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Ruby looked down at herself, then turned her attention to him. “Do you really like it?”
Likewas a wholly inadequate word. “I’ll be with the most stunning woman in the room.”
“Oh. Wow,” Morgan said. “Okay.NowI’m putting the pieces together.”
Ruby turned to her. “Pieces?”
Morgan cleared her throat and looked down at the floor for a moment. “I’m sorry. Sometimes words just fly out of my mouth.” She stepped closer to Ruby and adjusted one of the straps of the dress. “I didn’t realize that Heath was your date for New Year’s. I thought we were just talking about him.”
Heath’s instinct to get into it with Morgan returned with a vengeance. He knew he was the subject of gossip in town, but the fact that Morgan was so willing to engage in it while fulfilling her role as shop owner? Apparently some members of the Grandin family saw dragging his name through the mud as an everyday activity, like casually chatting about the weather.
“I’m sorry. I thought I’d told you,” Ruby said.
“Don’t worry about me. It’s none of my business,” Morgan said. “For what it’s worth, I do think you two make a very cute couple.”
Heath watched as Ruby’s face flushed with pink, which was a pleasant distraction as he wondered if he was letting paranoia get the best of him. Or was Morgan simply buttering them up? Once again, the motivations of the Grandin family made him question everything.
“Thank you,” Ruby said, then looked at Heath in the reflection of the mirror. “Well? Do you think I should get this one?”
“Even if you didn’t have a big party to attend, I think it’d be foolish to not buy it. You look gorgeous.”
From across the shop, a phone rang. “Oh, shoot. I left my cell by the register,” Morgan said. “Please excuse me. I’m waiting on a call. I’ll leave you two to talk about the dress.” She bustled away.
Ruby took the price tag in her hand and looked at it, then once again peered into the mirror. “I’m not sure this is the best choice. Maybe I should be a little more sensible and buy something that I can wear more than once. I don’t know where I would ever wear this after New Year’s Eve.”
He could hear the depth of her inner struggle in her voice. Something told him this was about more than the dress. It was about her feeling unsure of herself. Heath so identified with that. There was something about loss that made you question everything you did. Everything that you were. “Then let me be the insensible one.” He stepped closer to her. Everything in his mind and body made him want to touch her. Pull her into his arms.
“No offense, but I really don’t think this dress would look good on you.” She jokingly arched both eyebrows at him. “You don’t have the hips to fill it out.”
Heath laughed. “You know that wasn’t what I was saying. Let me buy it for you.”
“You haven’t even looked at the price. This thing is expensive.”
“I don’t care about that. I care about you feeling good about yourself at this party. I care about you having fun that night. With me.”
“That’s so sweet.”
If only she knew the thoughts that were going through his head right now. Not all of them were sweet. He wanted to wish Morgan away. He wanted to pull Ruby into the dressing room, lock the door, and kiss her and touch every inch of her until neither of them could see straight. “Is that a yes? Will you let me buy you the dress?”
“I don’t know. It’s a lot to ask.”
He shook his head. “Trust me. You’d be doing me the favor.”
“How, exactly?”
“It’ll let me show a Grandin that I’m not a jerk. And it’ll let me show you that, even though we haven’t known each other for a very long time, I care.”
She smiled softly and nodded, but it was clear that his words were still running through her head. “Okay, but on one condition. You let me take you out for lunch at the Royal Diner after this.”
Heath’s day was getting better at every turn. “Pie?”
“Of course,” Ruby said.
Morgan returned. “Well? Do we have a decision?”
Heath pulled his credit card out of his wallet and handed it over to Morgan. “Sold.”
“Yes, sir,” she said in response. “Is there anything else you need, Ruby? Shoes? A handbag? A wrap?”
