Johnathon finally stirred “Flair, you look well” he stammered, “I need to talk to you about the papers…” his voice trailed off as I glared at him.
“That can wait, Johnathon,” I said annoyed “Right now is not the time to discuss it.”
It angered Charlotte. “Of course it is. Where are they? I bet they are in your handbag aren’t they?” she said irritably, “Give me your bag.”
I stared at her. My lips twitched “I’m afraid I must decline Miss Deluca, nobody but myself has the right to touch this bag.”
She tightened her lips “Is that so?” she asked with deliberate emphasis “You should give me the papers Flair.”
“I don’t have them on me and if I did, I still wouldn’t give them to you,” I told her blithely “This is a matter that pertains between Johnathon and myself, not you.”
She sneered “You’re going to regret this,” she said and then raised her head, looking at the saleswoman nearby “Get your manager, these women, they are shoplifters” she accused.
The saleswoman looked concerned. Charlotte raised her voice “Don’t you know who I am? I am Charlotte Deluca” she snarled and the woman’s eyes widened “And I’m telling you that these women do not possess the means to pay for anything in this store. Get your manager” she repeated icily.
“Charlotte” Johnathon hissed, as the saleswoman fled “You’re taking this too far” he warned.
She laughed while her mother tittered. “No, I’m merely ensuring that Flair here knows her place. Really Flair” she mocked while I looked at her calmly “What were you thinking, coming to a place like this?” she asked.
“You bitch” Rachel snapped, lifting her hand to slap her.
Charlotte’s eyes danced “Do it and it will be caught on tape,” she told my friend who hesitated “Then I’ll have all the evidence I need to bring up assault charges against you.”
I looked at Johnathon who had a haggard look on his face. “This is the woman you want to marry?” I asked quietly “When did your standards become so low Johnathon?”
“His standards have risen you little slut” Charlotte hissed as the saleswoman and the manager came striding back in a hurry “And now we’re about to see you thrown out on your ass” she added gleefully.
The manager, a woman with a pinched face and beady eyes, regarded the group with alarm on her face. “Miss Deluca it is an honor to have you in our shop,” she said sincerely “I understand there is a situation?” she asked gingerly.
“There is,” Charlotte said angrily and pointed straight at me “This woman is here to shoplift” she cried, causing the manager to look worried “She can’t afford anything in this store” she gloated “It’s way beyond what she could possibly earn as a yoga instructor. Unless somebody else is paying for it, she is here to steal,” she said with a flourish.
The manager’s eyes narrowed as she looked at me and Rachel. There was a look of contempt on her face “I’m afraid that I’m going to have to call security. We don’t tolerate thieves of any kind. I believe Miss Deluca’s word.”
I stared at her incredulously “You don’t even know us, yet you’re willing to throw us out of your store on somebody else’s lies?”
The manager drew herself straight up and looked down her nose at me “Miss Deluca and Mr Johnathon Rourke” she said, glancing at my ex-husband who looked pleased to have been recognized “are well-known members of society. It stands to reason I would accept their word, whereas you are not known to the public. I must insist that you leave.”
“That won’t be necessary” a deep masculine voice drawled and we turned, my eyes immediately gazing deeply into his as he looked the manager straight in the face, ready to battle it out with her on my and Rachel’s behalf while Charlotte gaped and her mother went pale.
Grayson POV
Timothy had apologized so many times for his stuff up that I thought he might have had a coronary by now. “I’m sorry sir,” he said for what seemed like the hundredth time “It really didn’t occur to me to use a fake name,” he said miserably.
I waved a dismissive hand, smiling wryly to myself “Stop worrying about it Timothy, it worked out for the best” I told him, picturing Flair’s face and those beautiful eyes of hers “I look forward to my date with her tonight” I added pleased as Timothy’s face brightened.
“Sir, if I may,” he said tentatively “What makes this girl so special from all the others? You even sent her rainbow roses last night because they were her favorite flowers,” he said “and they weren’t easy to find” he grumbled underneath his breath.
“She’s down to earth” I mused “and she’s fiery. There’s a sweetness to her, it’s difficult to describe. She’s beautiful too” I added darkly “but not in the way that other women are, hers is a natural beauty, inside and out.”
Timothy looked a little taken aback by my answer. He went silent, gazing out the window as we continued downtown, heading back towards our office, coming back from court.
I crossed my ankles. Timothy pointed at a boutique as we passed it, his eyes narrowing “Isn’t that Miss Flair and her friend inside?” he asked puzzled.
I rapped on the privacy window, causing the driver to pull over. “Are you sure you saw them?” I said.
He nodded. “Wait here, take the limo back and I’ll find my own way,” I told him.
He hesitated, but I glanced at him sharply and he sighed, acceding to my wishes.
I grinned. What a fortuitous moment, discovering Flair just now. I smoothly got out of the limo and proceeded to make my way into Sin City, only to walk into what was an argument between the staff and Flair, my half-sister the cause of everything. I gritted my teeth as the manager informed Flair that she would have to leave.
“That won’t be necessary” I cut in, my voice on edge.
I ignored the look on Charlotte’s face as she looked at me. We both refused to acknowledge each other. None of us had a single fondness for the other. Flair turned to me as I gave the manager a winning smile “I am purchasing on my girlfriend’s behalf” I added, grabbing my wallet out of my pocket and producing a black card that had the staff all gasping out loud.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.