“Some are at the house. But I don’t keep them here. They’re in the hallway closet.”
Her grin was huge.
Nick grinned back. “I take it you approve?”
“Shoes donotbelong in the bedroom.” Her gaze roamed around the small closet. “I don’t see the ties.”
“Ah.” Nick pulled aside the suits, revealing a concealed cabinet. “Go ahead.”
She opened it.
There, mounted on a dowel, hung four motorized revolving racks, each filled with silk ties in various patterns and colors.
Jannie’s eyes widened. “You weren’t kidding.”
“I never kid about something as serious as ties.”
“You grouped them by color!”
“Of course. Is there any other way if you need to find one fast?”
She surveyed the four racks, shaking her head almost imperceptibly, a tiny smile curving her lips. “How many does each one hold?”
“Seventy-two.”
She looked incredulous. “You owntwo hundred and eightyties?”
“Two hundred eighty-eight,” he corrected. “Not counting the plain uniform ones.” He pointed to one of the two buttons on the middle rack. “Hit that blue one.”
Jannie did, and the ties started to spin in a whirl of colors and patterns.
She hooked a hand around his neck and pulled. “This makes me hot.”
He pushed the red button to halt the rotation. “My neckties make you hot?”
“The organization.”
“Ah.”
She kissed him then, with all the sweetness and aggression that was Jannie. “How long did it take you to collect all these?”
“I bought my first one in high school.”
“Oh? Which one?”
He went to the first rack, pushed the button, and watched the silk strips swiftly rotate until he found the one he sought: a sky-blue tie with tiny white polka dots.
He handed it to her.
She took it, sliding the smooth fabric between her fingers. “Why does this look familiar?” Her gaze sought his. “Did you ever wear it? To a school ceremony, maybe?”
He shook his head and slipped his hands into his pockets.
“Hmm. I swear I’ve seen this before.” Slowly, recognition dawned in her eyes. “My dress!”
So, she remembered the dress she often wore—her favorite, he assumed—the one with white lace on the hem, short enough to show off her long legs but not so short as to be trashy. The one he imagined taking off her when he was alone at night, in bed, his teenage mind filled with vivid images of her, his fist wrapped around his painfully hard shaft.
“I even had a matching headband!” she said.
