Love on Beach Avenue(30)

He looked . . . different.

The suit was gone and replaced with shorts that showed off lean muscled legs and olive-toned skin. His T-shirt was a dark blue, stretching tight over an impressive broad chest and making his eyes appear less gray and more cerulean, adding a depth that threw her off. His usual shaven jaw now held a shadow of dark stubble. The glasses were gone, and a pair of trendy black sunglasses was perched on top of his head. He should’ve looked less intimidating, but awareness skated over her nerve endings, causing a vibration in her core that puzzled her. What was it about him that made her body buzz? Was it just dislike she was mistakenly dubbing as physical attraction?

She couldn’t be attracted to Carter Ross. He was everything she didn’t like in a man: rude, arrogant, boring, and her best friend’s pain-in-the-ass brother. Dear Lord, she had to get her dating life back in order or she was going to fall apart.

She gathered all those disturbing, rambling thoughts, balled them up into a tight knot, and shoved them in a lockbox. Then focused on something that made sense.

Her annoyance.

“You can’t barge into my place of business and get involved with my family,” she said, hands on her hips as she faced him down. “You should have never been watching Zoe. I can’t believe Bella left her with you!”

His gaze flicked over her body with a lazy assessment, as if he were bored by her outburst. “I tried calling and texting first. You chose to ignore me, even though I’m your client just as much as my sister.”

“No, you’re not. You’re just the ManOH.” She practically spat out the words. “Ally’s happy with our current arrangement; I haven’t gotten any complaints from her.”

“Yet. Let me make things crystal clear so there are no longer any misunderstandings.” He sipped his coffee and took his time. “I spoke with Ally before she left and confirmed I’d be involved with every step of this process. I’m her only family, so you’re stuck with me. I will attend every vendor appointment from now on. And if you somehow forget to include me, this time I’ll be sure to jump on the phone and tell Ally you’re cutting me out on purpose. I’ve been kind enough to spare you the discomfort of a confrontation in order to protect my sister, but if it continues, I won’t be as forgiving.”

She gasped. He wouldn’t dare. He’d never deliberately stress out his sister. Would he? Or maybe he’d grab the opportunity to once again prove she was lousy at her job and that he’d been right about her all along. Was he that mean and twisted?

Yeah. He was.

Her quick afternoon at the bakery suddenly took a bad turn. She thought of all the appointments she had lined up the next two weeks for Ally’s wedding and wanted to weep. This was her fault. She’d been so sure he’d just go away if she ignored him. She should have known Carter had too big of an ego to leave her alone. Somehow they’d gotten into a weird competition over Ally’s wedding, and he viewed it as a challenge. Ridiculous.

She needed to regather control and create a plan B. Maybe if she ran him ragged, he’d get tired of the endless choices over minute details. It happened to grooms and FOBs all the time. They’d be enthusiastic about the decor in the beginning, until they needed to view dozens of centerpieces, discussing the benefits and disadvantages of lilies versus roses, white versus pink, and tall vases versus small bowls. Give the men one or two of those appointments and they’d beg off the rest, deciding to trust the bride and the planner, and go play some golf.

Yes, Carter would be the same exact way. Eventually, he’d retreat and she could finish planning this wedding on her own.

“Fine,” she said. “You win. I won’t ditch you anymore.”

“Such lofty standards you have,” he drawled.

She gritted her teeth. “We need to be at the bakery at three. I’ll text my sisters to see when they’re coming back for Zoe. For now, feel free to finish your coffee and relax in the conference room.”

“I feel so pampered.”

His dry wit threatened a laugh from her, but she managed to squash it in time. After a few texts to her sisters, she checked on Zoe and gathered up her stack of folders, slipping it into a sleek black bag with the Sunshine Bridal logo.

After what felt like an eternity, Bella flew through the front door and collapsed on the couch, sweat dampening her forehead. “Oh my God, what a nightmare.”

“What happened? Is everything okay?”

“The sitter got sick, so I had to move some of my appointments, but then I got a crazy text from Samantha at Vera’s. She had a meltdown and refused to come out of the dressing room because the MOG called her fat in a roundabout way.”

Avery covered her mouth with her fingers. “No. You should have called me.”

“You were slammed with appointments this morning, so I didn’t want to bother you.”

Avery shook her head. Her sister hated leaning on anyone for help, determined to handle her own clients. “Next time bother me,” she said.

Bella waved a hand in the air. “It all worked out fine. I rushed over there and managed to get Samantha to let me in the dressing room, coaxed her into a different dress, and when she came out, everyone burst into tears and called her the most beautiful bride in the world. Holy shit.”

“Mama, Aunt TT said you’re gonna get the soap!”