Stranger in Town (Dundee, Idaho #5)(32)
Author: Brenda Novak

“Oh…I was just thinking.”

“About what?”

Hannah considered telling Ashleigh the truth. She could’ve used a second opinion. But she didn’t want Ashleigh to think she had designs on Gabe. And anyway, voicing her insecurities would probably be a waste of breath, since Ashleigh would be too nice to be honest with her. “Nothing.”

“What are you going to wear on Saturday night?”

Hannah frowned. That was another problem. The past few years, she hadn’t spent much money on her own wardrobe. The boys and her business had needed too many things. “I’m not sure. How dressy is Asiago’s?”

“You’ve never been?”

Hannah shook her head.

“It’s nice. You’ll want to go sort of…classy and chic.”

“We live in Dundee, remember?”

“You don’t have anything dressy?”

“I have current casual and dated casual. Unless you want me to wear my old prom dress.”

Ashleigh laughed. “At least it says something that you can still fit into your old prom dress.”

“Stress has a way of taking its toll.”

Ashleigh eyed Hannah carefully. “You know, you’re about the same size as my little sister. I bet she’d have something you could borrow.”

“Tell me she’s over twelve.”

“She’s twenty-four, and until a few weeks ago, she was living in California.”

“And that’s significant, why?”

“The people in California have taste, style.”

“That depends. From what I’ve heard, Bakersfield isn’t much of a fashion center,” she said, navigating another tight turn.

“She’s been living in L.A., silly. And she’s got some beautiful clothes. Why don’t you leave what you’re going to wear Saturday night up to me?”

Hannah glanced skeptically at Ashleigh’s miniskirt and tight-fitting blouse. Considering the fact that Ashleigh hadn’t wanted anyone else around when she went out with Gabe, she was being a pretty good sport about the whole thing. “You’ll be conservative, though, right? I mean, I don’t have the boobs for a shirt like that.” Or the guts.

Ashleigh made a noise of irritation. “Would you quit worrying? You’re going to look great. Trust me.”

CHAPTER NINE

TRUST ME…

Ashleigh’s words rang through Hannah’s mind as she stared in the mirror at six o’clock Saturday evening. Ashleigh had been running late, so she’d finally sent her brother to deliver the outfit Hannah was supposed to wear. But, if Hannah hadn’t known better, she might’ve believed there’d been some sort of mix-up. She’d asked for something conservative—and gotten this?

She couldn’t wear these clothes in public. The coral-colored blouse was definitely pretty, but it was almost sheer, revealing a lace-covered push-up bra of the same color that went underneath. And the narrow black skirt, which hit her at midcalf, had a slit that went all the way up to her thigh. A matching necklace, bracelet and earrings completed the ensemble.

Taken as a whole, she looked stylish, daring and impulsive. The thought of going out on the town like this made her blood race with an excitement she hadn’t felt in years. But she didn’t recognize herself and she wasn’t sure she could trust the stranger in the mirror to remember that she was a mother of two, a woman with Responsibilities.

The doorbell rang. Kenny was with Tuck, and Brent was spending the night with Patti and his cousins. Hannah was the only one around. But she needed to change before she let Gabe in.

“Just a minute,” she called and began digging through her closet. She had plenty of shorts and denim skirts and khaki capris, but nothing as elegant as what she was wearing.

The bell rang again.

“Not very patient, are you,” she muttered, and pulled out a plain white blouse, some black slacks and a pair of sandals. This was the best she could do, she decided. Maybe she’d be mistaken for one of the waitresses, but—

“Hannah? Are you hoping I’ll give up and go away?” Gabe had opened the door.

She froze with her blouse halfway unbuttoned and one spiky heel tossed aside. “No, of course not. I’m looking forward to tonight,” she called down the hall.

“I’m hungry. Are you almost ready?”

She fingered the soft fabric of her blouse. She would never let her boys see her wearing such a thing. But they weren’t here. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to climb out on a limb for one night. Ashleigh and her friends would probably be dressed much more provocatively….

In any case, Gabe was in her living room, anxious to leave. It was too late to change.

Buttoning her blouse, she slipped on her shoes and headed down the hallway. Better to stop quibbling over clothes and get the evening over with, she decided. Hopefully, Gabe would connect with Ashleigh or one of Ashleigh’s friends and be whisked into the social scene for good.

GABE WASN’T SURE WHAT he’d been expecting, but he knew it wasn’t what he saw. When Hannah emerged from the back of the house dressed in a sheer blouse that revealed a lacy bra, he couldn’t look away. She wasn’t as big-busted as Ashleigh, but there was something stimulating about the way the soft fabric revealed more than it concealed. He could see the slight, feminine indentations below her collarbone, the muscle tone in her upper arms, the small swell of her br**sts above her bra—and felt a sudden jolt of testosterone.

This was the second time Hannah had affected him on such a basic level, he realized. Ashleigh had thrust her br**sts right in his face when she’d cut his hair the other night. He’d noticed, even taken a moment to admire what he’d seen, but the sight hadn’t hit him nearly as hard as Hannah standing there in that sexy blouse.

Maybe it was her manner that appealed to him. She didn’t act as blatantly sexual or as experienced as Ashleigh. Despite what she was wearing, she appeared soft and reserved, almost innocent—peaches and cream instead of sugar and spice.

“Hello.” Her voice was open and friendly, but she immediately folded her arms across her chest as if she wanted to shield herself from his view.

He let his gaze sweep over her anyway. “You look nice.”

He could tell by the tone of her response that she thought he was only being polite. “Thanks. So do you. Royal blue brings out the color of your eyes.” She cleared her throat. “I mean, I’m sure Ashleigh will like it.”