Emma slapped Cain’s hands away and fastened the buttons herself, along with the belt, as soon as she tucked the shirt into her lover’s pants. When Emma finished she handed Cain the jacket and stood on her toes for a kiss. “Wait for me?”
“I’ll leave you alone to get ready. Just call if you need me.”
With a hard tug on the black belt around Cain’s waist, Emma stopped her before she made it to the door. “I need you.”
“Lass, I love you with all that I am,” Cain whispered before she kissed her again. “But I’m only human, so behave.”
“You can stay if you want to.”
“I’m looking forward to being surprised.” Cain waved at her before closing the door behind her.
When Emma was sure Cain wasn’t coming back, she opened the box Kevin had included with all her purchases and smiled when she read the card.
She lifted the black silk undergarments out of the box and smiled. She didn’t realize that Kevin kept her preferences and sizes for absolutely everything in his files. The panties with matching strapless bra she would need for the dress she was wearing that night were a brand she’d been partial to after Kevin had pointed them out. The real deciding factor was the reaction she’d gotten out of Cain the first time she’d worn them, and she was hoping for a repeat performance later that night. “When you say a little something, Kevin, you aren’t kidding.”
The night promised more than one possibility now, Emma thought as she smiled.
*
The tension in the study was almost palpable when Cain walked in to find Katlin and Merrick both holding what appeared to be Cokes, staring at each other like they were ready for the next round. “Did someone ring the bell and we’ve all retreated to our neutral corners?” Cain asked. They all sat in silence for almost ten minutes, neither of them willing to break the calm.
“Do you want something to drink, boss?” Katlin finally asked.
Merrick blocked her on her way to the bar, “I think I’m capable of pouring a drink.”
“If you’d bother to learn what Cain likes, then you wouldn’t have to ask,” Merrick shot back.
The two were so busy sniping at each other they missed Cain’s smile.
“Short blond women with green eyes. You should know since you got to spend the day at the mall with her,” Katlin retaliated. “Did she buy you something pretty too?”
“Katlin, enough,” Cain ordered. She accepted the glass of whiskey from Merrick and sat down on the sofa. “Did we finish all our chores today, Katlin?”
“Just like you asked, no problems. What’s tonight’s game plan?”
“Dinner, and perhaps a little something after, like we talked about earlier. We’ll just play it as it comes. This place we’re going tonight is small, so only the two of you, and maybe Lou. Make sure you have your licenses on your person. This is our coming-out party, but someone invited the men in gray.” Cain took a sip and shook her head. “Leave it to Emma to go shopping and find a fed in the designer section.”
“The fed was shopping the sale rack,” Merrick said, with a laugh of her own. “If she hadn’t snuck into the dressing room, Emma would’ve never seen her.”
“Why do you think so?” Katlin asked.
“Because you can always count on certain things.” Merrick pointed at Cain. “The boss likes aged whiskey, and her lady never shops the sale racks.”
Cain laughed at Merrick’s gentle teasing.
“Though you’re the one to blame.” She pointed to Cain again.
“Guilty as charged, but”—Cain looked toward the door—“you don’t find visions like that one on the sale rack.”
Emma stood in the doorway and waited. She’d slicked her hair back and pulled it up in a sophisticated swirl. Her new shoes were comfortable but still made her calf muscles stand out a little. However, the dress stilled anything else from coming out of Cain’s mouth for such a long time that Emma thought something was wrong.
“Do I look okay?” She rested her hands on her stomach as she tried to calm her nerves.
She hadn’t even thought of wearing a dress like this for a long time and hoped she still looked decent enough to pull it off. The strapless top of the silk sheath wrapped around her body showed just a hint of cleavage, and the bottom stopped at midthigh, barely hiding her thigh-high stockings.
“I would have to answer that question with a big no,” Cain said as she rose from her seat.
“I could change.”
“Let me finish, lass. You don’t look okay. You look absolutely stunning.”
Emma smoothed down the short dress before looking up at Cain. “Really?”
“I wouldn’t lie to you, love. You look so good it’s going to be hard to concentrate on business, but that might not be so bad. Let Bracato sweat out what we’re up to while I spend the evening staring at you. Just promise me one thing.”
Emma took the hand that Cain was offering and smiled as she soaked up the praise. “Whatever you want.”
“You take me shopping sometime and introduce me to Kevin. This guy deserves his own store if this is one of his selections, though you’d look good in a gunnysack.”
“Have I told you lately how much I missed you?”
