“What happened?” she asked again.
“We do not know,” Victor said grimly. “We found you unconscious on the floor. Do you recall how you got that way?”
“What?” She peered at him blankly and then shook her head. “No, I was trying on clothes and then . . .” She frowned, briefly, and finished, “I guess I fainted.”
Basil glanced to his brother, silently telling him to search her memory for what had happened, but then looked sharply back when Sherry shook off his hold and moved into the dressing room again.
“I better get back to it. I still have a load of clothes to try on.” She closed the dressing room door. There was no way Victor could read her now. He needed to see her to read her.
“Perhaps we should leave shopping for another day and head back to the house,” Basil suggested to her through the door.
“No. Elvi can’t keep taking days off to shop with me,” Sherry responded, sounding a bit exasperated. “Besides, I need clothes.”
“But if you are not feeling well—” Basil began.
“I’m fine. I feel fine,” she insisted, definitely exasperated now.
“We can come back tomorrow,” Basil said soothingly. “Right now I think—”
“Basil, I’ve worn the same outfit for three days now. I’m not wearing it a fourth time,” she said firmly. “If you don’t like waiting while I try on clothes, go grab a cup of coffee in the food court. I’ll be as quick as I can.”
Basil frowned at the door, then turned to glower at his brother when Victor began to chuckle.
“What the hell is so funny?” Basil asked with irritation.
“My apologies, brother,” Victor said, making an obvious effort to kill his smile and failing miserably. Shaking his head, he gave up the effort and said, “I am sorry, I just—” He shrugged helplessly. “The nanos chose well. She is perfect for you.”
“Perfectly stubborn,” Basil muttered.
“Exactly,” Victor said, and laughed again, louder this time.
“I am not stubborn,” Basil grumbled, leaning against the wall next to the dressing room door and crossing his arms grimly.
“You are,” Victor countered at once. “It’s why you and Lucian drive each other crazy. You are both as stubborn as the other.”
“So you’re saying Sherry and I will drive each other crazy?” Basil asked archly.
“Well, that hardly sounds like life mates,” Sherry said from inside the dressing room, her voice drenched in disgust.
“No, I’m sure Victor didn’t mean you’d drive each other crazy,” Elvi said quickly, raising her voice to be sure Sherry heard her.
“No, I did not mean it that way,” Victor agreed, raising his voice as well. “But you will not let my brother boss you around either, which would be easy for him to do with most women. He needs someone with a solid backbone, and you appear to have one.”
“Yeah, except for the fainting like some Victorian miss bit,” Sherry muttered, her voice somewhat muffled, which suggested she was in the process of taking off or pulling on something over her head. The idea caught Basil’s imagination, and he found himself picturing that in his mind. Sherry pulling off the sexy sweater she’d been wearing, revealing a lacy scrap of cloth barely covering burgeoning breasts.
“Her breasts are not that burgeoning,” Victor said with amusement, apparently catching the stray fantasy.
“Her breasts are perfect,” Basil said staunchly.
“Yes, but they are not as large as you are picturing them in your mind,” he assured him.
“Yes?” Elvi asked her husband. The tone was sarcastic, but she had a twinkle of amusement in her eyes. “Yes, Sherry’s breasts are perfect?”
“Yours are more perfect, of course, my love,” Victor said with a grin.
“Oh, for God’s sake,” Sherry muttered. The door to the dressing room burst open and she stormed out, a mountain of clothes caught up in her arms, the hangers sticking out every which way. “I’ll just take these, now let’s go.”
She strode past them and stormed out of the dressing area, charging for the register.