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She nodded.
“Where on earth did you learn to do that?” Julie asked. “Didn’t you major in communications?”
“I did, but I also took a few classes in design while I was there.” In fact, her original wish when she’d gotten into the school was to major in design engineering, but her father had other plans for her, so she’d appeased her artistic side with a handful of classes from the program instead.
“You always did have a great eye for fashion,” Staci said in what seemed like genuine appreciation.
“It’s one thing we could always expect from you, an impeccably dressed and coiffed automaton,” Tracie quipped. She laughed sharply and glanced to Julie, who quickly joined her. When no one else joined in, the laughing stopped abruptly. “I’m only teasing, Waverley. Lighten up.”
Tracie came to her feet while Waverley was still processing the insult. “Hey,” Tracie called out to the guys and headed in their direction. “Are we going to take one last cruise on the boat before everyone has to leave or what?”
A debate followed regarding their launch time, which Julie went to join, leaving Lexi and Staci still sitting next to her.
Waverley glanced over to Staci. “Is that true? Did you guys really think that about me?”
Staci had the courtesy of appearing uncomfortable. “You were something of a…perfectionist. In fact, I’ve always been jealous of you since the first time we met. You had this great sense of style and a kind of quiet poise that I would have given anything for.”
“I see.” Waverley couldn’t argue with that impression. Since she was fourteen and came to live with her father, she’d strived to appear the perfect daughter, socialite, and overall pillar of the community. Her clothes were quietly elegant and stately and still stylish, but also a bit boring. That style had carried on when she married Spencer, who was all about appearances.
“But that was before, though,” Staci rushed to correct. “The Waverley that arrived this weekend is still enviably poised and stylish, but now it’s different. You’re more relaxed and carefree, and that spirit comes through better now. Not just by your clothes—which are gorgeous, by the way—but how you’ve been around us. You’re like a different person, and I for one am glad I got the chance to know you better.”
Any embarrassment Waverley might have felt at hearing the women’s impression of her faded away at Staci’s words.
For the first time Waverley could remember, she had no one to impress or please. Only herself. Maybe it had been that freedom, that independence, that had given her the courage to explore and discover exactly what she liked and what she wanted.
“If you ladies are done, we’re going to head out for the last cruise,” Tracie said, heading inside with Ronnie behind her.
“What are the chances that anyone would miss her if I throw her overboard?” Staci whispered.
Waverley met her gaze and then Lexi’s before they dissolved into giggles.
She might be leaving this weekend without finding justice for Spencer, but she had found a lot more than she’d expected.
Chapter 22
Reynolds sat on the leather bench, the spray of seawater cooling his face, his arm resting on Waverley’s arm as they listened to the conversation around them.
One thing he wouldn’t miss about this weekend was the endlessly long monologues that showed the egos of some of the people on this boat.
On the other hand, he would miss the regular, intimate contact and liberties he was enjoying as Waverley’s boyfriend. The frequent touching and kisses and the heated glances that sold their act but also was starting to make it all feel more real than pretend.
And that was a danger.
Especially now that Spencer had not only slipped the trap but was onto any further attempts Reynolds might have tried to reel him back in, giving Waverley little if any reason to continue their partnership or to stick around town.
She had a bigger life waiting for her in Denver. All she had to do was make peace with her father and she’d be welcomed back into the fold, where eventually she’d find a nice, quality guy with the right connections, career, and money to give her the life she deserved.
Leaving Reynolds exactly where he was before she’d walked into his office. Actually, worse. Since now he’d had a brief glimpse of what life could have been like with Waverley Abbott in it.
Which was why, instead of greeting her with a gentle kiss on her shoulder when she woke up this morning as he’d been tempted to do, he’d put some distance between them with the whole talk about professionalism. They could figure things out between them later, when they were home and this weekend was behind them.
But that didn’t mean he couldn’t milk this boyfriend thing for as long as he could.
He leaned forward so his lips were close enough to brush against her hair. “I take it you heard Spencer’s probably bound for the Bahamas?” Getting so close and intimate was probably unnecessary with the sound of the engine as the boat cut through the water and the wind whipping in their ears, but then he wouldn’t have been able to appreciate the way she shivered as his breath tickled her ear.
She glanced down. “I can’t help but feel responsible,” she said so quietly that he leaned closer to make out the words. “If I hadn’t lost my temper and kneed him and instead kept him talking, you might have been there to stop him from running.”
“Hey, if you hadn’t seen him or followed him, I never would have even gotten that close. Besides, there are still a lot of unanswered questions remaining that maybe your friends can help us answer. Like why was Spencer talking to Greg, was Ronnie trying to lead me away intentionally, and why is Spencer risking coming here at all? Now to figure out how to crack the guys and get them to help.”
