Your Captivating Love (22 page)

“Thank you,” I say. “To both of you.”

***

T
he rest of the day is crazy. With Logan’s ban on calling lifted, all the Bennetts call me within half an hour in the morning. Three of the bloggers have already posted about me over the weekend, and I’m over the moon. They have glorious shots of the girls and the address of my shop.

Within the first hour of opening the store, I have three customers. One of them specifically asks to see
my
designs. Mine. I nearly trip over my own feet trying to impress her.

“I’ll try this one,” she says. “I’m so lucky that Flirty Flo featured you. She’s my go-to blogger.”

I’m
the lucky one. I help her put on the dress, which hugs her curves gorgeously, but it needs something more to achieve perfection.

I fetch the magic weapon and, holding it up, I say, “You’d be even more stunning if you put this bra beneath it.”

Smiling, the woman takes it from me. Several minutes later, she steps out of the changing room. “You were right. I’ll buy them both. You have a real knack for this.”

“Thank you.”

“My sister told me to let her know if your stuff is as good as it appeared in the pictures. I’ll tell her it’s even better. Expect her sometime this week.”

I grin as she leaves. This was my dream, to see people leave my shop with smiles on their faces, feeling a little more fulfilled than they did before they walked in. The customer keeps her promise—her sister pops into my store the next day, buying a dress too.

I sell nine of my designs over the course of the week. I won’t take over the world anytime soon, but I’m beyond happy. There are people out there wearing my stuff. People I’ve never met before.

On Friday afternoon, Pippa calls me. “How’s our superstar?”

I chuckle. “I’m hardly a superstar, but I’m doing pretty damn good if I can say so myself.”

“I’ve read every blog post. They loved you.”

“Yeah.” I can still hardly believe it. “How are things on your end? Is the show driving you crazy already?”

“Funny that you’re asking. Things are not so great.”

“How come?”

“I fired the designer who was supposed to dress our models.”

I gasp. “But the show’s one week away. Why did you fire her?”

“He was being a diva and was driving everyone nuts, trying to boss us around. I wanted to be fair, but I’m not stupid. It’s our show, not his. His dresses are the background drop for our jewels. He was acting as if this was his private show.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Depends on you. Our fate is in your hands.”

“Not following.”

“We’re in desperate need for a new designer for the show.”

“Okay, but how—OH.”
Oh. Wow, no way
. “Pippa Bennett, are you asking me what I think you’re asking me?”

“I believe I am.”

I can practically hear her smile on the other end. It takes me a few seconds to process it. “Yes, yes, yes.”

“Wow, you’re so enthusiastic, you’d think I asked you to marry me.”

“What do you need from me?”

I write down everything Pippa requests. I was lucky none of the dresses I designed burned up, just the ones I bought. Well, lucky because Logan stepped in to help me out with the bank. I haven’t heard from Finn yet, but I hope he calls soon and that my loan will be approved, because I need to make some payments to cover my old debt right away. I went back to see the building, and it’s a lost cause.

Not in a million years did I want to rely on a man again. Then again, I didn’t expect Logan to stick around either. He proved me wrong, and it felt
so
right.

“Can you come by the office after you close the shop?” Pippa asks.

“Sure, but won’t it be too late for you?”

“It’s show week. Everyone’s practically sleeping here.”

“All right. See you in a few hours. Thank you so much, Pippa. I’ll find a way to make it up to you.”

“No need. But you can make it up to Logan. He was the one who told me that you might be a perfect fit for us months ago. I just didn’t want to be unfair toward our current designer, but he asked for it.”

“He did, huh? Anything else Logan’s done without telling me?”

“If you’re referring to my shopping spree...”

I can imagine her grinning ear to ear at the other end. I didn’t touch this topic when she called to check on me on Monday.

“You have fantastic taste,” I say. “I know both of you meant well. I just don’t like other people deciding things for me.”

“Yeah, my brother sometimes does that for no reason. Or, well, I’m sure he
does
have a reason, but it’s not understandable to us. The whole ‘guys are from Mars, women from Venus’ thing is true. This time, though, I’m on his side.”

I laugh softly. “Of course you are. See you later.”

I almost pinch myself after I hang up. My dresses will be in the Bennett show. I feel like I’m flying. As Pippa said, it’ll be
their
show, not mine, but this is more than I ever dreamed of achieving in such a short time.

I have two more customers until closing time, and then I receive a call from Archer.

“Nadine, how have you been?”

“Great.” I decide to keep the fire incident to myself, but I want to brag about my good news. “A few minutes ago, I was informed that my dresses will be used in the Bennett show at the end of the week.”

“Congratulations. That’s fantastic news.”

“I still can hardly believe it.”

“Why not? Hard work pays off,” he says good-naturedly. I smile.

“What can I do for you?”

“I spoke to our buying managers in Milan and Barcelona, and they’d both be happy to carry some of your models.”

I nearly drop the phone. “Seriously?”

“Yes. I can forward you the email with the designs they’re interested in. Could you have them ready for shipment in two weeks?”

“I... Wow. You’re quick. Send me the email and I’ll look into it. Archer, thank you.”

After I hang up, I call Logan to share the good news.

“Hello, handsome,” I tell him.

“Hello back.”

“I wanted to share some great news with you. Archer called, told me he wants to send a shipment to Milan in two weeks.”

“Be careful, Nadine.”

I sigh. I knew this was going to be his reaction, but I still wanted to share the news with him.

“I am. Didn’t give Archer a definite answer yet. I can handle myself; don’t worry. And don’t get involved. Please.”

“I won’t.”

Telling him about Archer isn’t the only reason I called. I also wanted to thank him for Pippa’s invitation but decide against it at the last moment. I’ll surprise my man today. After I hang up, I open Archer’s stores’ website, to do a background check.

***

“W
hat do you mean, the loan wasn’t approved?” I yell into my phone.

“Her financial situation wasn’t deemed good enough for such a large loan. The bank can re-evaluate if we receive new information, but that can take a while, and she’ll default on her old debt if she doesn’t repay it soon.”

“Fuck this,” I say through gritted teeth. “Pay her old debt from my account.”

“I’ll need her permission for that.”

“No, you don’t. We’re friends. Do me this favor, and I’ll tell Nadine about it.” She will not take this well, I know it in my gut, but I won’t sit back and see my woman endure hardships.

“Fine, but you have a week max to tell her before she’ll find out anyway.”

“Done.”

I finish the conversation and look at Blake’s amused face. He sits across from me in my office. He was here when Finn called and heard everything since I had my phone on loudspeaker.

“Solving everyone’s problems again, brother?” he asks.

“None of your concern,” I reply in a clipped tone. “Why don’t you tell me why you came to see me?”

“I’ve started planning Sebastian’s bachelor party.”

“Let me get this straight. Sebastian’s wedding is six months away, and you already want to plan the bachelor party?”

Blake nods, stifling a yawn. It’s very late, and almost everyone on my floor has left already. I stare at him in disbelief. My brother, the ultimate spur-of-the-moment guy, who doesn’t even plan one month ahead, is suddenly planning six months ahead.

“Yeah. Our big brother is getting married. It’ll be the first bachelor party in our family,” he explains. “I’m not leaving anything to chance. The wedding’s for the women; the bachelor party is for the men. It’s hard to bring together a dozen people—”

“Who have actual jobs? I can’t imagine.”

Blake narrows his eyes. “Daniel and I are the PR representatives of the company.”

“You mean showing up at collection shows and bragging? That’s not a real job.”

“Don’t start. I’m not in the mood for a lecture.”

“You never are, and I still give them. But I’ll let it slide today.”

My relationship with Blake and Daniel can be summed up by the following conundrum: I want to strangle them on a daily basis, while also making sure no one else does.

“Back to the party,” Blake says. “I plan to send our big brother to marriage jail in style.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“Vegas.”

I scoff. “That’s your idea of style?”

“Yeah. Don’t worry, your bachelor party will be in some fancy-ass place where you can wear your cufflinks, and not look ridiculous.”

I’m not sure how I feel about Blake already thinking about my bachelor party, so I focus on Sebastian.

Leaning back in my chair, I say, “Maybe Vegas isn’t such a bad idea.”

“I wasn’t expecting you to give in so easily.” Blake eyes me closely, as if he’s suspecting I’m setting a trap.

“Why the hell not? If there’s a time for Vegas, it’s then. Not sure how happy Ava and Nadine will be about it, though.”

Blake picks up a crystal panther I have on my desk, inspecting it. I received it when we struck our first deal with a luxury chain distributor, and it’s been on my desk for more than a decade.

“Pippa tells me Nadine will be the designer of the next show.” He says this without taking his eyes off the panther, blatantly ignoring my woes at the girls’ disapproval of Vegas.

“Yeah, I’m very proud of her. It’ll be splendid exposure for her. Summer’s gallery helped a lot too. She made connections. Some good, some dubious.”

“What do you mean?” He puts the panther back on the desk, training his eyes on me.

“There’s this guy, Archer Daring.” I tell him quickly about the offer to Nadine.

“Archer Daring,” Blake sneers. “Even his name sounds suspicious. Did you run a background check on him?”

“No, Nadine asked me to stay out of it.”

“So?”

“So I’m staying out of it.”

There is a pause, and Blake raises his eyebrows. “Oh, you’re serious. I was waiting for the punchline—something like, ‘I’ve already got my men on it.’”

“I meant what I said.”

“You just paid a loan she didn’t ask you to pay. Since when are you keeping out of other people’s business?”

“I’m working on improving that.”

“Who are you, and what have you done with Logan?”

“I’m trying not to be overbearing.”

Blake chuckles, crossing his arms over his chest. “Well, well, well. The mighty
have
fallen.”

“I see this as progress.”

“We never really agree on anything. Except Vegas. Can’t believe Sebastian is getting married in six months, and you’re in love. It’s scary.”

It’s my turn to chuckle. Blake shuns commitment, whether commitment means a stable job or a steady girlfriend. Maybe a woman wouldn’t be so bad for him; she could bring him on the right track. I should put Pippa on it. Though, knowing my sister, she’s probably already made a shortlist of potential candidates for him.

“You have the girl; now make sure you keep her.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I stare down at him.

“As someone who’s mastered the art of screwing up relationships, I’m just saying be careful. Also, not judging you, but you’ve screwed up plenty of times before.”

Since I cast so much judgment on him, it’s fair that I take some in return.

“Those weren’t exactly screw-ups. I wasn’t interested in making those relationships last.”

“I see.”

Blake opens his mouth, but a knock on the door interrupts us.

“Come in,” I call out.

The door opens, and Nadine comes in, wearing an elegant coat... And two seconds after stepping inside, she drops the coat to the floor. She’s stark naked underneath it.

Then she notices Blake.

“Oh, my God,” Nadine exclaims. Hurriedly, she covers herself with the coat again.

“I haven’t seen anything,” Blake says, turning to face the wall. Judging by his grin, he took an eyeful. The bastard.

Nadine’s blushing, Blake’s biting his fist to keep from laughing, and my dick’s twitching.
Perfect
.

“I thought you were alone, Logan,” Nadine says, mortified. She clutches the collar of her coat with both hands. “The security guard said all the employees on your floor have left.”

“I’m not an employee,” Blake chimes in. “He wasn’t there when I came into the building. Anyway, I’m leaving now.”

Nadine flattens herself against the wall as Blake heads to the door. She stares at a spot on the carpet the entire time. He doesn’t wipe off his smile, but at least he has the decency not to joke about it in front of her.

Nadine covers her face with her palms after he leaves. “I’m never going to be able to look Blake in the eyes again.”

I walk up to her, lying through my teeth. “He didn’t see anything.”

She peeks at me between her fingers. “You’re lying.”

“Fine, I am. Let’s forget about him.”

“I can’t believe this. The first time I was in this building, I soaked my dress and shoved my boobs in your face, and now—”

“Shh,” I say, fighting not to laugh.

When she still doesn’t take her hands off her face, I kiss her forehead softly. She smells like oranges, as usual. I’ve never had her smell in my office. It feels good. “I appreciated the view very much. Both times.” I lower my fingers to her collar, but Nadine slaps my hand. Taking a deep breath, she looks up at me. She’s adorable.