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t do you say?"
I held up my hands. "Don't make me vote on fashion choices. You promised."
"Can you at least tell me if you like it?"
"You're beautiful. But you were beautiful in the other dress too."
"Are you going to say I'm beautiful no matter what dress I try on?"
"You bet."
"Well, okay. That's not much help. Lori, I'm counting on you."
Lori was clapping, her eyes crinkled at the corners from her gigantic smile. Her enthusiasm lit her up from inside, and she was magnificent to watch.
She sounded a little breathless when she said, "I think this is the one, Amber."
Amber twirled some more, and they talked about trimming and shoes. I tuned out after that, but I couldn't make myself look away from Lori. When Amber decided she was buying this dress, Lori hugged her. As she pulled back, she observed the dress longingly, and it hit me that Lori wanted that for herself.
Her son's deadbeat father had taken off, but she still believed in all... this. I knew many in LA who sold dreams they didn't believe in, but my gut feeling told me Lori wasn't one of them. She was honest; she was real. Of course, my gut feeling had been wrong before, but I was almost sure I was right about Lori.
Fuck, I should stop fantasizing about those full lips, about how perfect she'd feel underneath me. Or on top. What was it with me? The better question was, what was it about her that pulled me in? I felt caught up in her spell, and I didn't know how to break it.
Chapter Six
Graham
Amber and Lori talked about the dress right until we arrived at the restaurant where we were having the tasting. When Amber had e-mailed me to ask if I had time for the menu tasting, my first instinct was to reply that they should have it without me. I'd had enough trouble putting Lori out of my mind after our dinner. But eventually I said yes. I didn't want to be a jerk. If I was attracted to Lori that was my problem, not Amber's.
We were led to the back of the restaurant, in a small room with no patrons. Matt was waiting inside already, talking to a woman who introduced herself as Gigi, the florist. Flower arrangements covered every square inch of two tables. A third table was filled with plates. There were six tables total crammed in the small room. It struck me as odd that they were all different, until Lori said, "Let me know if you like any tablecloths we have here. If not, I have more in my car. I can bring them out and change them."
Amber ran her fingers over each table and inspected the various flower arrangements, nodding and chatting with Lori.
"Graham, Matt, which ones are your favorite flower arrangements?" Amber asked.
The arrangements all looked the same to me, but I knew better than to voice that opinion. "They’re all great."
"Oh, I see. You're going to be just as helpful as you were with the dress. Matt?"
Matt slid me a glance that clearly said Help. I could use some help myself at this very moment. I didn't know a thing about flowers. I'd signed up for tasting food, something I was good at. I didn't even know what kind of flowers these were. I recognized roses, and what I thought might be orchids, and that was it.
"Amber, I suggest we go with your gut feeling. In my experience, the first choice is always the best one," Lori said, saving my bacon.
Amber tilted her head, glancing between two arrangements for a few seconds, before saying, "Okay, let's go with the orchids. And I'll take the light green and gold tablecloths."
Lori tapped her iPad, making notes. "Excellent. If it's okay with everyone, I'll ask for the appetizers."
There was a general hum of agreement, and Amber, Matt, and I sat down.
"I'll be in the main room of the restaurant," Gigi said. "In case you change your mind about the flowers during the tasting."
After she left, the servers brought the appetizers. Lori stood between Amber and Matt, pointing to the plates. "We have a selection of salmon and dill sauce on a bed of asparagus. Next to it is tuna with black pepper crust. For the guests who don't like fish, they can opt for the roast beef with béarnaise sauce. And of course, we have a vegan option."
Even though I was starving, I forced myself to take small bites, so I could actually taste the food and give my opinion on it, not just scarf it all down. It was no surprise that it all tasted like it cost a million bucks, even though it hadn't. I'd already seen the prices. Lori had kept her word of delivering the best quality at the best rates.
"Lori, I can't possibly eat all of this on my own," Amber said, "or we'll have to go back to the store and have my dress fitted again. Come on. Share my plate."
Lori hesitated, but she'd talked with so much gusto about the food that I was sure she'd love to try it. I stood and brought a chair from the next table, wedging it between Amber's and mine, not giving her the chance to sit between Matt and Amber. The waiter who was in charge of our group immediately brought an empty plate and cutlery, and Lori caved.
