“I don’t do nervous,” Addison said. Quickly donning the shirt, Addison paid no attention as she slipped the buttons through the holes until she discovered she had one more button and no more holes. “Shit!”

“Apparently, you don’t do buttons, either,” Evelyn said, chuckling under her breath as she walked over and swatted Addison’s hands away. “Here, let me do it.”

Admiring the silk as she released all the misguided fasteners, Evelyn was about to re-button the shirt when something about the buttons caught her eye. Leaning in close, she fingered the red gems surrounded by silver prongs. “Addison?”

“Yes?”

“Are...are these rubies?”

Addison couldn’t help but smile. “Yes, they are.”

“Real rubies?”

“Are there any other kind?”

Addison stood still so Evelyn could button the shirt, but noticing that the woman now seemed intent on examining every ruby fastener, Addison turned the tables. Slapping Evelyn’s hand away, she said, “I’ll do it. I don’t want to be here all night.”

“This is a bit over-the-top for you. Isn’t it?” Evelyn said, pointing at the gems.

“It was Fran’s idea,” Addison said, slipping the last ruby into a buttonhole. “Something about garnering attention.”

“You hate attention.”

“I know!” Addison yelled, grabbing for a set of cufflinks on the dresser. “But Fran insisted I add something red. I have no bloody idea why.”

Evelyn’s expression didn’t change, at least not on the outside. “I see,” she said, turning toward the door. “Well, if you don’t need me, I think I’ll toddle back to Joanna’s room and make sure everything is going as planned.”

“That’s fine,” Addison said, looking in the mirror as she straightened her shirt. “Oh, I arranged with Garrard Jewelers to borrow some jewelry for tonight. It should be here soon. The large box goes to Joanna, and the small one comes to me. Bring it up when it gets here.”

“You borrowed jewelry?”

“It’s a hire, but it was better than spending a few million pounds.”

“A few million—”

“Enough!” Addison shouted. “You know what tonight’s about, and if I can get this deal signed, it’s worth ten times that, so just bring me the bloody jewelry when it gets here. Can you do that?”

“Of course, Addison,” Evelyn said, slipping through the open door. “Anything you say.”

***

Joanna slowly made her way down the hallway to her father’s room, feeling taller than her three-inch heels had made her. As a child, she had never played dress up. She had never wanted to be a princess or wear jewels and fancy gowns, but as an adult, Joanna couldn’t deny there was something to be said for dress up.