the kingdom.
“Thanks so much,” I gushed. “My sister’s crazy-busy with her family, so this’ll be just what the doctor ordered.”
“Literally.”
I laughed. “OK, pun not intended. But thanks again.”
“It’s my pleasure. Have fun, and the only rule is that you don’t even look at prices,” he insisted. “And let’s plan on me picking you up around five tomorrow. We can have a drink at my place before we head out.”
“Perfect.”
“And I wouldn’t be upset in the slightest if you sent me some pictures of some of the choices tonight. In whatever state of dress you happen to be in.” He chuckled and added, “Please.”
I grinned as a shiver of desire ran through my body. “You got it.”
We hung up and I hurried back to the table. Bethany was practically jumping off her seat with eagerness. “Well?” she asked. “What’d Dr. McStud have to say?”
“Change of plans for tonight,” I announced. “We’re going to Denver.”
“What?”
I filled her in on all the details, letting her know we were about to have a hell of a night out, courtesy of Duncan. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Are you serious?” she asked, wide-eyed. “Then what the heck are we doing still in town? Let’s go!”
After getting a to-go cup for my coffee, we were off. We left White Pines, driving into Denver and heading downtown. We stopped in one boutique after another, and it took me some major effort to internalize Duncan’s rule of not looking at price tags.
“What about this one?” I asked, holding up a so-so dress that was reasonably priced.
“Annie, it’s on him, remember? And didn’t he tell you not to think about prices?”
“I know, I know. But I can’t help it.”
“Look at it this way,” she suggested. “You’re going to a fancy party tomorrow, right? And if you’re going to show up to a party like that with a guy like Duncan, then you can’t wear any old thing. You’ve got to find something special, for his sake and reputation.”
I grinned. “OK, that makes a certain amount of sense.”
Bethany plucked the dress out of my hands and put it back, turning her attention to some of the much nicer options the boutique offered.
“These are more your speed,” she said. “Like…ooh my God.” She took a dress off the rack, a gorgeous, powder blue one with shimmering lining and a plunging neckline. “This is it,” she insisted. “This is all you.”
I spotted the tag dangling off the arm, and my first instinct was to look. Bethany quickly grabbed it before I could and gave it a quick yank, taking it off.
“You’ll never know,” she said with a sly grin. “Now, go try it on.”
She handed me the dress along with a few other choices, and one of the clerks led me to the dressing room. Once the door was shut, some naughty ideas appeared in my mind. I slipped out of my clothes until I was down to nothing but my bra and panties. Then I took my phone out of the pocket of my jeans, snapped a few shots, and sent them to Duncan.
Getting started…got a lot to pick from.
The response came moments later.
Can’t wait to see your decision-making process in action.
The next hour or so was a flurry of dresses and sexy selfies. Duncan was clearly happy about each one, if his emojis and responses were anything to judge by.
After several, I realized the powder blue dress was the clear winner.
Got my dress, I texted him. But you’re going to have to wait for tomorrow for that reveal.
Wouldn’t have it any other way.
We paid for the dress, charging it to Duncan’s account, like he asked.
“And don’t tell her the price,” Bethany said to the clerk. “It’s a treat.”
The clerk smiled and nodded in assent as she packed the gown. After that, we did a little shoe and accessory shopping. By the time we were finished, we were both starving – shopping worked up a hell of an appetite.
Duncan
I hadn’t been as excited for a night in as long as I could remember. So of course, as I finished getting ready, taking one last look at myself in my full-length mirror to make sure my tux was on-point, I received a call from Andrew.
“What’s up?” I asked, setting the phone on the nightstand and putting it on speaker, a glass of cabernet in my hand.
“Big night tonight, huh?”
“Christmas party,” I said. “The night where we all pretend we’re having fun, but deep down we’re all trying to make sure we