fill you in before the manager’s meeting tomorrow morning. But I’m expecting an important phone call and can’t miss it. So why don’t you explore the store and see all the changes? I’ll catch up with you after my call and we can go over some things. How’s that sound?”

“Great,” he said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. Maybe being here, reliving the past, wasn’t such a good idea after all. He’d made it a point to never look back and now he was being forced to face the demons of his past.

Raking up the ashes would only get him burnt again. He was already feeling the heat. How much more could he take?

Francie stuck her head out of the wedding department. The dim lights in the store didn’t reveal anyone.

“Coast is clear,” she whispered. Carefully, she made her way through each department. “Rico, where are you?” she asked in a low voice. No response.

Her heart sank at the thought of having to go downstairs to the jewelry department. Someone was sure to see her in the big, white wedding dress. It wasn’t something she could easily explain away. Not this time.

Her body ached from carrying the heavy, crystal embossed, one-of-a-kind designer gown. “It weighs a ton,” she muttered, now realizing why brides often selected another dress to dance in at the reception.

“Note to self, when selecting your wedding dress consider the weight of it when trying to dance at your reception.” Under her breath, she muttered, “At least I didn’t try on the shoes yet.” The three-inch sparkly ones were still nestled in their box in the dressing room. “With my clothes. Ugh!”

Growing weary, Francie turned a corner and found herself in the linen department. The demo bed, piled with an assortment of pillows and the matching plush lilac duvet, looked enticing.

“I’ll just sit for a minute. Get my breath back. Find my bearings. Make a plan,” she promised herself. As she sank down, a sigh escaped her lips.

She hadn’t realized how tired she was. She’d been up since six in the morning and it was after nine at night. Her long double shifts were getting the best of her. If only Priscilla would come to work instead of go out and play, she thought, then she could cut back on some hours. But someone needed to pay the bills.

Another sigh escaped. Her feet throbbed. Gingerly, she shifted her position and swung her feet up to rest on the bed. “Think,” she begged her foggy brain, “how can I get out of this dress and stay out of hot water?”

The pillows were right there. She eased her head onto one. “Ah, nice, soft,” she murmured. The knotted stays stuck into her spine. She turned on her left side, slipping her clasped hands under her cheek.

In the back of her mind, Francie knew Rico wasn’t coming back for her. Had she even told him to? She didn’t remember now. Her concern focused on getting the earrings back in the vault without anyone discovering they’d been missing in the first place.

As her mind continued to whirl with thoughts, her tired body relaxed into the lush softness surrounding her. “Just another minute and I’ll get up,” she promised.

How would she get out of the expensive dress without damaging it or letting anyone else know? Maybe she could sleep there all night long and wait for Charlie. Her stepsister came in before seven. After all, the bed was much more comfortable than the couch she’d been sleeping on the last few weeks.

Then a disturbing thought rushed through her busy mind. There was a new temporary man taking over tomorrow. Would her stepsister be so involved with meetings with him that she wouldn’t walk the floor before the store opened as she usually did?

Francie could go to the guard station and get help. But they would tell.

Her cheeks grew warm. The things they’d say about her then. Everyone would know her secret. She’d never be able to sneak into the wedding dress department and try on the new arrivals again.

How could she ever find the perfect wedding dress then?

***

Marcus quietly walked through each department, noting the dramatic changes on the first floor and seeing the much-needed updates on the second. He lingered in the housewares department. The shiny, copper bottomed pots and pans caused him to smile as he recalled his early restaurant days, loving how he could create something out of a few ingredients.

One thing he’d gotten from his mother was her love of cooking. He picked up fast at her elbow and cooked her full meals by the age of seven. His father, a traveling salesman, was on the road so often it seemed like it was always Marcus and his mother while he grew up.

At the thought of his now deceased father and his betrayal, Marcus frowned and turned away from the housewares.

But it nagged at him, how his father scoffed at his interest in cooking. Marcus played in every sport imaginable and loved the competition and camaraderie. He loved football the most, but after blowing out his knee in college, Marcus had to find a career he was just as passionate about. The restaurant business was the perfect fit for him. He could cook, use his people and business skills, and make money at the same time.

And he did. The long hours he dedicated to his business brought him more recognition than he’d ever considered. He branched out to being a guest chef, with no formal training, to hotels, and then resorts. He’d find little gems, risk buying them, redo each one from top to bottom, and make them sparkle even more. It worked.

He smiled. Pride surged through him. He loved the process of taking something and building it up to its potential. Most times, even going beyond its potential.

Now he focused on the store. He’d done it before. He could do it here.

With more confidence than he’d felt since agreeing to the temporary position, Marcus strode down the wide store aisles. In his mind, he made mental notes on the changes he thought would bring King’s back into the limelight.

Going by the linens, he glanced at the displays. His eyes caught something odd. Turning back sharply, he stopped at the bed. “I’m seeing things,” he murmured. Blinking a few times, he realized the image stayed the same.

The woman slept soundly. He took in every detail of her, from her honey blonde hair to her bare shoulders on to the swell of her cleavage. The expensive wedding dress clung to her small waist and the slight curve of her hip. Her bare toes, the nails painted a delicate pink, peeked out from the bottom folds of fluffy fabric at the hem.

Marcus drew nearer. She was even more beautiful up close. The pale pink flush sweeping her cheeks and her perfect bow lips caused his heart to beat a little quicker. He swallowed hard.

She was saying something in her sleep. He couldn’t hear. Bending down on one knee beside her, he couldn’t stop himself from reaching out and brushing the soft blonde tendrils off her cheek.

“Tickles.” She giggled.

He chuckled, fascinated by this lovely creature.

Her perfume rose to him, subtle, yet alluring. He breathed in deeply. Heat rushed through his body.

Her rose-colored lips curved into a gentle smile. He focused on them, the full bottom one and the perfectly shaped bow of the top one. “What would it feel like to kiss you?” he whispered.

She mumbled something. He dipped his head closer to understand. “How do I get out of this dress?”

Marcus laughed. “I’ll help,” he offered as he leaned in to touch his lips against hers. The softness shouldn’t have surprised him, but it did. He lingered, tasting the sweet innocence he’d never experienced before. But it was her unexpected gasp and response that caused the blood to pulse in his veins.

She kissed him back, seeking and searching like a starving lover. He felt her hand flutter to his face. Her soft fingertips trailed over his jaw. Heat scorched his flesh where she touched. A coil knotted deep inside of him.

He wanted her. He wanted a strange woman dressed in a wedding dress and sleeping in the middle of King’s Department Store.

She stilled, drawing back. Coming awake, she asked, “You’re real?”

Marcus stared into the bluest eyes he’d ever seen. Her bewilderment shone. “Should I call you Sleeping Beauty?”

Before he knew what was happening, she shrieked and shoved him away. Not expecting it, he toppled to his side. She bolted from the bed and ran off into the dimly lit recesses of the store. The white ghost-like image burned in his mind.

Trying to steady his heartbeat, he wondered out loud, “What in the world just happened to me?”

“Thanks, Peg.” Marcus ran his fingers through his hair, pacing the conference room.

“Sure thing, Boss.” She stopped at the doorway. “Nervous? Don’t be. Their bark is worse than their bite. You know what most managers are like. It’s like babysitting adults. Nod, look concerned, and tell them you’ll look into it. All they want is someone to listen.”

He stilled, taking in her advice. “You’re brilliant,” he said with a smile.

“Of course I am,” she said cheekily, and then exited the room.

That made him chuckle. His days at King’s would not be dull, he figured, especially with Peg as his assistant. He liked her sunny disposition and take-charge style already. But, she’d been wrong about the nerves. He was confident his first managers’ meeting about a meddlesome employee would go well. No, it was the memory of the mystery woman that had kept him up all night with questions swimming in his head.
Who was she? Was she even real?