Return to You

"Um, your mother must be so proud of you."
    She regretted the question as she watched
Olivia's smile fade.
    "My mother died when I was five, but I'm
sure she would have been proud," Everett's daughter said,
subdued.
    "I'm sorry to hear about your mother."
    "It was a long time ago. This is the first
time you've shopped at Romantic Notions. How did you hear about
us?"
    "I overheard my boss mention your
store."
    "Does your boss shop here?"
    "Well... No." She winced. "To be honest, I
work for Parker Pictures. I'm Everett Parker's assistant."
    Olivia's lips thinned and her warm eyes went
stone cold. "Did he send you here to check out the store?"
    " No . No, of course not." She'd
suspected things weren't right between Everett and his daughter,
but not this bad. "It was all me. I was curious. I'll be staying at
your house for the next few weeks and I didn't know what you'd
think, and—"
    Olivia interrupted her. "It's okay."
    "Is it?"
    "Yes." Holding out her hand, she said, "I'm
Olivia."
    She shook Olivia's hand. "Lainie Adams." She
blinked in surprise. She'd never introduced herself as Lainie
before. She only called herself that in private.
    Olivia handed her a fancy little bag. "I
hope you enjoy this."
    "Thank you." Lainie smiled and turned to
leave.
    Olivia stopped her. "Wait a minute."
    Puzzled, Lainie watched Olivia stride to a
table. It looked like she was searching for something. With a faint
"Ah ha" the young woman came back, a gray scrap of cloth in her
hand.
    "For you." Olivia held up matching panties
and stuffed them in the goodie bag.
    "Oh, but I couldn't—"
    "Please. I want to."
    Lainie stared at the bag in her hand. When
was the last time she'd been given a gift just because? Never.
    Confused, she muttered "thank you," and
left.
    Still dwelling on Everett's daughter, she
didn't realize the time until she got back to her car. She was late
for a meeting with Everett and Michael.
    Pushing aside thoughts of Olivia, she
focused on navigating the unfamiliar streets. Meetings between
Parker and Michael never went smoothly. They were both too used to
getting their own way.
    There was no sign of Michael's car when she
arrived at Pembroke Farms. Sighing in relief, she hurried into the
house. She'd have a chance to compose herself before the
meeting.
    She opened the front door. It was apparently
never locked, which was strange to her, having lived in Los Angeles
all her life.
    "You're late."
    The bland pronouncement stopped her in her
tracks. She turned around and saw Everett leaning in the doorway to
the living room.
    He wasn't very tall, maybe six feet, but he
had a powerful body, lean and muscular, and the custom-made suits
he wore were tailored to fit perfectly.
    She wanted to curse the blush she felt
climbing up her chest to her face. She licked her lips. "I had to
go into San Francisco."
    His gaze rested on the tiny burgundy bag
dangling from her fingers. "You went to Romantic Notions?"
    "Yes." She swallowed, wondering how he was
going to react.
    He stared at the bag like he was trying to
see through it to the contents inside. She wouldn't have been
surprised if he had X-ray vision.
    Lainie straightened her spine and slipped
into the cool, efficient persona she adopted for work. "The store
is absolutely lovely. Your daughter is the owner, isn't she? She's
wonderful and, from all appearances, quite successful. You must be
proud of her. Now, if you'll excuse me." Without giving him a
chance to say a word, she turned on her heels and headed up the
staircase to her room.
    Once she was safely inside, she set the bag
on her dresser and took a deep breath, fanning herself. It was
becoming more and more difficult maintaining her cool façade in
front of him.
    It was quite embarrassing actually. She was
a forty-seven year old woman, not a naïve girl with a crush.
    Calling this a crush was like calling a
tsunami a ripple. She'd never felt this way for anyone before. She
wasn't sure how it'd happened. If she had to pinpoint a defining
moment, it might have been between the second and third year she
worked for him, the day she found the pictures hidden in his
desk.
    She hadn't been sure who they were, but the
fact that they were there, in an office otherwise devoid of
personal effects, showed how much they meant to him. It also showed
the loneliness he hid beneath his powerful exterior.
    The same loneliness she hid inside.
    Lainie smoothed her hair back into the
twist. Whatever inspired it, she was deeply and irrevocably in