Something Great
Page 28

I gasped and stiffened when his shoulder touched mine. Leaning in, his breath brushed against my ears when he spoke. “I guess they only give pamphlets to beautiful ladies.”
Thankfully, the upbeat music blasted and a speaker came into view, breaking my nervousness. Max reached into his bag and handed me a packet and a pen. “Here you go,” he whispered as I shifted my attention to him. “Your job is to pick several dresses for the cover of our next shoot, and I’ll pick my favorites, then we’ll compare.”
No pressure there…the reason why I was asked to go, I guessed. I wasn’t exactly sure of the reason for my trip. Not given much information before hand, I figured I would get more instruction…but I didn’t know it would be from Max. “Sure, of course.” It was all I could say.
I thought of two things as the models gracefully strutted down the long runway; how lucky I was to be there, and how Max’s eyes occasionally shifted to me as I felt the weight of his stare. Model after model, dress after dress, brand names from Gucci, Dior, Dolce and Gabbana, Oscar de la Renta…I was in a heavenly show. And yes…there were hot male models, but I forgot to take pictures for Becky. Oh well…she’d have to imagine it when I told her about it.
Jotting down notes of several of the dresses I thought would look great on the front cover of the next issue of Knight Magazine, I stopped when I saw something crimson sway back and forth. My eyes glistened seeing the most gorgeous gown I had ever seen. In ways, it reminded me of the red dress Julia Roberts wore in an older movie called Pretty Woman, one of the movies my friends and I watched during our time together. But this dress was a hundred times prettier…no, a thousand times prettier…at least to me.
It was Gucci brand. Slightly off-the-shoulder, it snuggled her curves and flared out, with a long sexy slit up the front. Over the material underneath, sheer chiffon layered the dress.
“What do you think of that dress?” Max whispered.
Unable to peel my eyes off it, I spoke. “It’s absolutely...can I say…I’m in love,” I giggled. “I believe that’s the winner. It’s my number one pick,” I gushed, still glued to the model. Her long, soft curled brunette hair swayed not just with the music, but with the rhythm of her sexy stride, making the dress even hotter. I wanted to be her…I wanted to be wearing that dress…shoot…I wanted to be the dress. And that thought made me giggle. I heard a soft chuckle beside me, and I could see Max’s grin from the corner of my eyes.
When the show was over, everyone stood and applauded for what seemed like forever. Max turned to me. “There is a gathering you need to attend tonight. It wasn’t in your agenda, but you need to be there.”
I swallowed a lump down my throat. “I…I don’t have…I didn’t shop…I didn’t bring…what time do I need to be there? Maybe I can go shopping for a dress.” Oh God! I started panicking, but obviously Max saw the expression on my face.
When he placed his hands on my shoulders, I immediately calmed down. “Don’t worry. Go back to the hotel now. I’ll have several dresses brought to you. You can decide which one you like most.”
My eyes thanked him, but I couldn’t get the words out of my mouth. He was just…amazing that way.
“Oh…I’ll send a limo for you, and don’t forget to bring your cell phone.” Then he turned me toward the exit, leaned down, and his breath brushed up against the side of my neck. “Go.”
Quivering from his lips slightly touching my skin, my body gravitated off the ground as I headed out to find the exit door. “Limo?” I mumbled under my breath. Excitement brewed even more.
Chapter 15
As soon as I got to the hotel, I headed straight to my room. Waiting as patiently as I could, I thought about texting Max. There were no dresses there. Had I misheard him? Okay…no big deal. I had time to get ready. Digging into my suitcase, I pulled out my little black night purse that was just big enough for my cell phone and small items. Switching items into the small purse, I noted I had several text messages. Darn! Why did I keep forgetting to push the sound button back on?
They were from Becky and Luke. First, I clicked on Becky’s text.
Hope you’re having fun. Your room looks fantastic. I want to come. Lol!
I texted back. Love it here so far. Tell you all about it when I get home.
And I couldn’t wait to tell her. She would flip to hear Max was there.
Clicking over to Luke, my face flushed. It was a combination of guilt and…I didn’t even know if there was something else. It was just that…mostly guilt. I was having a blast, and even though I wouldn’t admit it out loud, I was happy to be there…and…Max…I wasn’t sure what I was feeling, or allowed myself to feel. Whatever this feeling was, it was winning, taking over my logic that I shouldn’t be dating my boss’s son. Perhaps when we were back home I could think straight.
A soft knock on the door pulled me back to the present. Peeking through the small peephole, I saw someone holding a long black garment bag. “Yes?”
“I have your dress, ma’am.”
Cracking the door open, I smiled. “Thank you.”
“May I come in and place this down for you?”
I stepped aside. “Oh…sure.” Reaching into my purse, I fidgeted with my wallet as I watched him place the garment gently on my bed, along with a fancy box.
Eyeing me, he raised his right hand. “Ma’am, that is not necessary. I don’t work for this hotel.”