"That man is a treasure," Tiffany remarked. Then she got up too. "I'll see you out," she said, "and Joe, get on the phone now with Ray."

The two women walked arm in arm into the office's reception area.

"An arranged marriage sounds like it might be a good idea, Tiff," Ashley said. "Thanks for being so on-the-ball and thinking of it."

"Don't think badly of the boys for not coming up with a solution," Tiffany answered her. "This is a thorny problem you've got, sweetie. They're guys. They think practical." Then she grinned. "And this is definitely a night for the Channel, huh?"

"I can never thank you enough for introducing me to it," Ashley said, returning the grin. "After the debacle with Carson I really needed a serious diversion. Everyone is always telling me how calm and levelheaded I am. Well, that's because I take my means out in the Channel." She chuckled. "And someone's cute butt is going to get strapped pink and hot tonight, I can assure you."

"Glad I could help," Tiffany replied, surprised at what she had just heard. She would never have considered that Ashley was into domination, but then, she had learned long ago never to judge a book by its cover. "Have fun," she said as she ushered Ashley out the door of the office. "See you at the club."

Ashley waved a diffident hand as she hurried down the stairs. Outside the June afternoon was a glorious one. Watching the light traffic she walked across Main Street to her own shop. "Did the Devlin order come in?" she asked Nina, her assistant, as she entered the store.

"Yep, just while you were gone. I didn't open it. I thought you would want to do that," Nina said with a smile. "But I have to admit I'm dying to see it. It's in the back."