“I’m certain we will both need chocolate by the end of the day.” Lorea’s expression was completely serious.
“You read my mind. The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is one of my stops.” I grabbed my purse. “I hope I don’t miss our customer with the excited nostril.”
Lorea laughed. “I’ll be sure to give you details if you miss her.”
“I guess we should let Walter know that most of the shipment came through,” I said.
“Good idea. I’ll give him a call.” Lorea picked up the phone.
Walter Mayfield was the best jeweler in Ketchum. I had made it a point to check out his shop early on because I knew that part of being a successful wedding planner was in connections with other business owners. Plenty of couples visited Mayfield Diamonds, and Walter might be just the person to drop my name.
Luckily for me, Walter and I had hit it off, and the older gentlemen had already referred some clients. In turn, I encouraged prospective brides to visit his store and view his fine creations. It was convenient that my shop was only two doors down from Mayfield Diamonds. When Lorea had taken a happy couple over to meet Walter nearly three months ago, she mentioned her dream of opening a wedding dress shop.
A couple of weeks later, Walter told Lorea about his cousin Roland, who had connections with a clothing manufacturer in China. Elaborate wedding dresses were available for a fraction of the price, but they were still too expensive for Lorea’s meager budget.
I ran my hand along the line of dresses now taking up space in the back room of my bridal boutique. The ten dresses we ordered had cost nearly eight thousand dollars. That was an incredible bargain, but with my savings already invested in a new business, I wasn’t able to front the cost. Walter offered to help Lorea get started by giving her a loan. He said that Roland would benefit, and he wanted to see her achieve her dreams.
“Hmm. No one answers.” Lorea hung up the phone.
“Maybe I can run over there and tell him on my way out,” I offered.
“That’s a good idea.” Lorea smoothed the fabric on one of the gowns. “I have to keep pinching myself, Adri. They are so beautiful.”
“It almost makes you want to get married, huh?”
Lorea wrinkled her nose. “Not yet. But our brides will be happy.”
“That’s right. When a bride-to-be sees these dresses, she’ll fall in love all over again.”
Most of the gowns would be priced at around five thousand dollars each, but Sylvia’s dress flaunted a price tag of eighteen thousand dollars. We had special ordered it for less than twenty percent of the price she would be charged, which is why Lorea felt she could take the risk. With the profit from that one dress, she’d be able to pay back Walter and have enough cash to place an order for more. As long as Sylvia liked the dress and didn’t want to try on the missing gown. Banking on a diva’s nuptials was a risk, but as I examined another gown, I felt confident it was a risk well taken.
Tinkling bells signaled a customer entering the shop as I headed for the back door. Lorea was entrenched in satin and tulle, so I dropped my purse and hurried out front. A man with neatly trimmed black hair stood by the window display. He was leaning over the elegant fondant wedding cake, his fingers barely brushing the soft-pink satin roses surrounding the second tier. The cake was a sample brought in by a bakery in Hailey, the town bordering Ketchum; the owner had hopes of being on my preferred associates list. Everyone who had seen the cake thought it was wonderful. Of course Lorea and I still needed to taste it, but that would have to wait until later.
I recognized the man’s profile. My stomach flipped as I thought of our date Saturday night. Dallas Reynolds had waited on my table for the girls’ night Lorea and I had celebrated last Tuesday. When he asked me out, I surprised myself by agreeing. It was basically a blind date, and although I hated first-date jitters, I felt like we’d gotten through it quite nicely. He’d asked me out again for last night, but I had too much work to do, not to mention a bit of apprehension over treading into second-date territory.
I straightened and flicked a piece of white thread from my black pants. “Dallas! I didn’t expect to see you here.”
He turned and smiled. “I had to run some errands on this end of town and thought I’d drop by to say hello.” He cleared his throat. “That is, if you’re not too busy right now.”
His green eyes were incongruent with his Asian features, and I found myself staring into them for half a second too long, just as I had on Saturday night. He raised his left eyebrow, and his smile widened. Immediately, my face felt warm.
“I was just heading out to run errands, but I’d love to show you around.” It was flattering that he had stopped by to see me—that he wanted to get to know me. The tingles riding along my nerves weren’t unpleasant, but it had been a long time since I’d been on a second date. I stepped forward and motioned to the desk where I helped clients sort through fabric swatches for centerpieces, type fonts for wedding invitations, and myriad other things. “This might bore you. Guys aren’t usually into the whole planning of the fairy-tale wedding.”
Dallas ducked his head. “You’re right. I just needed an excuse to see you, but I am interested to know why you like being a wedding planner. I also love weddings—or at least, the cake they serve.”
“Typical male. That’s why we have food—to get the best man to attend.”
He laughed. It was a nice laugh.
“Look, there’s
