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‘Right. OK.’ Finn held up the outfit. ‘Uhhhh… Do I really have to wear this?’
Darcie gave him the withering look she’d been able to silence him with since they were children, so he nodded and started removing his clothes. He glanced around when he came to removing his jeans but no one else seemed to care so he slid them off and stood in front of his sister and Ellie in just his boxers. Ellie though, was already pulling her sweatshirt over her head and as she changed, he caught glimpses of black lace and milky white skin, of curves that could make a grown man weep. Damn, she was beautiful. But he did try very hard not to stare because he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. He couldn’t help occasionally seeing things though because, after all, he did have eyes in his head.
When they were dressed, Darcie moved around them, making them raise arms and suck in breaths as she made some adjustments, and then they were ready.
‘Brilliant. You both look fabulous.’ She smiled and clapped her hands. ‘Now let’s practise your walk.’
‘Oh man,’ he said, pulling a face at Ellie, but she was laughing and it made him feel more relaxed. If she could see the funny side of this, then he could too.
Chapter15
Ellie
Back stage, Darcie hugged everyone involved in the fashion show then lined them up. They were to walk onto the stage from the left then down the steps that led from the stage into the centre of the hall. From there, they were to head right to the end of the hall and out the double doors then to the back room where they would change for the next round. Darcie had shown them their three changes of clothes and Ellie had bit the inside of her cheek as Finn’s expression had changed from mild distaste to sheer horror. He really didn’t want to be parading around in front of the villagers but he didn’t complain, he simply nodded at his sister and then looked to Ellie and she gave him what she hoped was her most reassuring smile.
While they’d been changing, she’d caught glimpses of his incredible physique and although she’d tried not to allow her eyes to linger, she couldn’t avoid seeing his broad shoulders and muscular arms and thighs. He had a body that was naturally honed from hard physical labour and not from hours spent in a gym. Finn had always been physically fit but over the years his shoulders had broadened and his muscles from years of working outdoors, climbing trees and carrying logs, patio slabs and garden debris bulged when he tensed.
Lining up, she glanced at Finn. His arm brushed hers, sending sparks of electricity through her, and when she peered up at him, she found he was gazing at her.
‘You look incredible, Ellie. Like, really amazing.’
‘You do too,’ she said, feeling shy.
‘But like, you remind me of… who was it in that movie?’ His brows met above his nose for a moment then a smile graced his full lips. ‘You look like Sophia Lauren. No, not her, Raquel Welch in that prehistoric movie.’
‘One Million Years B.C.?’
‘That’s the one.’ His eyes travelled over her and she felt heat rise over her collar bones and creep into the skin of her neck.
‘Really?’
‘Yes, really. Like… Wow!’
‘Thanks.’ She was extremely flattered. No one had ever compared her to someone like Raquel Welch before. Yes, she had the curves but to have Finn say she looked like that was incredibly flattering. She touched a hand to the flimsy skirt of the outfit that was made from some faux suede material and then to the top that barely covered her bra. She’d thought she’d be incredibly self-conscious in the skimpy outfit but now she found it liberating. She was a forty-six-year-old mother of two and she had the curves, stretchmarks and cellulite to prove it.
Next to her, Finn was wearing what was basically a loin cloth made of the same material and that barely covered his boxers. Darcie had though, given him a long, black wig that fell over his chest, offering him some coverage, and she’d had their hairdresser pin extensions into Ellie’s hair so it fell to her waist front and back. On their feet they wore Birkenstocks that had barely been worn and that were, she had to admit, very comfortable indeed.
‘Are you ready?’ Darcie asked her models from the side of the line.
‘Yes!’ they all replied.
‘And it’s three, two, one…’ Darcie waved a hand and the door to the stage opened and the first couple climbed the stairs.
As they waited, Finn fidgeted next to her, and she knew he was nervous. He’d always been a kind and sensitive soul and she could imagine that this was hard for him. For her, it wasn’t exactly a doddle, but she hadn’t lived in the village for most of her life. For Finn, living and working here, it must be harder, so she touched the back of his hand. He slid his fingers through hers so they were linked and she found his touch both reassuring and exciting.
When they got closer to the steps, his grip tightened, and when it was their turn to climb the stairs, she turned to him and rose on her tiptoes.
‘Finn?’
‘Yes?’ She could see the panic in his eyes and she wanted to wrap him in a hug and hold him to her, but then she knew that wearing very little as they were, she might find she wanted to do more than hug him. Not here, obviously, but if she could go somewhere quiet with him…
Cut it out, Ellie!
He was gazing at her, his eyes scanning her face, so she offered him a smile then stroked his cheek gently before pressing a gentle kiss there. He exhaled as her lips met his skin and his breath tickled her cheek, moved the hair near her ear sending a delicious shiver down her spine.
‘Finn, it will all be OK, I promise. Keep holding my hand and we’ll do this together. It’s just a bit of fun anyway, right?’
‘Right,’ he said. ‘Just a bit of fun and for a good cause.’
