“Oh,” she exclaimed, looking up from her clipboard. “Hello.”
He couldn’t seem to stop staring, wishing more than anything that he had the right to pull her hair out of that loose bun and run his fingers through it.
Oh, lord. Had he really told her he was infatuated with her? He was such an idiot.
“Hi,” he managed.
A little hint of pink appeared on each cheekbone and he immediately wanted to touch his mouth to both spots.
He closed his eyes, mortified at himself. “My, uh, mother rang me for a ride. I’ve just dropped her off.”
Of course he had. She must have seen his mother only seconds earlier. What other possible reason would he have for being there?
“That’s nice of you. Thank you. I only needed to find a particular pattern book I think your mother might like.”
“She’s very much looking forward to working with you,” he said.
For some reason, his words seemed to spark panic in her eyes.
“How am I going to find the perfect dress for your mother and finish it in less than two weeks?”
He didn’t want her upset. He wanted to tuck her against him and make everything all right for her, no matter what it might take. “Easy enough,” he said. “You only have to tell her you don’t have time. She brought two dresses along that she picked up at home. One of them will be perfectly fine.”
“Not if she doesn’t like them.”
“She liked them well enough when she bought them,” he pointed out in what he thought was a perfectly reasonable argument. “If it will help, I suggested she bring them both along so that you might have a better idea of her tastes. They’re both in the car. Would you like me to fetch them?”
She stared at him, eyes wide and a dawning relief on her lovely features. “Ian. You’re brilliant!”
“Am I?”
“Yes. I can’t believe I didn’t think of that. Maybe instead of starting from zero, I can simply alter one of the dresses your mother brought along to make it more to her liking.”
“From what I’ve seen, I’m sure you have the necessary skill to work magic with the dresses she has. If I were a woman, I would definitely want to shop here.”
It was a stupid thing to say but somehow seemed to hit the right note, anyway. She gazed at him, eyes wide again but this time with a stunned, luminous happiness. “Thank you for saying that.”
“You’re welcome,” he said gruffly.
They stared at each other long enough that it began to feel awkward. He cleared his throat. “Right, then. Shall I fetch the dresses?”
“Yes. Please. And thank you. A thousand times, thank you.”
It was a small thing to feel heroic about but he decided to take his small victories where he could find them. He unlocked the vehicle where the dresses were hanging. As he reached in to grab them, a man approached him.
“Need a hand with anything?”
He frowned at Gemma’s fiancé. “What are you doing here? You’re not supposed to be anywhere in the vicinity. Gemma is inside trying on her wedding dress and you know she’ll have a fit if you see it before the wedding.”
Josh Bailey made a face. “Where am I supposed to go exactly? Haven Point isn’t that big and my store is just across the street. I spotted you from inside a few moments ago when you showed up with your mother.”
“Anywhere but inside Samantha’s shop is fine.”
“Have you had breakfast? I was just about to head over to the café to grab something and would love to have you join me.”
Ian considered his options. He wouldn’t mind sitting on that conveniently placed bench outside the store with his book. On the other hand, he had been hoping for an opportunity to become better acquainted with his sister’s fiancé. Every other time they’d been together had been with Gemma as a buffer.
“I already had breakfast with the children this morning but I wouldn’t mind a cup of coffee.” He was going to say tea but decided coffee made him sound a little less British. “I only have to deliver these dresses to Samantha inside the boutique.”
Josh looked confused. “Don’t people usually take dresses away from the boutique, not the other way around?”
“It’s a long story. I’ll tell you about it over coffee. You had better wait out here. I’m afraid if you walked into that shop right now, there might not be a wedding and all this fuss over dresses would be for nothing.”