Free Reflected Pleasures by Linda Conrad

Jewel called a while ago to say she’s made an appointment for me to meet with a retail clothing buyer who’s a friend of hers for four o’clock this afternoon.
    â€œApparently this woman is willing to donate clothes for the modeling show, but that will mean I have to drive to some town named McAllen and find the department store where the meeting is to take place. Waste of an afternoon, if you ask me.”
    â€œJuanita Ramirez.”
    â€œExcuse me?”
    â€œJewel’s friend, the buyer. Her name is Juanita Ramirez and she grew up near here. Jewel taught Sunday school for years and Juanita was one of her star pupils.”
    â€œOh? Yes, well…” Merri’s scowl changed to a half smile. “I’m sure she’s a lovely person. But still…”
    â€œLet me try to make your day better if I can,” he interrupted with as much charm as he could manage. “I’m on my way to see an old friend who lives on a ranch about an hour out of McAllen. I wanted to invite you to come with me since he’s about to become one of the Foundation’s biggest donors.
    â€œSo…why don’t we make a day of it?” he continued as he placed both hands flat on her desk and leaned closer. “I’ll call the computer tech, who may yet be able to make it out here to the office late this afternoon. Then you and I can go pick up a check from my friend before we swing by and visit with Juanita on the way home.”
    Merri blinked a couple of times and looked as if she was considering all the possibilities—including the fact that the two of them would be spending most of the day together riding around in his truck. But Ty wasn’t about to mention any such thing. Not until he got her to agree.
    â€œI don’t think…”
    â€œYour eyes are the most fascinating color of green,” he told her, trying for distraction until he could make her say yes to his proposal for the day. “Do you absolutely have to wear those glasses all the time? I mean, in the last few minutes I’ve counted at least three different shades your eyes have turned as the emotions rolled across your face. It occurs to me that it must be a real pain having to wear glasses unless you’re positively forced to.”
    â€œWhat?” She looked stricken as she fumbled on her desk for her glasses. “No…I mean…yes. I have to wear the glasses. Uh…except to work on the computer.”
    Ty found the glasses and handed them over. She flipped them on her face and took a breath. Interesting reaction. Maybe he was having an effect on her, after all.
    â€œWhat do you say?” He was determined to push her as far as possible without being rude. “It’s turning intoa great day. The sun is finally out and things are drying up from that last rainstorm. We can do all our chores at one time and when we return, the computer should be up and you’ll be back in business tomorrow.”
    â€œI suppose so…”
    Gotcha. “Terrific. Grab your things while I make the call, and then we can lock up. The tech has a key to let himself in.”
    He watched Merri slowly stand up and begin to straighten her work in order to move it out of the way for the computer technician. She was dressed in something softer today. Her long-sleeved dress was still prim, but not nearly as severe as the last couple of things he’d seen her wear.
    And it was in an icy jade color. Just the exact shade her eyes had become when he’d seen her considering being alone with him for the afternoon.
    Uh-oh. He’d never noticed such things before in his entire life. He just might be in a world of trouble here.
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    Great day, Merri mumbled to herself. Right. Sure it was great—if a person liked ninety-degree temperatures and humidity high enough to frizz hair and make clothes feel all limp and sticky.
    The sun looked like a burner on an electric stove set at