Secret Designs(46)

"Oh, I'm so excited, Ari! By the way, can I order lingerie direct from you? I want them for my honeymoon."

"Sure," she replied, her lips curling. She'd already planned to give Jasmine her sexiest, most expensive sets as wedding presents.

"How's your nephew?" Jasmine asked out of the blue.

She sighed. "He's good, thanks. My sister is taking him for the fitting of a new prosthetic leg. We're hoping we could get him one that's perfect for a runner. He has dreams of becoming a Paralympian, you see," she said with a wistful smile.

"Wow, that's great. Your sister must be thrilled with your good news, too."

"Yes, although it won't mean much until we see the cash come in. Nothing is guaranteed until I keep selling stuff." She paused before continuing in a sincere, grateful voice. "Jaz, the money you're loaning me not only helps buy the materials and pay my seamstress. It also helps me keep my head above water and get Kenny that prosthesis until I get paid by Gwen's company."

"Oh Ari. Is it that bad?" Jasmine asked with concern.

She shook her head and waved her hand. "It will get better. I just need to keep the faith."

"If you need to borrow more..."

"It's fine, Jaz. Thank you," she replied, reaching out for Jasmine's hand and squeezing it in gratitude.

"Anytime, Ari."

She cleared her throat. "Ah, Jaz, one other thing. I suppose you will tell Kane about this, right?"

"Yes. Is that a problem? We share this kind of thing with each other. But if you prefer that I don't …"

"No, it's fine. But could you not tell Dylan? And please ask Kane not to mention it to him?" she asked in a small voice.

"Okay," Jasmine replied cautiously. "I'm glad you brought Dylan up, Ari. I've wanted to talk you about him."

Ari chewed her bottom lip. She didn't want to meet Jasmine's eyes, so she played with the straw in her smoothie glass instead.

"What happened between the two of you? Dylan's been down in the dumps lately. Even Kane said he hadn't seen him like that before. But when we asked him, he didn't want to talk about it."

Ari swallowed, not trusting herself to speak. What could she say? That Dylan thought she was just after his money? In all fairness, she couldn't divulge that fact without also mentioning why Dylan was so suspicious. After his lengthy explanation, she could understand why he harboured doubts about her motives for being with him.

"I know I'm in a funny position, because you're my friend and he's my future brother-in-law," Jasmine said softly. "But you could still talk to me. There may be something I can help with?"

Ari took a deep breath. "I miss him, Jaz," she admitted. "But there are some things that are just not meant to be, I think."

"How can you tell if it's meant to be, or not?"

She shrugged. "We just don't fit, Jaz."

"You miss him, he misses you; what doesn't fit?"

"I just don't see myself being comfortable enough to share all my problems with him. If I couldn't do that, what kind of relationship would we have?"

"What's in the way of you sharing your problems with him?"

She shook her head, not knowing how to put it in words.

"You think he won't be supportive of you?" Jasmine asked.

"No, it's not that. I think that if he tries to be supportive—if he tries to support me, I will always question what he thinks of me."

"What do you mean?" Jasmine asked with a frown.

"As long as I'm in this financial squeeze, I don't think I'll ever get it out of my head that he might think I'm just after his money—even if he's nice about it."

"Ari! How could you think that?"

She gave Jasmine a sad smile. "Let's just say I have issues around it."





CHAPTER EIGHTEEN





Dylan watched as uncertainty played on Jasmine's face as she considered his request.

"Please, Jaz. I know you're her friend and you want to keep her confidence, but all I want to know is what she's said to you that would give me an idea on how to mend things with her. I know I stuffed up big time. I need your help, please."

"What exactly have you done to piss her off, Dyl?" Kane asked as he refilled their wine glasses.

Dylan filled his lungs to full capacity before exhaling loudly. "I inadvertently led her to believe I suspected her of being a gold digger."

Jasmine gasped. "Dylan! How could you! Ari's not like that at all!"

"I know, Jaz. I told you I stuffed up."

"Why the hell did you even think it, bro?" Kane asked in disbelief.

"Because five years ago, I got my heart broken by a woman who tried to scam me by transferring money from my bank account to hers. I know it's crazy to let some old experience mess up my present, but I didn't realise how much I was letting my past get in the way until Ari dumped me."