Try Me On for Size
Page 28
She nodded and blinked away tears. “I’ll start preparing for the funeral.”
“Thank you.” Oliver reached for Mia’s hand and led her to the back of the house, through a sliding glass door. “She insisted on holding the breakfast here. Wanted tables set up on the lawn. I told her we’d need to have a backup plan in case it rained. But she just knew it would be gorgeous out.” He looked up at the blue sky, not a cloud in sight. “And she was right. It’s supposed to be sunny and seventy-five all week.”
They walked to a tall oak. “She had this all planned. We knew it was coming, but it really didn’t make it any easier.”
Death was never easy, whether it was all planned out like Ginny’s or sudden and tragic like Johnny’s. But the one thing that made any of it easier was having support. Mia knew that. She’d stood by Bryn and did whatever she’d needed, and she’d do the same for Oliver. Because she loved him. Love trumped all, even death. Love had given her the courage to face whatever was in her future. Joy, sadness, heartache. She knew those things would come, but even the bad times would be worth it if she had Oliver there to support her and love her.
Life was never perfect, and no one person was for that matter, either, but a life without true love, a soul mate, pretty much sucked. Mia knew that now. And all the things she’d been afraid of before seemed to disappear. She knew she was sticking her neck out, but real, passionate, gotta-be-with-that-person-no-matter-what love was rare, and so totally worth the risk.
CHAPTER Thirty-Three
Epilogue
Mia rang up her customer’s purchases, pleased with their latest promotional event. The red carpet party, which actually had a hot pink carpet that guests walked in on, had been a huge success. More than five hundred people had signed up for the giveaway, and randomly selecting twenty-five for the party—a mix of both women and men—had been excruciating. Each was allowed to bring one guest, for a total of fifty. Mia and Bryn had the party catered and their sexy models donned hot pink briefs and matching bow ties as they served canapés from silver trays.
Oliver passed by the front counter on his way to refill his tray and winked at her, crazy sexy smile across his face. He’d moved in right after his mother’s funeral, which had been elegant and beautiful, just as Mia knew his mother had been in life. The day had been a celebration of her, and as sad as it had been to lose her, Oliver knew she was in a pain-free place now, watching them, at peace.
And Mia’s family was in a good place, too. After a long father-daughter chat over hot cocoa and doughnuts—just as they’d done when she was a child—she’d patched things up with her father. They both were making honest efforts to reconnect, understand, and accept each other. The Great Antonio Montanari had learned to trust people more, too. After firing Grant for his part in sabotaging his daughter’s company, he’d hired a new accountant and two more employees. That allowed Nico to leave every day on time, with two days off each week, and be the father Riley so desperately needed for her family and her sanity.
Mia and her sister were on the mend, too. Nico being home more allowed Riley time away from the house, sans children. Sometimes she and Mia had dinner alone for lots of sisterly bonding, and other times they joined Bryn and Penny. Mia felt closer to her sister than she had in years.
Their mother and father were closer, too, finally buying that RV. They weren’t ready to take off for months on end, but were planning a few weeklong vacations over the coming year. They needed some rest and relaxation, and Mia was pretty sure The Great Antonio Montonari was ready to take a few steps back and just be Tony again. Let someone else do the commercials. Maybe even come up with a new slogan. Thank God!
Oliver came back out, his tray now filled with mini quiches. “Would you like one, my love?”
“I’m famished,” Mia said, snagging a snack and a kiss from Oliver.
“Lucky bitch,” the guy at the front of the line mumbled.
Mia turned and met his sly grin. “You know it.”
She was a lucky girl, unlike Alexiana. They’d heard through the high society grapevine that she’d come clean with her parents, begging for their help with the baby. They’d refused, disgusted that their bloodline would be muddled by that of a poor yoga instructor. Last Mia and Oliver had heard, Alexiana had shacked up with Chris, who had decided he was super excited about becoming a dad and had every intention of raising the baby with Alexiana. Who knew? Maybe some time outside her snobby bubble would change her for the better.
But in the meantime, Mia concentrated on her own fabulous life. The shop was thriving. Her family was back on track. Her sex life had skyrocketed. And she was in love for probably the first time ever. It couldn’t get any better.
Bryn popped behind the front counter as Mia finished ringing up her customer. The line had diminished, everyone now queued up for photos with Logan and Oliver.
Bryn handed her a glass of champagne. “How do you like seeing your man over there being adored and touched by horny women and men?”
“Eh, I’m good. I know who he’s coming home with.” She winked and sipped her bubbly beverage.
“So what’s next for Classy ’n’ Sassy?” Bryn asked, and Mia knew that twinkle in her eye. “I had a guy call earlier asking if we’d be interested in teaming up for his new porn flick.”
“Yeah, I don’t know about that. I think we should stick to what we got here. Why mess with success?”
“Seems like we did good with the whole dildo thing.” Bryn picked up a sample Oliver that had been left on the counter. “You taking one of these home for something a little kinky tonight?”
“Hell, no. I got the real thing. And trust me, the faux version can’t even possibly compare.”
Want even more laugh-out-loud, sexy romances?
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Size Matters
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About the Author
Stephanie Haefner is a wife, mother of two, and contemporary romance novelist from Buffalo, New York. She loves creating sassy heroines and tossing them into sexy circumstances. Try Me On for Size is her first novel with Pocket Star, and she’s currently at work on its sequel, Size Matters. When not writing, she celebrates her sassiness with dance and Zumba classes, and her nerdiness with boy bands and Disney World.
FOR MORE ON THIS AUTHOR: authors.simonandschuster.com/Stephanie-Haefner
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2014 by Stephanie Haefner
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First Pocket Star Books ebook edition August 2014
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ISBN 978-1-4767-6556-3