AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Kelly smothered her laughter with a cough. Hank was big on being incognito, but sometimes his disguises caused more of a stir than if he’d just been himself. The tabloids loved to paint him as eccentric and strange, so it was no wonder Veronica thought so as well.
Plus, Veronica had a low bullshit tolerance. It was the only reason Kelly hadn
’t promoted her to wedding expert yet. Dealing with stressed out brides was a high-pressure gig. There was a lot of biting your tongue and smiling, and Kelly just wasn’t sure she could placate.
“Let him in, Veronica.”
“Okay.” Veronica pushed the door wide and addressed someone out of sight. “You can come on in, sir.”
Kelly stood. When Hank walked into the room, Kelly had to bite her lip to keep the giggles at bay. Hank was wearing a loud, red Hawaiian shirt that did nothing to hide his broad, muscular shoulders. A straw hat sat cockeyed on his full head of dark hair, and his glasses and nose even had a black plastic mustache attached. In his hands was a three-inch-thick coral-pink binder full of papers.
He looked like he was completely off his rocker; no wonder Veronica was ready to give him the boot.
“You can close the door, Veronica,” Kelly said.
Veronica gave her a look as though to say, are you sure?
Kelly nodded.
“I’m at my desk if you need me.” Veronica shot Harry a distrustful glance as she pulled the door closed.
Once it clicked shut, Kelly came around the desk. “Mr. Townsend, I presume.”
Hank smiled behind the disguise. “What gave it away?”
“That you’re my ten a.m. appointment.” She shot him a wink. “Otherwise, I would never have recognized you.”
“Well, aren’t you a saucy one.”
Man, he had a great voice. Although in most of his movies, he sported an American accent, Kelly thought that they should utilize his real one. It was freaking hot.
“I am. Would you like to remove your hat and nose, so we can get started?”
Hank set the coral binder on her desk before he pulled the straw hat and glasses off. He dropped both items next to the chair opposite her, and getting her first in-person look at him was awe-inspiring. With bushy dark eyebrows, a full head of thick, black hair with just the hint of red, and stormy gray eyes, he was smoking. In a craggy, manly sort of way. Like he should be wearing a kilt and riding across the moors stealing lasses from their betrotheds.
Realizing she was being entirely inappropriate about a potential client, she held her hand out. “Kelly Barrow.”
He gripped her hand in a firm pump. “Nice to meet you. Call me Hank.”
“I will. You, of course, can call me Kelly.” She went around to the back of the desk and flipped her planner open to take notes. “Now, I understand that you’re paying for your younger sister’s wedding?”
Hank took a seat in the empty chair across from her. “Yes, that’s right. I want Julia to have the best and according to several friends of mine, that’s you.”
Kelly wanted to preen, but refrained. She’d built her business and reputation of being discreet while creating beautiful weddings for celebrities. There had been a few hiccups over the years, but overall, Something Borrowed Wedding Solutions’s reputation was unblemished. Professional bridesmaids for the woman who needs an extra body, or someone to handle all the details her flaky cousin or workaholic best friend couldn’t.
“That is lovely to hear. Is Julia in town with you?”
Hank picked up the binder and waved it at her. “No, but she gave me a list of demands…I mean, plans. Actually, it’s more like a manual. Julia has rather simple tastes in decor.”
His fond grin told her he was teasing, but she figured there was probably some truth in his words. Most siblings she knew had a love/annoyance relationship with each other.
“Julia’s a model, right?” Kelly said.
“The new face of Ralph Lauren. She’s on a photoshoot overseas now and I had some time between filming, so I figured I’d fly up here and get the ball rolling.” He set the binder on the edge of her desk and sat back in the chair, his lips kicking up at the corners. “Besides, I’ll admit, I was curious about you.”
Kelly was sure she was blushing. “What about me?”
“What you were like in person. If you were really as charming as you seemed over the phone.”
