along.” He set down his empty wine glass and looked at her. “I want to drive the bus.”
She gazed at him. “This is a metaphorical bus, right?”
“Exactly. Showing you Paris would be a real kick in the head, but I want to do it my way.”
“And what would that be?”
At least she’d asked the question instead of giving him a flat no. He outlined some of his plans and watched her eyes. He saw eagerness and yearning there, but in the end, resignation eclipsed everything else.
“All that sounds lovely, and I won’t pretend that I wouldn’t enjoy being treated like a princess. Any woman would. I also understand why you wouldn’t want to see Paris on a budget. You’re beyond that. But I can’t have you spending that kind of money to entertain me, and even if I could deal with that issue, I don’t have the wardrobe for most of what you have in mind.”
“The wardrobe problem can be fixed, Cinderella.” He’d hoped that she’d laugh at that.
She did. “What, you have a fairy godmother living in your townhouse, Prince Charming?”
“No, I have one personal shopper. Give her your sizes, style preferences, and color choices, and she can fetch whatever you need right over to the townhouse. She does it for me all the time.”
“I guarantee I can’t afford the clothes, let alone the personal shopper.”
“I know that. Because I’m asking a favor of you, I would cover the cost.”
She blinked. “You’re asking a favor of me? How do you figure that?”
“Let’s go back to the movie analogy. Say this friend who was hankering to see the movie didn’t have the money to go. Would you want to treat her?”
“Of course.”
“What if she was too proud to let you buy the ticket?”
She gazed at him over the rim of her wineglass. “Nicely done. But your example involves me laying out what’s basically lunch money. Whereas you—”
“Would be laying out lunch money.”
She regarded him silently for several seconds. “I can’t even get my mind around that.”
“Then don’t try. Let me show you Paris. Do me that favor.”
“I need time to consider this. My brain isn’t functioning very well right now. Lack of sleep is catching up with me.”
“I’ll bet.” He signaled for the waiter and pulled out his phone. “I’ll have Henri come get us.” He quickly texted their location to his chauffeur.
“And please don’t think I’m not grateful for your fabulous offer. But if I accept it, I’ll be spoiled. Every visit to Paris, maybe every trip I take from now on, will seem lame in comparison.”
“Maybe.” If she agreed to his plan, he ran the risk of creating an experience for himself that also might never be equaled. And he was willing to take that risk.
“But if I don’t do it, I’ll always wonder what it would have been like.”
He smiled. Her natural curiosity meant that his chances had just improved. “Tell you what. On the way home, give me some basic info for Josette so she can pick out a few things and bring them over in the morning. If your answer is no, then she can return it all and nobody loses money.”
“Won’t she charge you for the service?”
“I have her on retainer.”
“Oh.” She shook her head. “We live in completely different worlds.”
He tossed some money on the table. “Not at the moment.”
Five
Dictating her clothing sizes, including her bra size in case a dress needed a unique undergarment, was a more intimate discussion than Melanie had expected.
Drew recorded everything in a text message and sent it off to Josette. “That way she can start shopping tonight.”
“I guess stores are open in the evenings here like they are back home, then.”
“Some are, but she goes after they close.”
“Of course she does. I should have known.” Melanie felt the giggles coming on. They were partly due to exhaustion and partly due to wine, but mostly she found herself laughing at her unbelievable situation. This sort of thing didn’t happen in real life, especially to a girl like her.
She’d grown up in a loving family, but her father’s ranch had never provided them with more than the basics. She was raised doing chores and cleaning hay out of her hair, not learning to charm people at cocktail parties. She’d attended college on a scholarship and had come out with a liberal arts degree and the realization that working on her daddy’s ranch pleased her more than any job she could imagine. She expected to marry a cowboy, and maybe