Page 52 of Suddenly Mine
Merry wiped the tears away, then turned to the curtain. Patricia pulled it to one side, and Christian’s eyes widened as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He stood up slowly and walked to her.
“It looks like it was made for you,” he said.
“It’s amazing,” Merry said.
He touched her arms gently, meeting her eyes. “You’re amazing. This is all you. The dress is just the ribbon on the most perfect present I have ever seen.”
“I can’t take it,” said Merry. “Can I? I mean, it must cost so much money. Shouldn’t we check? I’m talking too much, I can’t stop. It’s just all so incredible. But I can’t keep it. Can I?”
Christian laughed, opening his arms so that she could step into them. She rested her head against his chest, hearing that wonderful, reassuring thump of his heart, and he wrapped his arms around her.
“If she doesn’t keep it, it’ll be a tragedy,”said a smooth voice from behind her.
Merry jumped slightly as Devlin Storm stepped out of the elevator, looking every inch the hot fashion-world aristocrat. He strolled towards them with the easy confidence of a man who owned the room — which, technically, he did. Merry felt like melting into the floor in a puddle of embarrassment at him seeing her in this incredible dress. Then she slowly realised what he had just said.
“Mr Storm, sir.” She wasn’t sure whether to curtsy or not, so she just bobbed a little on the spot.
“Devlin, please,” he said with a grin, gesturing towards the dress. “And I’ve seen a lot of people in Storm gowns, but you here are a moment. If you don’t take this one I will be personally offended. Don’t forget to get the shoes and bag to match.”
Then he turned to Christian and extended a hand. “Nice to see you again, sir.”
Christian shook it, smiling and Devlin winked.
“Thanks for dragging me off that mountainside and, more importantly, for finding my dress its perfect owner. She wears it better than I ever imagined.” He turned his attention back to Merry. “Man’s a hero. Just don’t let it go to his head. Must be off, places to be, people to piss off.” And he vanished out of a side door in a waft of Chanel.
Merry stood frozen for a second. Then she squealed.
“Holy shit, I just met Devlin Storm!”she whisper-shouted, grabbing Christian’s arms as if she might actually float away without something to hold on to. “He spoke to me! He called metheperfect owner! And he said I was amoment. Christian, I’m a moment!”
Christian chuckled. “You’re more than a moment. You’re an entire era.”
Merry clutched her chest. “Okay, I need to take this off right now before I sweat through it and get banned from ever stepping foot in a Storm store again. This is not a dress you hyperventilate in. This is a dress you glide in gracefully. Without pit stains.”
“I’ll box it up for you,” said Patricia, steering Merry back into the dressing room. Her head was buzzing as she undressed, and when she put her Carroll’s dress back on it felt horribly tight and course. She wondered if this was what her life would feel like when Christian had gone, if it would turn back from something wonderful to something mundane and unbearable.
Just enjoy it, she told herself, and with a decisive nod she resolved to do exactly that. Slipping her shoes back on, she walked out of the booth for the final time to find Christian waiting there for her.
“You still look amazing,” he said, and she laughed.
“Yeah, the Carroll’s uniform really brings out the colour of my eyes.” She ran a hand through her hair, watching Patricia box up the dress with a matching bag and a pair of shoes. “Are you really sure this is okay? I mean, I know you’re not paying, but it was your favour. You could have used it for something important.”
“I did,” he said. “I used it for maybe the most important thing in my life. This was an emergency, remember? I want to go to that darn ball.”
Patricia walked over with a bag, handing it to Merry.
Merry hesitated for a moment, then took it. “I can’t thank you enough,” she said. “I know you didn’t have to show me this dress. I’m so happy you did.”
“It’s a perfect match,” said Patricia. She looked at Christian, then at Merry, smiling.
Merry glanced at Christian, blown away again by how handsome he was even when he’d been standing next to a real-life rich person. Never in a million years did she think she’d ever find herself on a date with a man like him, but then she never expected to be in a Devlin Storm shop holding a dress that had been designed for a movie star.
“Thank you, Christian,” she said as the door closed behind them. She hugged the bag to her chest to shield it from the rain. “That was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me. Again. You’re good at making a girl feel special.”
“It wasn’t me,” he said. “Thank Devlin. I’m just glad I could help. I can’t wait to see you in it tomorrow.”
“I hardly dare wear it,” she said, and Christian laughed.
“Er, that was the whole point of this trip,” he said. “Now you have to come to the ball with me. A taxi tonight, I insist. I’ve got to head back to work and you can’t take the subway alone with a dress like that. You’d be asking for trouble.”