Czytaj książkę: «Enticing Winter»

Chapter 1

Three months later

“Angelique, you seriously cannot be doing this to me right now!”

Winter Dupree clutched her smartphone, trying to refrain from throwing it against the wall. “There are thirty women waiting to see you strut your stuff across the hardwood floor in less than an hour.”

“I know, Winter, and I’m so sorry,” Angelique replied.

“Whoosah.” Winter took a deep breath as she stepped deeper into the dimly lit walk-in closet. “Now’s the time when you tell me this is just a joke and men dressed in funny costumes are going to throw confetti and yell ‘Surprise!’”

She briefly noticed that all the coats and jackets in the closet coordinated with a pair of shoes that were placed right beneath them. Seriously? Who the heck does that?

It was bad enough she was hiding in a closet when she was supposed to be hosting a bachelorette party, but now she was also snooping in the closet of a man she’d rather forget existed.

“Our flight takes off in less than ten minutes, so this is definitely not a joke.”

“I think your boyfriend surprising you with a trip to Paris is amazing, since his timing is perfect,” she said sarcastically. “How about I just tell the client that my top model was swept away on a romantic getaway, so we will show our backless embellished lace babydoll paired with a pearl lace thong on a dull mannequin instead.”

“Oh, Winter, that would be awesome. I was worried—”

“I was not being serious,” Winter said, cutting off the rest of Angelique’s sentence. “I’d rather have a root canal than tell a client we can’t deliver on what we promised. I’ll have to figure something else out.”

“Why don’t you have another model wear that piece?”

Winter quirked one eyebrow and blinked several times. “I’ll pretend like you didn’t just say that my customized piece that was made to fit your measurements exactly could be worn by another model. Those chic black pieces are the signature look for our European-inspired lingerie collection and you are the only model who can pull off the look.”

“I’ll make it up to you when I get back to Chicago,” Angelique said, rushing Winter off the phone. “It’s the last boarding call. Talk to you soon!”

Winter dropped her head to the floor as she listened to the silence on the other end of the call. “Ugh! Must be nice to get whisked away on a trip to Paris.” She knew she sounded bitter, but at the moment, she didn’t care. Angelique was one of her best models. Also the first model who had signed up when word spread through the Chicago fashion industry that Bare Sophistication had decided to throw masquerade lingerie events to promote signature pieces from their store. Winter had been in business with her sisters for over two years now and she was really excited about the direction Bare Sophistication was taking.

She and her sisters had immediately developed a great business model. Winter handled all the visual merchandising and design for the lingerie store. Autumn managed the business and sales, while Summer handled all public relations and advertising despite the fact that she was currently residing in Miami. Their newly appointed manager, Danni Allison, assisted in the daily operations and staff management.

Last month Winter had decided that it was time to bring their boutique to another level. She’d come up with the idea of throwing upscale masquerade lingerie events that offered customized pieces that weren’t available in-store and therefore only available if purchased at an elaborate masquerade lingerie party. In addition, they also offered sexy European-inspired nightwear and robes to complement the lingerie.

With the help of her friends at Elite Events Incorporated, Winter had been able to gather a list of Chicago’s most influential women. She’d then sent the group of women a special invitation so that those interested could schedule an informational one-on-one meeting to learn more about hosting a Bare Sophistication masquerade lingerie event. Within a week, she had ten events lined up.

“Winter, are you in there?”

Winter cracked the door open and pulled Danni inside the closet. “Angelique can’t make the lingerie fashion show tonight.”

Danni’s eyes grew big with panic, mirroring exactly how Winter felt. Tonight was their first event and Winter’s first client, Kaya Reed, was extremely excited to have Bare Sophistication host a lingerie party for her best friend’s bachelorette party. Despite the fact that Winter had an adamant dislike for Kaya’s older brother Taheim Reed, she had eagerly agreed to help Kaya, who happened to be a sweetheart, throw a party her friend would never forget.

Unfortunately, that included a top-notch lingerie fashion show that ended with the signature piece Kaya was convinced her bestie would appreciate as a bachelorette gift. Which was why it was imperative that she have a model actually try on the best piece in the collection.

“There’s absolutely no way she can make it here in time?” Danni asked.

“Nope, her boyfriend surprised her with a trip to Paris.”

“Aww, how romantic. I wonder if he’ll propose on the trip. I bet Angelique is hoping he proposes. If you had seen the two of them in the store the other day when he picked her up for lunch... They were so cute...”

“Danni,” Winter said as she waved a hand in front of her to cut her off. Winter hated being rude, but she had little time to put together a backup plan now that Angelique was a no-show. “Sorry to cut you off, but we need to focus. Can we switch out any of the models to have them try on the special piece?”

Danni quirked her mouth to the side in thought. “I’m sure we can, but we also chose Angelique because she was similar in size and build to the bride-to-be. That way the bride would have a visual of how she would look before Kaya surprised her with the customized set we made for her.”

“I understand, but we may have to make do with another model.” Even as the words left her mouth, Winter found it hard to believe them. Oftentimes her sisters teased her about being a go-with-the-flow type of woman. But when she wanted things to go a certain way and plans didn’t work out, she could never hide her disappointment.

“You know there’s another solution to this problem,” Danni said.

“I’m all ears.”

Danni averted her eyes as if trying to find the right words. “There’s only one woman who is similar to Angelique.” Hopeful eyes met Winter’s.

“I know you’re not suggesting what I think you’re suggesting.”

“Oh, come on, Winter.” Danni tugged on her arm. “You’d look amazing in the piece and you definitely have the shape for it.”

“You have got to be kidding me.” Winter knew that there would come a time when one of her models would flake on her. But there was absolutely no way she was modeling the lingerie herself.

“I have an image to uphold and modeling in little to nothing isn’t exactly the visual I want to leave for the women in that room.”

“Angelique was going to wear a masquerade mask anyway that covered half her face. Even if some of the ladies know it’s you, they won’t say anything. Plus, half of them are tipsy anyway.”

Of course, Winter knew all about the mask since she was the one who’d decided on the look for Angelique. But that wasn’t the point.

“Danni, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Do you have a better one?” When Winter remained silent, Danni continued. “Okay, then. Let’s get out of this closet and get you ready. The other models are preparing in the bathrooms and spare room on this level, but Kaya said we could use the bedroom upstairs if we need more room.”

Reluctantly, Winter let Danni drag her down the hall. She passed a few ladies who spoke about what a great time they were having so far. The minute they walked into the bedroom in the corner of the second level, Winter knew it was Taheim’s.

“Is there another room we can use?”

Danni squinted her eyes in confusion. “Don’t be silly—this is fine. I have to make sure the ladies are ready since you’ll now be in the show instead of running the show.” She ushered Winter into the room before turning quickly on her heels. “I’ll grab your lingerie outfit and I’ll be right back so you can change. Don’t worry—you’ll be great.”

She didn’t have a chance to respond before Danni was out the door, leaving her alone in the last place she wanted to be. Large black-and-gray contemporary furniture filled the confines of the spacious bedroom, which was equipped with a water wall and sunken living space.

Of course Mr. Too-Arrogant-for-His-Own-Good has a bedroom to die for. She wouldn’t put it past him to have a walk-in closet bigger than her bedroom either. The closet she’d been hiding in earlier was already half the size of her bedroom. As if her feet had a mind of their own, they carried her in the direction of the closet, which began to slide open the minute she stepped in front of it.

“Well, I’ll be damned,” she said aloud as her hand grazed over the first row of clothing hanging on the lower pole. Just as she’d predicted, his closet was bigger than her entire bedroom. Whenever she thought about Taheim Reed, all that came to mind was complete and utter frustration. The man was a walking nuisance and even though she seemed to be the only woman in Chicago not falling for the playboy, it didn’t ease her irritation.

The first time she’d heard about Taheim, she’d been attending an annual networking event thrown by Elite Events Incorporated. While she’d met the Elite Event ladies through her cousins Micah and Malik Madden, that day she’d really bonded with them and had been surprised when they mentioned that they had a friend she would be perfect for.

Winter would rather have had a full-body wax than go on a blind date, but with a little coaxing, she’d agreed to the setup. Fortunately, since she’d been busy getting her company off the ground and Taheim had been promoting his clothing line, they hadn’t immediately gotten a chance to go on that date. She’d thought she’d dodged a bullet until her new friends suggested they go out before the first practice for the Elite Events Charity Date Auction, which both she and Taheim were a part of. If she’d known then what she knew now, she would have told them there was no way in hell she was going on a date with Taheim Reed.

Winter left the walk-in closet—which conveniently closed right after she’d exited—and ran her hand across a couple cologne bottles sitting on the top of his dresser. She then moved her hands over his watches. She tilted her head to the side and admired the black watch box, which seemed big enough to hold more than fifty watches. When her eyes landed on the watch he’d been wearing when they’d gone out, her stomach stirred with awareness and something she refused to acknowledge. She thought back to the moment he’d entered the restaurant wearing a business suit, clearly having just come from a meeting. Even though he had been almost an hour late and she’d been ready to leave, she had called her sister Autumn, who’d convinced her to stay.

She’d been caught off guard by his good looks. She’d seen pictures of him, but those photos hadn’t done the milk-chocolate Adonis justice.

“Here’s the outfit,” Danni said, causing Winter to jump, as if Danni could see the direction her naughty mind was going. “If you head down in about fifteen to twenty minutes, that should be fine.”

“Okay,” Winter mumbled as Danni closed the door behind her. She glanced at the black lace material lying on the bed and the stylish black-and-white masquerade mask that would complete her overall look. She hadn’t really modeled since she was in college, but desperate times called for desperate measures. There was no doubt in her mind that the group of women downstairs were ready to purchase one-of-a-kind Bare Sophistication pieces.

* * *

“I can’t believe I forgot the spare key,” Taheim Reed whispered to himself as he tiptoed through the door of his condo and quickly made his way to the flight of stairs leading to the second floor.

When his sister, Kaya, had asked if she could use his condo for her best friend’s bachelorette party, Taheim had immediately agreed. Kaya was his heart and there was nothing that he—or his older brother, Ajay—wouldn’t do for her, even if that meant having a bunch of tipsy women in his place. So he’d packed an overnight bag and headed to his friend Jaleen’s condo so that Kaya could have the freedom to do as she pleased. But forgetting the spare key to his friend’s place wasn’t part of the plan. Especially since Jaleen was out of town. Now he was sneaking into his own home, attempting to go unseen by his sister or any of the other women in attendance.

When he hit the top of the stairs, he briefly looked over the banister to see if his eyes were playing tricks on him. What the hell is going on? he thought as he observed several women strutting around his place in lingerie. He expected to see half-naked women at a bachelor party, but a bachelorette party? It didn’t make sense. When he caught a glimpse of Kaya talking to another attractive woman in lace lingerie, he figured it was best if he got the key and exited as quickly as possible.