A Billionaire Butler for Christmas

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

“Here you go, Mr. Hart,” the boutique shop manager said as she brought the garment bag to where Geoffrey sat waiting. The shop had been closed off temporarily for his use, a perk which he appreciated.

“Open it,” Geoffrey requested.

The shop manager pulled up an empty clothes rack that was close by and hung the bag on it. Then she zipped down the bag, carefully extracted the pajamas set that lay within, and laid it on the sofa.

Geoffrey studied the sleepwear. Made of mulberry silk and Sea Island cotton with delicate handcrafted embroidery designs in Helen’s favorite colors, it was exactly what Alex had ordered. He nodded in appreciation, and the shop manager picked up the set to place them back in the bag.

Then the unthinkable happened.

A scream rent the air, and Geoffrey looked in the direction of the sound only to see flailing hands and legs careening toward him. He watched in horror as a lunch bag flew into the air and hit the edge of the clothes rack, which ripped the bag, splattering dark brown liquid with a strong coffee smell all over the pajamas.

He stiffened and swung his eyes to see who the culprit was, the person that had unleashed this mayhem. But a sharp indescribable pain hit his core at that moment.

Geoffrey gasped, and his knees buckled and hit the floor. With the most intense pain he’d ever experienced shooting through his body, he looked down only to see a foot—encased in a high heeled shoe—against his groin.

“Are you okay?” Geoffrey could hear the shop manager’s voice as if in a distance, but he focused on taking deep breaths to bring the pain in his groin under control.

“I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry,” another female voice said, which he guessed belonged to the culprit. He felt hands grabbing his arms as a soft gardenia scent filled his nostrils.

“Don’t touch me!” Geoffrey croaked out as he waved the hands away. He gritted his teeth against the pain and forced himself back onto the sofa. What had she been thinking? He’d shopped here enough times to be sure coffee was not allowed in the shop. His eyes swung to where the pajamas now lay, ruined. What was he going to do?

“I’m so sorry,” the female voice repeated.

Geoffrey ignored her and ran his hand through his hair. He didn’t need her apology—that wasn’t going to solve anything. They needed a solution to remedy the situation. There was no way he could tell Mr. Dexington that his gift had been damaged.

“My apologies, Mr. Hart. I’m so sorry about all of this,” the shop manager said in a contrite tone. “Go,” she commanded to the person he’d guessed was the culprit.

Geoffrey looked up to see the back profile of a petite lady with her blonde hair swept up in a loose chignon, revealing a graceful neck, and wearing a coffee-streaked white blouse, walking away with her shoulders hunched. Something about her struck a chord within him, and he wanted to ask her if she was okay. But he held back. What had happened was all her fault, and he still needed to fix the damaged sleepwear.

He turned to the shop manager. “Is there another set?” he asked. Though dry cleaning could work wonders on the stained outfit, this item was supposed to be a gift. So it was up to the shop to take care of the mistake.

“Let me call Miss James and find out,” the shop manager said and hurried off. Miss James was the designer and owner of the shop.

Geoffrey looked down at himself. There were a few brown streaks on his otherwise pristine white shirt and darker stains on his grey pants, but nothing he couldn’t make do with till he got home.

Soon the manager returned. “Miss James has another pair in a slightly different color but in the same color scheme, and it’s still at her design studio in Atlanta,” she said. “She’ll need to make a few modifications and can send it out in the next two hours, but it won’t get here until tomorrow.”

That wouldn’t work. Mr. Dexington had to get the item today. “I need it tonight at the latest,” Geoffrey said. “I can have our pilot head out to the studio immediately to pick it up.” It would take about two-and-a-half hours from Dexington to reach Atlanta.

“That should work. I’ll let Miss James know and get the address for you.” The manager rushed off to make the arrangements, while another shop attendant cleaned up the mess on the floor.

Geoffrey pulled out his phone and made a quick call to the pilot to place him on standby. The sharp pain in his groin had died down, leaving a dull ache in its place. Geoffrey guessed it would be a few hours till the pain was completely gone. He looked around to see if he could spot the blonde that had caused the mayhem, but she was nowhere in sight.

The manager soon returned. “Here you go, Mr. Hart,” she said as she extended a sheet of paper to him. “Miss James is very sorry about what happened and will be refunding half of the cost.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Geoffrey said.

“She insists, Mr. Hart.”

“Okay.” If that was what she wanted. His mind had already moved on to the one-million-and-one things he needed to take care of, and he had yet to update the pilot.

Geoffrey got up and speed-dialed the pilot’s number as he headed out of the shop.

But his mind flickered back to the woman who had caused the incident.

He hoped she wouldn’t be disciplined too harshly.