Evolving Dreams (New Beginnings Series) (8 page)

“I had a great time. As I said before—those are some great girls.”

As they pulled out of the lot he looked over at her. “Sorry if I ignored you. I should have paid more attention to you. Some first date, huh?”

“Oh, this wasn’t our first date.”

“It wasn’t?”

“No, this was just a ‘getting-to-know-you-through-your-friends get-together.’”

Trace laughed. “That’s a new one. I’ve never heard of that one before.”

“Well, be that as it may, I liked what I got to know about you through your friends. Granted I didn’t have much of a chance to talk to the guys, but you can learn a lot about a guy by the woman he has in his life. And I like all of
them
.”

“I liked your friends too. Tobi is a trip. And Kai and Scott seemed to fit right in.”

“I have a small issue with your friend, Charley, though. I take it he doesn’t keep women around for very long.” She looked over at him.

“Not usually. He plays the field a lot. He’s pretty up front about that with them, though.”

“Okay. I just want you and him to know that even if he doesn’t keep Kelli around for long, we girls just might. She’s a sweetheart.”

“Duly noted. I’ll let him know.” They drove in silence for a few blocks. “Well, since this wasn’t our first date I’m hoping you’ll agree to go out with me.
Maybe tomorrow for dinner? I owe you for all the food you’ve cooked for me.”

“You don’t owe me for that.”

“Well, I want to take you out anyway. What do you say?”

“Tomorrow I have a meeting after classes and it could go late. It’s with the entire showcase team. We just got everyone on board today. How about Wednesday? Does that work for you?”

“Sure. Wednesday it is.” He smiled over at her. “Just leave everything to me.”

CHAPTER TEN

Meg pushed the door open
and stepped into La Tulipe de Soie. It was a beautiful space with soft rosy lighting and was designed to feel like a ladies’ lounge. There were ivory and coral lounge chairs arranged in small seating areas grouped around the dressing rooms, which were spaced throughout the room. Each of those seating areas included small tables with elaborate silk tulip arrangements—hence the boutique’s name. The clothing racks were recessed into dark cherry wooden frames made to look like roomy armoires. Soft music played in the background.

“Meg!” Trish rushed over to greet her near the door.

“Hi, Trish. I told you I’d come by.”

“I didn’t expect to see you so soon. I’m glad you’re here.” Trish grabbed her hand and pulled her over to the counter where she had been talking with an athletic-looking
strawberry blonde dressed casually in Capri length warm up pants and matching track jacket. “Meg, I want you to meet Jenna. Her, husband is the team’s XO.”

“Nice to meet you, Jenna.”

Jenna laughed. “I guess we’re busted. Were your ears burning? We were just talking about you.”

Meg raised her eyebrows and looked over at Trish.

Trish held her hands up in front of her. “Only good things, I promise. Since Jenna and Mitch weren’t able to make it to Abernathy’s last night I had to fill her in. It’s big news when Trace McKenna brings a woman around.”

Meg blushed. Before she could think of something to say she heard a squeal and a giggle. Jenna walked over to the nearest dressing room door, which had been propped open. Meg peeked inside and saw a blanket spread on the floor with four little ones rolling around on it playing.

“You guys okay?” Jenna bent down and untangled some legs. She glanced over at Meg. “Two of them are mine. I run a daycare business out of my house and since one of my families is vacationing we have a smaller group than normal. We’re taking advantage of it and getting out of the house some this week.”

“They are so cute.”

Jenna started gathering up toys and jamming them into a tote bag. “We should get going now that you have a customer,” she said over her shoulder to Trish.

“Don’t leave on my account,” Meg said.

“No, we really have to go. It’s almost time for afternoon snacks. It was nice meeting you, Meg.” She started stuffing little arms into jacket sleeves. “C’mon guys, let’s go.”

Trish scooped up two little bodies as they came barreling out of the dressing room door. Jenna followed them out holding the other two by the hands.

Trish looked over at Meg. “Feel free to browse, Meg. I’m going to help Jenna get them strapped in. Her van is parked in the back.”

“Okay, thanks. Do you all need some help?”

“No, we’ve got it.” Trish followed Jenna through a door Meg assumed led out to the back door.

She glanced around the room and couldn’t decide where to start. She saw rich heavy velvets and soft airy chiffons and everything in between.

Trish bustled back in. “Sorry ‘bout that.”

“Don’t be sorry. It was really nice to meet Jenna. I hope you didn’t cut your visit short because of me.”

“Oh, no. She was getting ready to take the kids home before you showed up. What brings you by?”

“Well . . . I’m supposed to go to dinner with Trace tomorrow night—a restaurant called The Harborview. Do you know it?”

“Really nice . . . but not
too
swanky—comfortable. It sits right over the water and they have excellent seafood. I love that place.”

“I didn’t really bring any nice ‘date clothes.’ Can you help me find something?”

“This is going to be fun! Let’s see.” Trish looked around the room intently, tapping her index finger on her cheek. “We want something classy and nice, but not formal. Over here.” She walked over to one of the racks and started sorting through the garments there.

Meg reached out and ran her fingers over the soft silks. “These fabrics are beautiful.”

Trish started pulling dresses and, before Meg knew what was up, she had six or seven over her arm. “Come in here and start trying these on.” She hung the dresses in a dressing room and pushed Meg inside. “Call if you need anything and I’ll keep looking.”

“No, please . . . let me try these first and if none of them work you can keep looking.” She looked through the dresses hanging there.

“Okay. I know I get carried away sometimes. No pressure,” Trish laughed and shut the door.

Meg tried on a beautiful gauzy celery green dress first. It had a lace inlay around the scoop
neck, little puffed cap sleeves and fell almost to her ankles. She stepped out of the dressing room. Trish walked around her. “No, I don’t think so. You have those great dancer’s legs and we don’t want to cover them completely up.”

Next she tried a gold halter baby doll dress with a moderately full gathered skirt that fell below an empire waist. “I love this one. The gold looks almost metallic and the cut is great.”

“Yeah, I think this one is a contender. We’d need to shorten it a bit.”

Meg shuffled through the remaining dresses and found a satiny silk one toward the back that caught her eye. She pulled it out. It was made of deep garnet red raw silk that gleamed gently where the light hit it. When she walked out of the dressing room Trish’s eyes lit up. The dress was deceptively simple with a wide rounded neckline and narrow one-inch straps. It molded to her body, but not in a skin-tight way. The side seams were lightly gathered to form faint ruching from below the bust line. The dress fell to mid-calf and Trish reached down to lift the hem to Meg’s knees.

“We’re going to shorten it to just here. It looks beautiful on you—with that hair. I’ll put a rush on the alterations and you can pick it up by this time tomorrow. Will that work for you? Will you have time to come by and pick it up before the big date? Trace is going to love you in this dress!”

“Slow down! I never said I was going to take this dress.”

Trish stopped short. “Oh, you have to take it. It’s perfect for you.”

“Of course, I’m going to buy it,” Meg laughed. “I’m just kidding.” She turned back around to look in the mirror. “It
is
beautiful. Are you sure it’s no trouble getting the alterations made by tomorrow?”

Trish walked over toward the counter where she grabbed a pincushion and then began marking the correct dress length. “No, we’ll make it happen.”

Meg went back into the dressing room to change back into her own casual sundress and lightweight cardigan. When she came back out she carried the red and the gold cocktail dresses. “I think I’m going to take them both. I won’t need the gold one tomorrow, though, so your seamstress can take her time with that one.” She handed them to Trish. “Do you have a wrap that would work for both? And maybe shoes.”

They found a pale gold satin wrap that complimented both dresses and a cute pair of gold strappy sandals with a few rhinestones on them. “I’ll give you my preferred customer discount for all of this.”

“No, don’t do that,” Meg protested.

“Well, you
are
a preferred customer and I want to do it as a ‘thank you’ for the tickets you’re giving me for the showcase.” She winked at Meg, “I’m holding you to that.”

“You don’t have to give me a discount for that. No bribe necessary.”

The bell over the door jingled and a group of three women came into the shop laughing. “Be right with you, ladies,” Trish called. She walked around the counter and handed Meg a beautifully wrapped package containing her new shoes and the wrap. “Thanks for coming in, Meg. This was fun.”

“Thank
you
,” Meg said as she took the package from her. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She glanced at her watch. “Oh! I have to go. My team meeting starts in about an hour so I’d better get back. Thanks again!” Then she gave Trish a quick hug and hustled out the door.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

When Trace got home the next day, Meg was in the bathroom getting ready for their date. He knocked lightly on the door to let her know he would be out of the shower and ready to go shortly. When he walked back down the hall in charcoal dress slacks, a mutely striped gray shirt with a navy blazer, his hair still damp from his shower, Meg was just stepping out of her bedroom.

He stopped in his tracks, “Whoa! You look beautiful. Maybe I should change—at least put on a tie.”

Meg laughed, “No, you shouldn’t.
You
look beautiful.” And he did. The blues and grays of his shirt made his ocean-gray eyes glow.

Trace shook his head. “That dress is something!” He came closer lifted her hand over her head and turned her in a slow circle. “Gorgeous.”

“Trish gets the credit. She found the dress for me at her boutique.”

“Well, as grateful as I am to Trish for helping you out, I don’t think she deserves the credit for how beautiful you look. Not that you don’t always look beautiful,” he added quickly. “But . . . man!”

Meg picked up her bag and her wrap, then they walked out to his Jeep. “I hate to put you in my old Jeep looking as glamorous as you do.”

Meg just laughed and hopped on in.

They drove up the coast a while and pulled into the parking lot of what looked like a large houseboat surrounded by a dock. It was lovely—painted white with nautical blue trim and white twinkling lights threaded through fish nets that hung from the weathered dock railings. Trace pulled up to the entrance and one of two valet parking attendants jogged over to help Meg out of the passenger seat. Trace handed over his keys and accepted the claim ticket, then held out his arm for Meg. They walked up a short gangplank and under a rustic sign reading
“The Harborview”
arched over the door of the restaurant. Once inside, they were immediately seated on the open-water side of the room with large windows that overlooked the beginning of a spectacular sunset.

They perused the menu for a few moments while the busboy filled their water glasses. “The surf and turf is my favorite, but everything is good here. What sounds good to you?” Trace asked.

“I’m thinking the crab and lobster pasta,” she replied. “With a Caesar salad.”

“Okay. Do you want wine?”

“Just one glass, thanks. You choose.”

Their waiter arrived just then and Trace ordered for them and added an appetizer of crab-stuffed mushrooms as well. After the waiter left to place their order, Trace leaned back in his chair and studied Meg.

“It seems like we haven’t had a chance to spend much time together the last couple of days. You came in really late last night. How are the planning sessions coming along?”

“They’re going well. Last night we assigned responsibilities to everyone so they’ll know what they should be concentrating on. How about you? How is your week going so far?”

“Just routine—nothing new or exciting. Let’s not talk about work tonight. We talk about those things all the time. What else is new?”

“Um . . . I heard from my mom. They’re having a good time on the cruise. I think she mainly called because she hadn’t been able to get in touch with my sister, Maura, this morning. Maura is in the third trimester of her pregnancy so my mom worries. Well, we all do. She had a hard time at the end of her first pregnancy, but this one seems to be going better.”