If The Shoe Fits by Laurie LeClair Page A

nine in the morning, Charlie and
Dolly rushed to the display windows. A crowd of employees gathered
at the entrance, waiting for the curtains to drop and the secretive
display windows to be revealed.
    “Oh, I almost forgot to tell you the piece d’
resistance,” Dolly said, huffing the last few yards.
    “More surprises?”
    “Yep. I called Edward to fill him in. He’s
bringing Mr. R.”
    Charlie stopped in her tracks. “What?!” It
was one thing to create this story of the Charmings, but quite
another to have to come face to face with one of the “characters”
who didn’t even know he was in the darn story to begin with.
    “Righto! He’s out there now. We’ll watch from
outside, too. And with the press. They came just like you said they
would after you made the calls. Peg’s gonna pull the drape for each
one.”
    “But.” Charlie’s nerves bubbled in her
middle. “The shoes.” She pointed past Dolly. “I’ve got to—”
    “Done.”
    “Done. How?”
    “I did it just like you asked me to this
morning, don’t you remember?”
    The air rushed out of her. That was nearly
three hours and lots of work ago. “Oh.” She struggled for another
thought. “You know Peg can’t do both drapes. It would be too much
for her to rush from one to the next. I’ll do it myself.” What
better way to face her husband’s reaction than by having a thick
pane of glass between them?
    Before Dolly could stop her, Charlie made her
way around several employees as they offered well wishes. She
absently greeted them with a smile pasted on her face. The air
buzzed with excitement. Word had traveled fast. The barracuda was
out and Charlie was in charge, making sweeping changes for the
better.
    “Honey!”
    For once in her life, Charlie ignored Dolly’s
call. Time seemed to stop as she slowly made her way up the short
number of stairs. Peg, six foot and model thin, fidgeted with the
gold-tasseled cord.
    “I’ll take this one,” Charlie said.
    She frowned. “Holy Saint Nick, are you
sure?”
    One of the few people to know about the
secret romance and attended the private wedding, Peg sensed there
could be consequences. She’d said as much earlier when Charlie
filled her in on her plans.
    “You know he’s here.”
    Charlie swallowed hard. “I heard.”
    “It could get sticky.”
    “Why do you think I’d rather be here than
there?”
    Peg chuckled. “I would, too.” She winced.
“Sorry, boss, but for a guy who’s had his whole life on display, no
pun intended, he might not be too happy that it’s about to get a
whole heck of a lot more personal. And that it’s all at the hands
of his—” She stopped herself. “You know.”
    Wife . “Yes, I do know.”
    “I’m right here, honey,” Dolly said, touching
her back in comfort.
    “Just like always.” Charlie sent up a prayer
of thanks for her friend.
    A short time later, she breathed deeply once,
twice, and then a third time as she tugged on the drape cord. It
opened smoothly. Charlie blinked several times at the popping light
bulbs. Even from inside the building, she heard the oohs and
ahhs.
    Standing off to the side, she watched as
several people pointed to the scene before them. A couple, in the
trendiest clothes the store offered, dined on what appeared to be
the deck of a yacht. The scrumptious fare sat upon the best King’s
Department Store housewares. The finest linens adorned the
beautiful wood dining table.
    The dark-haired, broad-shouldered male leaned
close to the dark-haired laughing female. Above them read The
Charmings . But below the title, it had starring A King and A
Royale. A match?
    Fresh, breezy, hip, young and intriguing rang
out. A blossoming romance.
    The crowd outside seemed to part slightly.
Alex shouldered his way through. As he faced the display, he
stilled. She couldn’t read his expression.
    Trepidation filled her. How would he
react?
    As the photographers quickly grasped the
situation, they began taking picture after picture of