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The room itself was clean and completely lacking personal touch, but then again, did Sumner really have time to decorate, what with playing cater waiter/secretary/babysitter?
Not that I had room to talk. The most I’d decorated is my closet.
Though his one point of decoration was a suitcase open on his glass coffee table. “She sent this today?” I asked as I stepped closer to it.
“Yesterday.”
The suitcase was more of a carry-on size, but it was indeed filled with rolled neckties. They were all Gilfman, judging by the faint motif most of them sported in the fabric. Some were a flatcolor, some were silk, and there was even one from their limited watercolor-inspired collection they did a few years ago.
“My mother is responsible for dressing you?” I asked, trying to hide my interest among the neckties.
“To a point. When she hired me, she told me I’d need at least one suit for situations like this, but left me to pick it out on my own.”
It seemed like quite the present, luggage full of name brand neckties. Their cheaper ones could easily go for a hundred dollars a pop, and for her to gift at least twenty of them to a staff member was beyond strange. My suspicion of it all prickled once more.
“And you got a suit tailored without me?” I picked up a burgundy silk tie with a paisley motif that was only a shade or two lighter than the fabric itself. I admired its sheen in the hotel room light, lifting to examine it against Sumner’s suit. “Me, the suit queen?”
“Because I thought about this moment.” When I looked past the necktie to Sumner’s eyes, I found them shimmering just as delicately as the fabric. “I wanted to surprise you.”
I leaned forward and reached the silk tie around his neck, thinking about which I would’ve preferred. As fun as it might’ve been to see Sumner try on different fabrics and silhouettes, I preferred this moment, too. “I’m probably the only person who would be pleasantly surprised by a suit.”
Sumner held perfectly still. “You’re the only person I’d want to surprise with one.”
My hold on the tie fumbled.
Sumner looked down at me as my fingers knotted histie, though my actions were slow. Something about the way the silk fabric glided in my fingertips seemed delicate… intimate. Maybe it was how closely I stood to him; close enough to smell the aftershave that seeped from his warm skin. I held the front of his tie loosely between my fingers, passing the wide end through the knot I created. My pulse stirred as I tightened the knot, easing it up toward the collar of his shirt and adjusting the length. I smoothed the dark tie flat down the front of his shirt, trying to ignore the firmness of his chest beneath the fabric.
I swallowed, hoping it was only obvious to me.
Nancy would laugh. Of course, tying a necktie was a turn on.
“Lovely,” I said as I folded the collar of his shirt down, making sure it was symmetrical. My knuckles brushed his throat. “Don’t let anyone whisk you away tonight—and trust me, with how expensive you look, someone will try. More than likely, Ms. Jennings. You belong to me.”
Sumner drew in a quiet breath. “Yes, ma’am.”
Wouldn’t it be a dream?I found myself thinking as my hands lingered on his collar. I pictured laying them flat on his shoulders, to feel their curve that was hidden beneath the thin material of his dress shirt. I pictured my hands moving from his shoulders to underneath his suit jacket. I pictured taking that half step closer.Wouldn’t just be lovely like champagne?
If he was Aaron Astor?
It was a thought I hadn’t been able to rid myself of, even as I tried. The possibility of it, while outlandish, was too sweet. It was a dream I let myself envision, onlybriefly. If Sumner was Aaron, it would mean that he came here intentionally to get to know me. He asked my parents to get close to me, learned information about me, tried to sway me toward him. On one hand, it should’ve felt like a betrayal, sneaking close under the disguise of someone else.
But, in that dream, I didn’t feel betrayed at all. If Sumner was Aaron… I wouldn’t have been hurt. I would’ve beenrelieved.
I dropped my hands, stepping back.
Sumner offered his arm to me. “Shall we?”
It was a fairytale moment, a princess in a beautiful gown entering a social event on the arm of a prince. I felt like an imposter, wearing the white dress, thinking the thoughts I was, but I allowed myself to think them anyway. For tonight, just this once, and I would take it to my grave, but I’d let myself feel like a princess with Prince Charming.
Curving my hand on the inside of his jacket sleeve, I held on, trying to ignore the flutter that tickled my chest once more. “We shall.”
You can do this,I told myself as we stepped into the hallway and headed for the elevator doors. My footsteps in my sandals only clacked a little, like little ticks of a clock.You can do this. You never care what anyone else thinks of you.
My stomach dipped as the elevator doors slipped shut, a shiver working its way across my skin. Without thinking, I reached out and took ahold of Sumner’s hand, which hung at his side, pressing my palm against his and wrapping my fingerstight.
Sumner lifted his chin ever so slightly, but didn’t look down at me. Instead, he just returned the grip.Comfort. “What is this event for again?” Sumner asked as the elevator descended. Our reflections were thrown around the space, all glitz and glamour.
It was hard to keep my eyes off his figure, but I forced myself to look at my own. “I don’t remember.” I wasn’t even sure my mother even told me. “It was last minute. It wasn’t on the social calendar at the beginning of the month, I didn’t think.” Which was strange, given the fact that Annalise’s wedding was next weekend. I would’ve thought they’d keep from booking anything last minute.