AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“This is the place,” she whispered.
“Yeah, I figured that with the music and that horrible perfume. You okay?”
Drew nodded.
A young woman, a pert redhead in a black skirt, white blouse and sensible heeled pumps, hurried toward them. “Drew.” She gave Kit an appreciative once-over before she continued in a hushed voice. “Be careful. The Dragon Lady is very upset that you didn’t come to work last night. And you’re late this morning.” She glanced at Kit again. “But I don’t blame you a bit.”
“Miss?” A well-coiffed woman in an orchid pantsuit had the young woman glancing over her shoulder. “I’ll be right there.” Before scurrying away, she spoke to Drew again. “Good luck with Dragon Lady.”
“I don’t recognize her,” Drew said.
Kit squeezed her hand. “You will.”
Slacks and tops were artfully arranged on a table to their left. To their right was a second glass-topped counter with jewelry. But it was what was at the back of the store that caught Drew’s eye. Hanging from one of the racks was a slim sheath trimmed with lace and seed pearls that were an exact match to the wedding dress. Drew ran her hands over the intricate work. Kit slipped the hanger off the hook, but she was sure even before she saw the label what it would say. Designs by Drew.
“Lovely, isn’t it? One of our very talented staff designed it.”
The voice had Drew jumping guiltily and turning.
The woman stood ramrod straight, her steel-gray hair pulled back into a ballerina knot. A pair of wire-framed glasses perched low on her nose. She wore the black skirt and white blouse that seemed to be the sales consultants’ uniform. Her lipstick matched the crimson polish on her carefully manicured nails, and the initial smile on her face morphed into a disapproving frown.
“Drew? Is that you?”
Drew nodded, taking her sunglasses and hat off. But for the life of her she couldn’t think of anything to say. This had to be the woman the redhead had called Dragon Lady.
“Well, I’m surprised that you have the nerve to show up here.” She glanced at her watch, “You failed to arrive for work yesterday, and you were due in two hours ago this morning. Actions have consequences, young lady. I’m afraid that you no longer—”
“I insisted that Drew come to see you,” Kit said. “I’m Nate Cashman, by the way. Drew’s agent. And you’re…”
Drew stared at Kit as the Dragon Lady gave him a once-over.
“I’m Cordelia Whitlaw. You’re her agent, you say?”
Kit beamed a smile at her. “She signed on with me yesterday.” He pulled a card out of his pocket and handed it to her. “Am I the luckiest man in the world or what?”
The Dragon Lady glanced at the card and then back at Kit. “And you’re representing her for…”
“Perhaps we could discuss this in a more private place?” Kit leaned closer and spoke in a low tone. “People are beginning to stare.”
Drew glanced around and saw that staff members and customers were indeed sending curious glances in their direction.
“Follow me.” Dragon Lady whirled to lead the way through a nearby door.
“What are you doing?” Drew protested as they followed Cordelia through a storeroom and into a small, neatly appointed office.
“Just play along with me. The D.L. needs to be shaken up just a bit.”
D.L.? Drew had to swallow a sudden urge to laugh. This wasn’t funny, she told herself. “The D.L….” She pressed her free hand against her stomach to prevent a giggle from escaping. This woman, her boss, was going to fire her, and that wasn’t a laughing matter.
Kit nudged her into one of the chairs facing the desk and settled himself in the other.
Cordelia Whitlaw shifted a small box from a filing cabinet to her desk. Then she took her chair and folded her hands in front of her. “When you didn’t show up for work last night, I cleaned out your locker. I did warn you that if you continued to ask for time off, I would have to terminate our agreement. And your absence last night after I specifically told you that I needed you here by six and not a minute later…” She spread her hands. “Well, you had to have known the consequences.”
Drew felt as if she’d been dragged into the principal’s office. Had that been a frequent experience for her? she wondered.
“And just what was your agreement with Drew?” Kit pulled the box closer, lifted the cover and began to rifle through the contents.
“She knows quite well,” the D.L. said with a sniff. “When she first brought me her designs, I said that I would be quite happy to carry them on consignment.”
Kit’s glanced up from the box. “What’s the split?”
“The store gets eighty percent and she gets twenty along with a job.” The D.L. shifted her stern gaze to Drew. “As part of our arrangement, she was to work on weekends and holidays until the money from the sales of her designs began to come in on a regular basis. Ordinarily, I don’t do that, but I made an exception in this case. And she failed to live up to her end of the agreement.”
“May I see the contract?” Kit extended his hand.
“Contract?” For the first time since they’d entered the office, the woman’s stiff composure slipped just a little. “I…we didn’t draw anything formal up.”
“I see. That’s very good news for us. Drew told me, but I couldn’t believe that she was selling her designs without a contract.”
“I don’t want you to get the wrong impression,” the D.L. said. “We’re very happy with Drew’s designs. We want to continue to carry them in the store.”
“That may be a problem,” Kit said. “Neiman Marcus is interested in carrying her designs, but they want exclusivity.”
“Neiman Marcus?”
“I’ve had a nibble from Bergdorf Goodman, too.” He glanced at his watch. “We’re doing lunch with their head buyer. Can’t be late.”
“No. No, of course not.” She turned to Drew. “Surely we can come to some arrangement. After all, this is where you first made a sale. We wouldn’t want to lose you.”
Kit glanced at Drew. “It’s up to you.”
Drew rose. “I’ll have Nate talk to Neiman Marcus. They may make an exception for a small boutique.”
“But she’d want her job back,” Kit said. “Temporarily, of course. And more flexible hours. I’ll spell it all out in the contract.”
“Of course.”
Kit put the lid on the box containing Drew’s belongings and tucked it under his arm. Then he grabbed Drew by the hand and urged her out of the office. “You’ll be hearing from me, Ms. Whitlaw. Ta.”
LAUGHING AND BREATHLESS, Drew nearly tripped when Kit came to a sudden halt on the sidewalk and raised his hand to flag a taxi. “I can’t believe you did that. And you couldn’t have planned it. I mean, you couldn’t have known that you would have to…that she would be so…”
“Insufferable?”
“Yes. She was awful. I could barely keep from laughing when you called her ‘D.L.’”
“Short for Dragon Lady. An apt name.” A taxi picked up a fare in the other side of the intersection. Kit shifted the box under his arm and raised his hand again. “The old biddy needed to be taken down a notch.”
“She did. But where did you…how did you come up with that business card? And Nate Cashman? Where in the world did you come up with that name?”
Satisfied that an empty taxi was headed their way, Kit turned to her and, for a split second, he lost his train of thought. There was something about seeing her laughing up at him in the sunlight. She’d never looked at him in quite that way before, and something twisted in his heart. Before he could even think, he pulled her close and covered her mouth with his.
He’d been imagining doing that all during the time she’d shopped for clothes. He’d been starving for the sweet, dark richness of her taste. He’d even imagined joining her in one of the dressing rooms for a quick kiss. But he didn’t entirely trust his ability to control himself where she was concerned.
Shoppers and tourists streamed by, parting to move around them. In some part of his mind, he was aware of the muffled laughter, but not even a strident wolf whistle motivated him to stop. More than anything, he wanted to pull her closer, to feel the softness of her breasts and thighs pressed against him. To touch her, really touch her. In a moment, he would.
“Hey, buddy! You might want to take this taxi before someone steals it from you.”
Drawing back, Kit glanced over his shoulder to see a plump woman, holding several packages.
She winked at him. “It’ll give you a little more privacy, too.”
He grinned at her. “Good idea. Thanks for holding it for me.”
“The Poseidon restaurant,” he said to the taxi driver as he climbed in beside Drew. To the question in her eyes he said, “We’re going to grab a bite to eat. Now where were we—you wanted to know about Nate Cashman. If memory serves me, I found old Nate in the phone book. But I’ve also picked up some good ones in the credits of movies—you know, where they list everyone who ever delivered a package to the set. I use those to find names for characters in my books, too.”
