Sailing at Sunset - Cindi Madsen Page 0,69
“but don’t think I won’t leave you behind. Then, when I show up at the office in fabulous new duds, I’ll remind you that you were moving too slow to snag all the amazing steals and deals.” She swung her pointed finger in a vague circle. “That goes for everybody.”
The entire group snickered, even Paige. But they also walked faster.
Most of the shops on Commercial Street were colorful two-story buildings with dozens of people peering through windows, checking out merchandise, and ordering food. From the looks of things, the businesses were on the ground floor and the owners lived in or rented out the second.
“I love old architecture,” Danae said. “I can never tell whether they belong to the Victorian or Georgian era, or why we classify houses by monarchs in England in the first place.”
The seashell shop to their right had giant, beautiful shells for sale, along with every type of jewelry that could be made from them. Next up was a yellow-and-green house where they made fudge. Another place, kitty corner from the intersection, had been painted in rainbow colors, almost as if the building had been tattooed from top to bottom. Just beyond that sat a shop with pale wood and giant windows.
Between the mishmash of styles and colors, the entire street felt as diverse as the people strolling along it.
Finally, they reached the boutique Vanessa had been excitedly jabbering on about. The guys in the group glanced inside and all pulled the same bitter face—good to know it was universal.
Danae stifled her laughter and then decided to keep on extending the olive branch, just to ensure things between her and her ex remained cordial. “Mark, did you see that puzzle shop? It’s bright pink and just down the way.”
Right in front of her eyes, he transformed into a kid. He swung his head from side to side, an excited gleam flickering when he spotted the store.
“Shall we take an hour to explore? Then we can meet up at a restaurant for lunch?”
Vanessa commented that she wasn’t sure an hour would be long enough, before eventually agreeing to the plan, as well as a spot for lunch. With that checked off her list, Danae attempted to make eye contact with Josh. She still wasn’t sure what to do about the burgeoning crush she had on him, yet she didn’t want things to be weird or for him to think she was avoiding him.
Before she could figure out which expression could wordlessly convey all that, Vanessa clamped onto her wrist. Next thing she knew, she was being propelled into the boutique.
“Did you find some steals and deals, then?” Josh jerked his chin at the bag hanging from Danae’s bent elbow.
“I was told so, anyway. I was also told the clothes looked good on me, so…” Danae shrugged. “Guess we’ll see.”
“I said amazing.” Vanessa peered at Danae over the top of her sunglasses, the four overflowing bags she was carrying crinkling together. “If you’re gonna quote me, darling, quote me correctly.” The two women shared a smile, and then Vanessa turned her grin on him. “I’m sure Josh would agree if he’d been there.”
Josh had a feeling Danae didn’t want her coworkers to know anything had happened between them, so he dodged. “Need me to take your bags, ladies?”
“You can save the chivalry for Danae. I’m reluctant to let go of my bags. Not that I don’t trust you. It’s just a lot to keep track of.” Vanessa checked the time. “We have seven more minutes. I’m going to peek at that shop across the way really quick.”
Josh watched her dart across the street in case he needed to block cars, but she wove in and out like a New Yorker. Once she’d disappeared into the colorful old building, he turned to Danae. “Funny how she told me she trusted me, but not to keep track of a lot of bags.”
A laugh spilled out of Danae, the sound soothing to his soul. He relieved her of her bag and offered his elbow. “Shall we stroll for seven minutes?”
She glanced around, confirming his theory about wanting to keep things on the down low, before hooking her hand in the crook of his arm. “Gotta burn off all the delicious food I’ve been eating somehow.”
A couple of blocks down, they stumbled across a shop called Mad as a Hatter. “Ooh, this place seems promising,” Danae said, squinting through the giant display window. There was an old bike, a chain curtain, and