Deceived 5 - New Beginnings by Eve Carter Page B

his statement. “Strange like how? Like she’s really a man dressed up as a woman and she had a sex change operation?”
     
    He shook his head, a puzzled expression on his face. “Like weird. Just...something’s off about her. That’s all.”
     
    I yawned. “You’re weird. Nina’s my new best friend.”
     
    “ Mmm , it’s just a hunch.” He closed his eyes.
     
    “Well, you’re wrong. Nina is a very sweet person and I like spending time with her. End of story.” I gave one last definitive snuggle and closed my eyes.
     
    “You’re right. It’s probably just me.” His voice was trailing off, getting heavy with sleep. “Night, hon.”
     
    “Night,” I murmured as I drifted off. Something up with Nina? That was just silly.
     

Chapter 14
     

     
    The opening of Nina’s store had arrived at last. It was decorated with balloons and banners, but only a few, nothing gaudy. She wanted her boutique to represent elegance, and she didn’t want the opening event to be perceived as cheesy or unsophisticated. She was all about being sophisticated and her store had to reflect that also. It had been challenge to find the perfect balance between class and accessibility, but I thought the end result was perfect.
     
    “The musicians you hired are excellent,” I said to her as we listened to the talented group she’d hired.
     
    “They make for the perfect atmosphere, just like you told me. And the drawings for prizes.” Nina beamed at me. “Chloe, you’ve done a great job with this opening. If it weren’t for you, this store wouldn’t be filled with customers already. I can’t thank you enough for doing such a great job.”
     
    I was about to politely deny her accolades, once my blush died down, when I was interrupted by the editor of Glow magazine, a woman who had faded out of our conversation earlier but had now returned.
     
    She continued to talk as if there hadn’t been a twenty-minute break in the conversation. “The magazine is planning to write an article on small clothing boutiques and the economy. You know, how hard the economy has been on little specialty type boutiques. This will tie in nicely with that piece and I could feature your store in the article.” She waved her hand around, indicating the entire store, then added, “Nina, is it alright if I take a few pictures?”
     
    “Absolutely. That would be great.”
     
    Just then, I noticed Patrick stepping up to our group, looking dashing as always. He placed his hand on my upper arm and said, “Excuse me.” He gave the other women a charming smile. “Chloe, I need to talk to you for a second.”
     
    Immediately, concern flooded me. “Is something wrong?” I asked as I followed him to the side of the room.
     
    Patrick faced me with a sheepish smile on his face. He leaned closer so that he could pitch his voice low enough that no one else could hear. “No, I just couldn’t get last night out of my mind.” He tucked a wayward strand of hair behind my ear. “I hope we can have a repeat performance again tonight.” He brushed his lips across mine, then whispered, “What do you say?”
     
    Everything else faded into the background as I smiled up at him. “As long as you can handle it, stud.”
     
    Suddenly, Nina interrupted, her tone teasing, “Hey, get a room. I hope I’m not paying you two by the hour.”
     
    We all laughed as I pulled my attention back to my reason for being there. I was in the middle of Nina’s store opening and I needed to maintain a professional demeanor, no matter how badly I wanted to do all sorts of naughty things to my husband’s body.
     
    Patrick gave another one of his charming smiles. “Don’t worry, we’ll deduct these five minutes from our hours when we submit our invoice.” His eyes swept around the layout of the store and he smoothly transitioned the conversation. “I love what you’ve done with this place and you seem to have lots of industry people here besides customers.