Falling for Autumn, page 5
“With the two of them, we should have known they would do the unexpected. Hey,” Jaleen said, snapping his fingers. “What about calling the party something like Winter and Taheim Unveiled? And the tagline could be... ‘A grand masquerade affair. Expect the unexpected.’ Then we could follow with the date, time, and at the bottom of the invite, we could list the three Bs—bridal party, bachelorette party, bachelor party.”
“That’s a great idea.” Autumn quickly jotted it down in her notebook.
“Yeah, I’m surprised you came up with that,” Danni said sarcastically. Jaleen turned up an eyebrow.
“I’m one of the owners of a marketing and advertising firm. It’s kind of what I do.”
“When you’re not chasing women, right?”
“Anyway,” Jaleen said, ignoring Danni’s last comment, “when the ladies of Elite Events planned a charity date auction last year, they didn’t disclose the location until it was close to the event. It was really secretive and the PR was great. We may not want to do the same thing since this is wedding related, but it’s something to think about to add mystery.”
“That’s a good idea, too. Since our dad will only be able to make the wedding, he insisted on paying for a large portion of this event. With the budget we already have, we’re in great shape. Since we have a healthy budget, what about choosing a venue that’s classic, yet mysterious, since we’re going with the masquerade theme?”
“I like that,” Ajay said with Jaleen and Danni nodding their heads in agreement. “I actually have a friend who owns several rustic, yet glamorous, locations, and one is about an hour or so outside the city. I could reach out to him to see if they have any availability. What date are we shooting for?”
“Well, the wedding is less than seven weeks away, so what about having the event in four weeks? Most of the people we are inviting know that we were shooting to plan something at the end of September anyway. So that would give us two and a half weeks before we leave for Bora Bora and three weeks before the wedding.”
“What does the venue look like that you’re calling your friend about?” Danni asked.
“I actually have photos of it in my car,” Jaleen responded, although the question was directed at Ajay. Autumn and Danni shared a curious look.
Jaleen took note of the confused look on their faces. “You both know I also work for my family’s business, right?”
“What does your family do?” Danni asked.
“They flip real estate, and my specialty is flipping boutique resorts. So far, I’ve successfully flipped about thirty properties and increased their business at least thirty-five percent. Ajay introduced me to the owner of the Woodland Creek Estate, who, in my opinion, has the best apple orchards in Illinois.”
“I’m impressed,” Autumn said. Just when she thought she had someone figured out, the person would surprise her. As if they had a mind of their own, her eyes drifted to Ajay’s, who was luckily talking to Danni as Jaleen left for his car.
He returned with two portfolios. He flipped through one of the portfolios and gave them the other to look through. “The estate is a little over one hundred acres and the main pavilion can hold up to three hundred people and is nestled in a wooded area.”
“It definitely has the feel we’re looking for,” Ajay said, typing something in his phone. “And I’m emailing my friend now to see if the venue is free the last Saturday in September. Might be tough with it being so close to the date, but he will have other suggestions if it is in fact booked for that day.”
“Jaleen, I must agree with Autumn,” Danni said, looking up from the portfolio. “This is really impressive.” Instead of his normal one-liner or flirtatious comment, he offered her a genuine smile.
“Okay, so the next thing on our agenda will be discussing how we will split the night so that some of the focus is on Winter. Some on Taheim. And then, of course, combined attention on them as a couple,” Autumn explained.
“Autumn and I have already been discussing what we want to do for Winter,” Danni said. “We will find a way to split the room into sections. I think we all agree that this needs to be sexy, and Winter and Taheim are both designers. Let’s showcase some of their nightwear designs by having models on display. Most of them are multitalented anyway, so we already have a couple dancers, gymnasts and entertainers.”
“Um, exactly what type of party are we talking about?” Ajay asked as he and Jaleen shared a laugh. “Because if we’re talking about inviting two hundred people and having models walk around in lingerie while dancing and whatnot, this sounds more like a strip club than a celebration.”
“Not that we’re complaining,” Jaleen added.
Autumn shook her head at the men. “It will all be tasteful. We do masquerade events all the time, so this is a piece of cake for us. And since it is their bachelor and bachelorette party as well, the audience will expect it to be sexy. Bare Sophistication is known for bringing the sexy, so we can’t disappoint. It will be classic elegance, just like my sister wants.”
“Not to mention, Winter and Taheim are all about making money,” Danni added. “We have to have some type of entertainment, and having clothing from their nightwear line displayed will be amazing. Like Autumn said, topping it off with masquerade masks will be a piece of cake. We got this, boys. Y’all just worry about your portion of the event.”
“Oh, we’re good on that. But listening to everything come together is making me think about the attire for this event. We’re describing the theme in the invite, but should we explain further?”
Autumn contemplated Jaleen’s words as she sent both Winter and Taheim a quick text. “Since the theme was their idea and isn’t a surprise, I’m texting them to see if they want to specify attire for the guests.”
Within seconds, Winter responded followed by an agreement from Taheim. When she read the words, her mouth dropped before she could catch it.
“What is it?” Danni asked.
“They chose the attire...” She texted them if they were sure and they both confirmed again. “Jaleen, you were right in saying we should expect the unexpected. Looks like our models won’t be the only ones wearing lingerie and nightwear at this event.”
“You’re kidding me, right?” Danni asked as she took the phone out of Autumn’s hand.
“I wish,” she said. “They do want us to have a dress code for attendees and they want us to specify that tasteful nightwear is an option because it goes with the theme. I’m assuming we’d have to set rules, of course.”
“Then, what’s the big deal if it’s optional?” Jaleen asked. She hadn’t looked at Ajay since reading the message.
“The bridal party doesn’t get a choice,” she said, finally looking at Ajay. “Apparently Winter and Taheim are working on matching designs for the bridal party to wear at the event. Signature Bare Sophistication lingerie and pieces from Taheim’s T. R. Night collection.” Just as she’d suspected, his lips curled to the side in a smile.
“Men are so predictable,” Danni said upon noticing the guys’ faces. How in the world am I going to get out of this? A fully dressed Ajay was hard enough to avoid. But Ajay wearing sexy nightwear? She might as well just hose herself down now because her body was already on fire just from the thought.
Chapter 5
“Thanks for an awesome class.”
Autumn glanced over at the woman who had spoken. “You’re very welcome. See you next month.”
A few months ago, Autumn had decided to offer free classes to women that explained the many different types of lingerie and how one would choose the best piece for her body type. Every month they focused on a different topic and even took suggestions from the women. She had a solid twenty women who came every month, so she was really excited with the feedback.
The only problem was that they couldn’t give the class until after hours when most women could make it. Usually, Danni or Winter worked the store and counter while Autumn conducted the class in one of their back rooms. But tonight, Danni had gone on a date and Winter had plans with Taheim. So she’d been left to lock up and see all the women out.
As the last woman filed out of the store, she secured the door and started turning off all the back lights. It was only 7:30 p.m., but it had already gotten rather dark outside. When she made it back to the front of the store, she began cutting off the front lights. There were still a few stores around that were open, but Autumn didn’t like leaving this late alone.
“I should have made someone from the staff stay longer,” she said to herself as she gathered her bags and went to lock up the front door. As she got closer to the door, she felt a chill on the back of her neck, as if someone had lightly grazed her.
She quickly turned around and stared into the darkness. There was nothing there but racks of lingerie. She looked at the dim emergency light that was at the back door. The blue color illuminated only part of the hallway. She felt another chill brush her arm.
“Please don’t do this,” she said to the empty room. It had been years since she’d felt this unsettled, and the feeling was all too familiar.
“It’s just in your mind,” she told herself. “You control your fears.” Even as the words left her mouth, she felt another chill down her spine, causing her to slightly cringe at the unwelcome feeling. She supposed people never forgot their fears. You could suppress them. Pretend they didn’t exist. Act as if you aren’t really afraid. But did people actually eliminate their fears altogether?
Acting quickly, she locked the front door and began walking to her house. On instinct, she continued to look over her shoulder despite the fact that no one was following her. No one ever was. As much as she tried to tell herself that, looking over her shoulder helped her feel safe.
When she neared her block, the only noise she heard on the sidewalk was her heels clicking against the pavement. It briefly crossed her mind that this was exactly how women got abducted in horror flicks. Walking alone at night on a deserted street.
I really should have driven my car today. When she noticed her house a few feet away, she breathed out a sigh of relief and took her keys out of her bag. She felt another chill ricochet through her body as she tried to put her key in the lock.
She went to turn the key just as a loud noise pierced through the silent street, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin. Digging around for her phone, she answered the call without even checking to see who it was.
“Hello.”
“Are you okay?” Danni asked. “You sound aggravated.”
“I’m fine. Aren’t you on a date?”
“The date was a bust, but I’m not ready to call it a night yet. Do you want to get a glass of wine with me?”
“Sure,” she replied, not needing to give it another thought. “Where do you want to meet?”
“I’m in my car so I will pick you up. Are you home?”
“Yes, I’ll be waiting in my foyer, so call me when you’re here.”
As she disconnected the call, she breathed out another sigh of relief. She really didn’t want to be alone tonight.
Ten minutes later, Danni picked her up and they went to a nearby wine bar. Since one of the guys who worked there had a huge crush on Danni, they often got prime seating.
“When are you going to go out with him?”
“He’s so not my type,” Danni said after taking a sip of her wine.
“I know. But he’s always so sweet to you.” She took a sip of her red wine and relished the bitter, yet sweet, taste. “Last year, two sociologists at the University of Michigan did a study on short men versus tall men, and results showed that divorce rates were thirty-two percent lower for short men.”
“And you’re telling me this because...”
“If you haven’t gone on a date with him because of his height, I figured you should know. Shorter men also do two more hours of housework per week than men of average or tall height.”
“A whole two hours more? I guess I should jump on that, then,” Danni said sarcastically.
“Just saying.”
“Oh, no, look what you did.” Autumn followed the direction of Danni’s head nod. “Now he’s coming over.”
True enough, the bartender stopped by their table and asked Danni if he could bring her to the wine cellar to show her their newest inventory. He always took forever to get to his point, and she knew the only reason Danni hesitated on coming to this particular wine bar was because the guy would talk her ear off.
After a little convincing from Autumn, she eventually went, leaving Autumn alone to reflect on her thoughts. However, tonight her thoughts were conflicted. She lightly outlined the rim of her wineglass with her index finger as she stared out the front window at a couple sitting outside. She watched the woman laugh at something the man had said and place her arm playfully on his. A simple gesture that held so much meaning to someone who hadn’t had a moment like that in so long. If ever...
“Is this seat taken?” At the sound of the voice, she slowly lifted her head. She had just seen him three days ago, but her heartbeat quickened just as it did every time she saw him.
“Danni won’t be back for a little while, so you can sit down.”
Ajay didn’t sit down right away, giving her an opportunity to observe him. He had on a blue V-neck three-quarter-sleeve shirt that clung to his broad shoulders, and dark jeans that hung on his waist perfectly. Once again, she could see tattoos peeking from underneath his shirt and wished that she could get a better look. Finally, he took a seat in front of her.
“What brings you to this wine bar?” she asked. “I figured working in nightclubs and bars, you’d be tired of anything dealing with wine and spirits.”
He chuckled. “You would think so. But one of the bars I own is right down the street and I decided to take a walk tonight instead of heading straight to my car. I saw you through the window.”
He smelled divine. She couldn’t quite place the cologne he was wearing, but goodness, it was doing wicked things to her body.
“What were you thinking about before I interrupted your thoughts?”
She studied his eyes. “Were you watching me for a while before you spoke?”
“Yes.” He didn’t smirk or smile when he said it. His answer was direct. It made her heart skip a beat.
“I was looking at that couple out there.” She gazed in the direction of the couple. “They don’t seem to have a care in the world.”
He followed the direction of her eyes before turning back to face her. “You’re right, they seem to be having a good time.”
“They are.” She studied the behavior of the man. “Look at how his hand gently rubs her arm, but his eyes stay focused on hers.”
Ajay scooted his chair to the same side as Autumn so that they were sitting side by side. Although she assumed it was so that he wouldn’t have to keep turning around, it also made her senses more aware of the short distance between them. He was close. Almost too close for comfort.
“Why is the fact that he’s looking in her eyes so important?”
“It’s not the way he’s looking into her eyes, it’s that he genuinely seems interested in what she has to say. Since he cares so much about her, he cares about her perception of things. Her point of view. She’s wearing a low-cut shirt. Her breasts look perfect in whatever bra she’s wearing. And she’s touching him as well, so you know her touch is sending alerts to the lower part of his body. He notices her shirt. I’m sure he notices her physical attributes. He can feel her touch and he’s responding to it. But his eyes...his eyes only see her. A true sign that he’s in love.”
She wasn’t sure what had gotten into her, but she couldn’t stop staring at the couple.
“Is the girl in love, too?”
Autumn smirked. “She is. For him, you can see it in his eyes, but for her it’s in the way she reacts to him. The way she’s finding any excuse to lightly touch him. The way she’s clearly excited to talk to him about whatever happened during her day. More important, you can see it in her smile.” She glanced at Ajay before turning back to the couple. “Her smile is that of a woman in love. A woman can fake a laugh. Fake a cry. Even fake an orgasm. But a smile... A woman can’t fake a smile. You can tell when a smile is forced. When it doesn’t hold the happiness it should.”
Ajay appeared to be watching the couple as intently as she was. “So when a man is truly in love, his eyes will tell it all?”
“They will.” She crooked her head toward Ajay, who met her eyes. “And a woman’s smile won’t leave anything to question. A smile alone will let him know that she’s madly and deeply in love with him.”
She couldn’t help but stare into his eyes. She wasn’t looking for anything in particular, but it was hard not to get pulled in by his intoxicating stare. Ajay had the ability to suck her in quicker than she had a chance to process what was going on.
* * *
When she looked at him like that, he didn’t know whether to push her away from him or pull her into a kiss. He’d been obsessed with her plush lips from the start, and on a night like this—when she was wearing that tinted lip gloss that he’d seen her take out of her purse on occasion—it was hard for him to keep his craving for her dormant.
Even her outfit was making it hard for him to focus. Since she was sitting down, he couldn’t get the full effect of her cream skirt. However, her white blouse, unbuttoned at the top, caused the material to fall perfectly between her breasts. He was forced to adjust his pants as much as he could while sitting down.
“Did you overhear what I said that day?”
“Yes,” she replied immediately.
