Triplets Found: The Virgin's Makeover / Take a Chance on Me / And Then There Were Three

Lissa glanced at her watch. It was getting late. And she probably should head back to the office, where Sullivan would be waiting for her. “That’s not necessary.”

“Indulge me,” Jared said, green eyes shimmering.

Oh, what the heck. “All right.”

Two hours later, Lissa sat before a mirror in the beauty salon, unable to believe the change in her. Of course, she’d sometimes had two people working on her at a time, but she’d managed to squeeze in a manicure and a pedicure.

Antoine, the male stylist, had used a henna rinse to bring out the natural color of her hair. He trimmed the ends and talked her into some layering that created a full, flowing effect, insisting that one of her most attractive features, other than the big green eyes, was her waist-length hair.

The talented stylist had created a miracle, leaving Lissa with a sensual look she’d never expected.

“You can still twist it and braid it,” Antoine said, “but wear it loose whenever you want to make an impression on people, particularly men.”

Do you ever let your hair down? Sullivan had once asked her.

A burst of confidence bubbled forth. What would he say, when she returned to the vineyard? Would he be pleased? Aroused?

And if so, then what?

Would she have the courage to flirt? To actually offer herself to him?

She turned her head, watching the strands flow gracefully down her back like a long, silky veil.

Funny, but she didn’t feel vulnerable or exposed now. Not at all.

“Renee,” Antoine called the makeup artist who’d been waiting nearby. “We’re ready to add the finishing touch.”

When Renee finished instructing her in the art of makeup application, as well as adding lipstick, blush and mascara, Lissa couldn’t believe her eyes.

She looked like a new woman.

Heck, she even felt like a new woman.

A beautiful woman.

Lissa couldn’t wait to see the look on Sullivan’s face when she knocked upon the cottage door and asked if he’d like to share a glass of wine and watch the sunset.

And if he appeared impressed?

Who knew what else she might ask him to share?

Chapter Six

Before climbing from her silver Honda Prelude, Lissa couldn’t help but take one last look at her reflection in the rearview mirror.

For the first time in her life, she saw a stylish woman gazing back at her. The light application of sage-colored shadow and dark-brown mascara highlighted the green of her eyes. And a feathered layering of the hair at the side of her face softened the plain, yet harsh style she’d worn before.

Jared had been right.

The makeover had done wonders for her appearance. And it raised her confidence level to an all-time high.

She slid from the car, then tugged at the short, black skirt, making sure it hadn’t hiked up, revealing a pair of thong panties the sales lady insisted all the young women were wearing.

“I don’t want Shawna ever learning I bought you those,” Jared had said with a smile. “She’s growing up too fast as it is.”

Well, it seemed as though Lissa had grown up overnight. Or rather, during the course of an afternoon in town with her biological father.

They’d driven to Valley View Clinic, which housed an annex lab of Portland General Hospital. A technician drew the necessary blood for the preliminary testing, and Lissa signed a form allowing the results to be divulged to Jared.

After giving Jared a hug, Lissa promised to come to Portland soon. Meeting with him had answered a lot of her questions about her origin and her feelings of abandonment.

Jared hadn’t been ready to marry a girl he hardly knew, a teen who refused his calls. And although he’d wanted to provide for Olivia and her baby, Olivia had shut him out.

It was anyone’s guess what would have happened had Lissa’s birth mother lived.

But one thing was certain. Lissa’s life would have been dramatically different from the one that she knew. And to be perfectly honest, she couldn’t imagine not having Ken and Donna Cartwright as parents. Or Eileen as a sister.

In many ways, Jared still seemed like a stranger, but she sensed they could become friends. Or maybe something more—given time.

Once in her car, she picked up the cell phone and called home.

“I was so worried,” her mother said. “Mr. Cambry looked like a decent sort, but you never know.”

“Actually, he was very nice, Mom.”

“Will you be seeing him again?”

“I may drive into Portland and meet his family later in the month, but I have too much going on even to consider it until after the reception next week.”

“I’m making a pot roast for dinner,” her mom said. “Your favorite. If you see Sullivan, tell him I’m setting an extra plate.”

“Will do. I’m going straight to the office when I get back, since Sullivan and I still have a lot to get done today.”

“You work so hard, honey. I wish you would take more time for yourself.”

Lissa planned to take her mom’s advice as soon as she got back to the vineyard, if everything worked out. Because even though she and Sullivan had a lot to discuss, her first order of business was gauging his reaction to the new Lissa.

When she arrived at the vineyard office, she found Sullivan and Barney gone, so she headed to the cottage, where she assumed he and the puppy would be. As she strode across the small suspension bridge in a brand new pair of high heels, she realized even her walk had changed since the afternoon makeover.

Had she acquired a swivel-hipped swagger like Gretchen’s? Amazing. And she didn’t feel the least bit klutzy.

Yet, as she approached the deck in front of his house, a brief wave of nervousness swept through her tummy. But she managed to get a grip on it.

For goodness’ sake, it’s not like she was going to seduce the man. All she really needed to do was get an idea of how he might react to the idea of making love to her. She could always broach the subject another day.

Or change her mind completely.

This was merely a little sexual experimentation. She certainly didn’t intend to pounce on Sullivan before dinner.