Page 13 of The Tycoon

Chuckling, he set his coffee mug on the table.“Nope.I’ll be ready in ten minutes, then we can go shopping.”He stood and then turned toward her.“This should be fun.I haven’t gone shopping for dresses since Mom took us all at once to shop for school clothes.Megan was always a pain.Nothing was ever right.I hope you’re not that picky.”

She stood.“Trust me, I’m not.”Regan picked up her mug and his and took them both to the kitchen.She rinsed them out and placed them in the empty dishwasher.I wonder if he has a cleaning lady or company that comes in.And how often do they come?

True to his word, Cole entered the living room ten minutes after he’d left it.“I’m driving.I don’t want to have to try and park the limo.I don’t ever use it during the day, if I can help it.”He finished tucking his t-shirt into his pants, then he zipped up and fastened his belt.“All right, let’s go.”

Regan grabbed her purse, walked out of the apartment first, and pressed the button to call the elevator.She stepped into the car, followed by Cole.

He pressed the button for the garage.

The trip was quick, considering they began on the second to the top floor.

The private garage was two floors below street level and required a pass-code to enter and leave.

Cole walked to a dark blue metallic Corvette.He unlocked it with the fob before she got there.

She looked around the garage before she opened the door and slid into the passenger seat.

At the same time, he climbed into the driver’s seat and buckled up.

Regan did likewise.

Once they were both belted in, he started the engine and backed out before leaving the garage behind.

“Where to first?”

She placed her hands on top of her handbag.“The Gown Boutique.If I can’t find something there, we’ll call Amelia and find out where else to go.”

He headed south to the store.When they arrived, he pulled into the first space he found.“Okay, let’s get this over with….”

“You don’t have to sound so enthusiastic about it.It’s your fault, you know.”She followed him to the boutique.It was in a suburb of Denver called Cherry Creek.It was built to look like a home.A large, single story building with large picture windows on either side of the north facing front door.The windows were tinted and had a bridal gown in one window and a fire-engine red gown in the other.

Cole held the door for her to enter.

She took him inside to look for a gown.The store specialized in formal wear, including tuxes for men.Regan knew Cole owned at least one tuxedo.With as many functions as he attended, he probably had an entire closet of nothing but tuxes in all colors, well, dark colors.She couldn’t see him wearing a baby blue tuxedo.The thought made her smile.

The shop girl, a blonde wearing a chic chignon, immediately walked over.“Hello, I’m Joan.What can I help you find today?”

“I’m looking for a gown, maybe several, for a couple of fundraisers coming up.”

“I’m sure we can find you the perfect gown.Come with me, please.”She started walking to the back of the store.Joan stopped by a rack of beautiful dresses.She looked Regan up and down.“You’re a size eight, right?”

“Yes, how did you know?”

“In my business, it’s mandatory to estimate a client’s size,” she turned toward Regan and lifted a brow.“…correctly.I’ll pull a few things I think would look fabulous on you.”She pulled four gowns off the rack.“Let’s get you a dressing room.”Then she looked at Cole.“I have a chair for you, so she can show off our beautiful clothing.”

Outside the dressing room door was a three-way mirror and a large pedestal for her to stand on.

Regan went into the dressing room with the four dresses.Each one was more beautiful than the last.

She tried on the black one first.The dress was plain jersey-like material that clung in all the right places.It had a slit up to the knee and a high turtleneck-like neckline, that was slit to her waist.The garment was sleeveless and came with a pair of gloves that were over the elbow.The back had a slit from her neck to the small of her back.It was a beautiful gown…and she hated it.But she dutifully walked out and showed it to Cole.

“That’s nice,” was all he would say.

She stared.He seemed to be completely bored, even though he had a glass of champagne in his hand.

Next, she tried a red gown.The material sparkled with crystals all over it.She loved the crystals.This one also fit her nicely.The gown had spaghetti straps that tied at the top of her shoulder and a low sweetheart neckline that was reinforced so her girls would be happy.She wasn’t one to go braless, since she had quite a bit on top, and she didn’t want anyone staring unless she was in a fight.Then they could stare all they wanted.She liked it when her opponent was distracted.The fight was a lot easier.

She walked out and stepped in front of the mirror.She noticed the slit on the left side went up to mid-thigh and opened when she moved.She pulled the dress up and kicked high like she was aiming for a man’s chest.The dress moved easily.