out of her voice.
"I have come to order a suit." He offered no further explanation until the pause became awkward. "I never pass up a good bargain." He smiled as he spoke.
She couldn't help admiring his dimples. "Nor should you. Especially not one so well earned."
She hoped he wouldn't notice the tremble in her hands as she spun the wheel and lowered her needle back into the cloth to protect it. She stood and went for her tape measure and the file card with his measurements while avoiding his gaze. "I have the measurements I'll need for the jacket on file, but I will need to measure your inseam for the pants. If you’d stand on the platform . . ."
He stepped up and held out his hands. “All the world’s a stage.”
She smiled, but inside she was quaking as she approached him. As she kneeled at his feet, she noticed his boots were well polished and covered only lightly with a fine coating of street dust, as if he had just buffed them before coming.
She decided to keep things purely professional, not let any hint of the friendly intimacy they'd had before her ridiculous proposal slip in. If he could forgive and forget, she certainly could. She hoped. "What kind of a suit do you need, Captain? A summer suit? I would recommend a fine light wool I have in stock."
She set one edge of her tape against the floor and ran the other up the inside of his strong, muscled leg, resisting the urge to run her hand up it. What was it about this man that brought out her lust?
He didn't dip or squirm the way other men did, hoping for an accidental brush of her fingers against their manly bulges. The one time an accidental touch might have relieved her tension and he held himself perfectly still.
"You're very long of limb, Captain." She wrote down the measurement on the little measurement card. Then she cocked her head and eyed the fit of the pants he wore, trying not to look at his crotch as she looked up at him. "I'll need to measure your thigh as well. Whoever tailored these did a poor job. They strain here." She gave a little tug at the offending spot. They were much too tight around his heavily muscled thighs.
"Spread your legs a little farther, if you please." She pushed up from her kneeling position and ran the tape around his thigh, conscious of how hard and sculpted with muscle his leg was. "Pants should have a nice hang."
"Indeed," he said with a touch of irony.
Too late she realized her unfortunate terminology. Men liked to consider themselves well hung. She hoped he didn’t think she was making any lewd innuendos. "Finished."
She wound the tape as she stood. When she looked at him, she saw no unseemly look in his eyes and was vaguely disappointed in spite of herself. Another awkward silence ensued.
At last the Captain spoke. "You keep a nice shop, Miss Sheridan. Very prettily decorated."
She wondered whether he was trying to make amends for his refusal of her unconventional marriage proposal. "Thank you. Decorating did present challenges. The floors slope. The rugs always bunch. I'm always half expecting my customers to stumble and trip."
"The building's no worse than most."
"Is it good enough to buy?" She realized her question seemed to come from nowhere, but the issue had been weighing on her for weeks.
"I'm not in the market." His eyes twinkled as he spoke.
She laughed nervously. "You don't trust me now, but let me assure you, I'm not trying to trap you into anything. I meant for me to purchase. Me alone."
She wound the tape in her hand even tighter. "My landlord has given an ultimatum—either I buy or he sells to another. Whether a new owner will evict me or not is anyone's guess."
She paused. It felt good to share her burden. Since she had already reached the epitome of embarrassment with the Captain, it seemed safe to share this worry with him.
"The rent is very reasonable. I don't know whether I could find another suitable location for the same price." She babbled
"I have come to order a suit." He offered no further explanation until the pause became awkward. "I never pass up a good bargain." He smiled as he spoke.
She couldn't help admiring his dimples. "Nor should you. Especially not one so well earned."
She hoped he wouldn't notice the tremble in her hands as she spun the wheel and lowered her needle back into the cloth to protect it. She stood and went for her tape measure and the file card with his measurements while avoiding his gaze. "I have the measurements I'll need for the jacket on file, but I will need to measure your inseam for the pants. If you’d stand on the platform . . ."
He stepped up and held out his hands. “All the world’s a stage.”
She smiled, but inside she was quaking as she approached him. As she kneeled at his feet, she noticed his boots were well polished and covered only lightly with a fine coating of street dust, as if he had just buffed them before coming.
She decided to keep things purely professional, not let any hint of the friendly intimacy they'd had before her ridiculous proposal slip in. If he could forgive and forget, she certainly could. She hoped. "What kind of a suit do you need, Captain? A summer suit? I would recommend a fine light wool I have in stock."
She set one edge of her tape against the floor and ran the other up the inside of his strong, muscled leg, resisting the urge to run her hand up it. What was it about this man that brought out her lust?
He didn't dip or squirm the way other men did, hoping for an accidental brush of her fingers against their manly bulges. The one time an accidental touch might have relieved her tension and he held himself perfectly still.
"You're very long of limb, Captain." She wrote down the measurement on the little measurement card. Then she cocked her head and eyed the fit of the pants he wore, trying not to look at his crotch as she looked up at him. "I'll need to measure your thigh as well. Whoever tailored these did a poor job. They strain here." She gave a little tug at the offending spot. They were much too tight around his heavily muscled thighs.
"Spread your legs a little farther, if you please." She pushed up from her kneeling position and ran the tape around his thigh, conscious of how hard and sculpted with muscle his leg was. "Pants should have a nice hang."
"Indeed," he said with a touch of irony.
Too late she realized her unfortunate terminology. Men liked to consider themselves well hung. She hoped he didn’t think she was making any lewd innuendos. "Finished."
She wound the tape as she stood. When she looked at him, she saw no unseemly look in his eyes and was vaguely disappointed in spite of herself. Another awkward silence ensued.
At last the Captain spoke. "You keep a nice shop, Miss Sheridan. Very prettily decorated."
She wondered whether he was trying to make amends for his refusal of her unconventional marriage proposal. "Thank you. Decorating did present challenges. The floors slope. The rugs always bunch. I'm always half expecting my customers to stumble and trip."
"The building's no worse than most."
"Is it good enough to buy?" She realized her question seemed to come from nowhere, but the issue had been weighing on her for weeks.
"I'm not in the market." His eyes twinkled as he spoke.
She laughed nervously. "You don't trust me now, but let me assure you, I'm not trying to trap you into anything. I meant for me to purchase. Me alone."
She wound the tape in her hand even tighter. "My landlord has given an ultimatum—either I buy or he sells to another. Whether a new owner will evict me or not is anyone's guess."
She paused. It felt good to share her burden. Since she had already reached the epitome of embarrassment with the Captain, it seemed safe to share this worry with him.
"The rent is very reasonable. I don't know whether I could find another suitable location for the same price." She babbled
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