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Finally Lexi laughed. “Debatable.”
“Well, perhaps at times.” Stephen stroked the soft skin of Lexi’s arm. “Want to tell me about things over dinner tonight?”
As she bit her bottom lip, Stephen feared she was having second thoughts about their arrangements. “We won’t get in until late.”
“So we’ll take a late dinner, drinks maybe.” Did he sound as if he was begging? He might have been. Stephen disliked her hoity-toity former employer even more now. “Dessert? The hotel makes a pretty good double-Dutch-chocolate brownie.” No woman could resist chocolate. The corners of her mouth turned upward. “One brownie.”
A wave of mothers ran by with their little girls in tow. Stephen pulled Lexi against him to save her from the stampede. “What the hell?”
“Crowning time. We better hurry.”
* * *
Thanks to her bit of a fit from running into Rose Laing, Lexi missed Vera being crowned most photogenic. “What?” Stephen leaned in. “Our girl should have won. Myranda, I don’t know what they were thinking. Your daughter had the best salsa dance I’ve seen from a six-year-old. I can’t believe she’s not getting a princess crown. She was the best.”
“She pulled for a higher title,” explained Lexi. Kenya, Myranda’s daughter, did an excellent job. Chantal should be proud of the hard work she’d put in with the girl. “If your name is called now in this round, you’re done in the competition.”
“Yeah,” Philly chimed in, “Andrew said we never want our name called until the end.”
“She’s right.” Lexi beamed, glad to see Philly was picking up on a lot. “We keep our fingers crossed, but I would score her pretty high, as well. She might be the only one who did not need her mother or coach dancing in the aisle behind the judges.”
“I’ll learn my routine, Miss Lexi,” said Philly, “I promise.”
“Don’t worry, sweetie.” Lexi bumped her forehead gently against Philly’s. “I’m not going to let you on stage unless I’m sure you’re ready.”
“You best believe you won’t be dressed like a lot of these girls,” Stephen said.
Lexi turned and gave him a wink, unprepared for the sexy grin he gave her. Thanks to her past dateless nights, she had had plenty of time to sketch and come up with a one-of-a-kind dress for Philly, filled with tons of Swarovski diamonds. “Well, you do not have to worry about that. I’m friends with a fabulous dress-shop owner.
“Waverly, you were beautiful!” Lexi said cheerfully after the final judging, wrapping her arms around her neck.
Waverly’s Miss Magnolia crown wobbled. She lifted the tiara and set it on top of Philly’s head. “Are you ready to win one of these crowns?”
Philly anxiously nodded her head. “Yes, ma’am!”
Waverly playfully cringed, her eyes begging Lexi for help. “Ma’am?”
“Think of this as a sign of respect,” Lexi whispered.
With a deep inhale, Waverly turned to the rest of the family. “Did the rest of you enjoy yourselves?”
Lexi noticed the way Kimber’s eyes widened at Waverly, all made up with her crown and dress. “What did you think, kiddo?”
With as much nonchalance as possible, Kimber shrugged her shoulders. “Yeah, it was cool, I guess.”
Philly tugged Waverly’s dress. “Will you be at mine?”
“You know I will!” Waverly beamed. “I can’t wait to go back to Atlanta.”
“My uncle lives in Atlanta,” Philly decided to announce.
No one else noticed that, as Stephen stood beside Lexi, his long fingers drew circles on her lower back. Lexi tried to keep her mind straight, but his movement reminded her of the way he’d drawn circles at the nape of her neck while they kissed right outside her bedroom door.
“I do, too.” Stephen’s deep voice sent a chill of desire down her spine.
“I can’t wait to go,” Lexi told Waverly, and then, moving away from Stephen’s embrace, she said to Philly, who was tapping her shoulders, “Are you ready to get back home and start practicing?”
Philly nodded eagerly.
