Not Used To Cute
Page 1
Blurb
A bar owner who’s not looking for a relationship. A lost soul who’s afraid to trust. When Elijah and Seb meet, sparks fly. But will either of them find the courage to take what they want?
Pouring his all into his business, Elijah is perfectly content running his bar. With its prime location and its infamous drag shows, Bar QK is the place to be. Elijah is used to meeting new and sometimes interesting people, but it’s rare anyone catches his interest for anything longer than a five-minute conversation.
It takes a wandering, unfiltered surfer, who’s tired of the chase and dog-tired of people taking advantage of him, to spark long-buried interest in Elijah.
While kindness runs through his veins, Seb doesn’t believe in fairy tales. He has a past he’d rather forget and has no real expectations for his future. He believes it’s better to not make assumptions about anything or anyone; that way, he’ll remain safe.
It takes his elusive, aloof boss, whose mixed messages are more confusing than IKEA furniture instructions, to show Seb that opening his heart can be worth the risk.
When Elijah and Seb find themselves working on a common goal, the high stakes may be just the nudge they need.
Not Used To Cute
Becca Seymour
Also by Becca Seymour
Coming Home Collection
Realigned
Amalgamated
True-Blue Series
Let Me Show You (#1)
I’ve Got You (#2)
Becoming Us (#3)
Thinking It Over (#4)
Always For You (#4.5)
It’s Not You (#5)
Urban Fantasy Romance
Thicker Than Water
Stand-Alone Contemporary
Not Used To Cute
Not Used To Cute © 2020 by Becca Seymour
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any written, electronic, recorded, or photocopied format without the express permission from the author or publisher as allowed under the terms and conditions with which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorized distribution, circulation or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly. Thank you for respecting the work of this author.
Not Used To Cute is a work of fiction. All names, characters, events and places found therein are either from the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any similarity to persons alive or dead, actual events, locations, or organizations is entirely coincidental and not intended by the author.
For information, contact the author: authorbeccaseymour@gmail.com
Editing: Hot Tree Editing
Cover Designer: BookSmith Design
Publisher: Rainbow Tree Publishing
E-book: ISBN: 978-1-922359-39-1
paperback: ISBN: 978-1-922359-40-7
Contents
Chapter 1
Elijah
Chapter 2
Seb
Chapter 3
Elijah
Chapter 4
Seb
Chapter 5
Elijah
Chapter 6
Seb
Chapter 7
Elijah
Chapter 8
Seb
Chapter 9
Elijah
Chapter 10
Seb
Chapter 11
Elijah
Chapter 12
Seb
Chapter 13
Elijah
Chapter 14
Seb
Chapter 15
Elijah
Chapter 16
Seb
Community Links
About the Author
Also by Becca Seymour
Charlene.
Love Junior Burger x
One
Elijah
The animated man before me barely took a breath. I was as amused as I was terrified that he’d pass out any minute.
But hell, he was cute.
I wasn’t used to cute.
In recent years, I was used to loose and easy. Not the best qualities to attach myself to, but still, the combination kept me occupied. Though I was the first to admit my satisfaction tended to last the length of time it took them to give me head, or for me to pound into a faceless man. Sebastian was none of these things. And the ringer was, that freaked me the hell out as much as it turned me on.
When he’d trailed in behind my sister, Harriet, and her husband, Drake, along with Drake’s crazy-arse family, I took notice. It wasn’t unusual for me to take a dip and sample whatever was on offer. It came with the territory of owning a bar, but a reaction to cute was something different altogether.
“So what do you do when you’re not working?”
I pulled my gaze from admiring his lips and the subtle curve of his mouth. The curve turned into sweet smiles when he spoke, which pulled the happiness to his eyes. Who knew that was even possible?
“I just shoot the shit.” I took a gulp of beer, realizing one, how pathetic that sounded, and two, that I did jack shit in my free time.
It was easy to blame my need to look after my younger sister, Harriet—I’d been all she’d had for a long time—but it was no longer an excuse I could use, not with Drake in her life. It had since become my own laziness along with having no desire to put up with the drama and demands a relationship usually meant. I needed both as much as I needed a hole in the head. I had enough bull dealing with keeping Bar QK running and successful. Running a gay bar in a city would be hard, but here in a small coastal town in the Sunshine Coast meant I had to be on my game.
“Alrighty, jack shit sounds….” He hesitated, searching for the right word.
“Lame,” I answered as he said, “Fun.”
Sebastian’s laughter burst free, loud and strangely sweet. Enough for me to raise my brows and offer him a quick smile.
“What about you?” I asked, and then took another pull of beer, finishing off the bottle.
I thought he’d been animated before, but hell, his eyes lit up and his lips lifted as he spoke, his hands gesturing wildly as his voice took on a hypnotic tone. “Well, there’s so much I love doing. I love surfing. Do you surf?” He didn’t give me time to respond. “I don’t go out as often as I like”—a small frown marred his forehead for a moment before he seemed to shake it off—“but it’s something I love to do. I tried sculpting recently, but it seems I’m not very artistic. I joined the local arts group too and was in a musical about six months ago. They did only cast me as the pixie though. I didn’t have much to say and was only in the chorus—”
Barely stopping to breathe, he smiled and continued talking while my mind settled on one image.
Pixie.
Yes. He was like a cute little pixie. Only about five six, slim, short hair, but not buzzed, sexy little button nose. I could see him now rocking a hot pixie costume. Though, I had no idea of what that would entail. The movie with the elf, the funny one with that guy who was Santa’s son or something, popped into my head. That was an elf though, right? I really should make more time for movie watching.
“—bowls club, but I think the regulars struggled a bit with me. No idea why.” He shrugged.
I quirked my lips at that one, imagining Seb—which suited him more than Sebastian—joining in with the no-doubt boring-as-all-hell retirees with his perfect kind of crazy.
“And what about work?” I asked, wanting to keep him talking.
He scrunched up his nose and twisted his lips before he spoke. “Actually, I’m just looking for a new job.” He sighed, his brows dipping. It was a look I didn’t like on him. “The woman I replaced when temping just returned to
work last week. I’ve been looking for something else, but the agency doesn’t have anything at the moment, so on Monday I’ll be doing a trek handing out my résumé, and I’ll see if something comes up.” His eyes connected with mine, and his mouth lifted in another smile. “It’s all good though. Something always turns up. I tend to land on my feet pretty quickly.”
My brain started working overtime, wanting nothing more than to help the man before me. He was so fucking sweet, and hell, so vibrant that I had to stop from reaching out to keep him secure on his stool. “So what do you do?”
“Admin, waiting tables. Heck, I’ve done so much. I sometimes struggle to find something to stick to, you know? I love the work and work my arse off, but I’ve always gone for temp jobs. The places I’ve been employed have been great, but none have really fit. I always go in wondering if the rightness will be there and then a permanent opportunity will open up, but when the contract’s over, to be honest, I’ve always been happy to move on.”
Thinking hard, I glanced around my bar. We didn’t need another server, else I’d have no hesitation in offering him something. I didn’t even pause to consider what that meant or how messed up that was. My bar staff was family. We were tight-knit. It was rare we let anyone in the fold—the latest being Tom, who seemed like a good kid—but the man before me had all my caution melting away.
I started speaking before I’d even formed a complete thought. “I could do with someone in the office.” I shrugged, aiming for nonchalance as his eyes connected with mine, his bright, open, and honest. “Carla’s been begging me for ages to take on someone else in the office to help her. It would only be part-time, but if you’re interested, it’s yours.”
A smile stretched his mouth wide. “Seriously? That would be amazing, Elijah.” He stood and threw his arms around me without preamble.
I steadied myself on impact and laughed, patting his back. It was awkward. Hell, we were in the middle of the bar surrounded by my family, celebrating my sister’s birthday. I’d wanted to hug the hell out of Seb and breathe him in. Instead, after a couple of awkward pats on his back, I said, “Yeah, sure. No worries at all. You can start on Monday. Come in, and Carla will talk you through everything.”
I didn’t own a general run-of-the-mill bar, hence the need for support in the admin department. My place also held drag shows. While not every night, we were busy and popular enough, and ensured the shows were professional enough to warrant a whole host of support.
Seb stepped away and sat back down, still smiling widely. “This is incredible. Thank you.” He chewed on his bottom lip and looked away briefly before returning his gaze back to me. “And listen, how about a trial or something? You don’t know me from Adam, so this way, if things don’t work out, no hard feelings. Sound good?”
Who the hell was this guy? Sweet and confident, sexy as hell with his tight jeans that hugged his arse so perfectly, plus despite his somewhat flamboyant ways, he had the smarts too. My grin was genuine as I tried to show my increased respect for him and his words. “Sounds good to me.”
He lifted his bottle of beer up to me. I grabbed a new bottle that Lenny had set down for me and lifted it to his. “Congratulations.” I winked before taking a deep pull, hoping my ill-thought-out job offer wouldn’t bite me in the arse.
Harriet interrupted us close to midnight, saying she was exhausted so she was leaving. I looked into her smiling eyes, a pang of pride hitting me. She’d come so far since her PTSD diagnosis, which had formed into an anxiety disorder. Hell, just eighteen months ago, leaving the bar by herself would have been impossible, let alone touching and interacting with people.
“Come on, Sebastian, we’re your ride,” Harriet called to him. I had barely spoken two words to my sister all night, too absorbed in the man beside me, but Harriet was in good hands and had brought a small group of friends over tonight to celebrate. I knew enough to understand they were good people.
Seb’s smile was wide. “I’m ready.” He turned his gaze back to me. “Thank you so much, Elijah. Seriously. I promise I won’t let you down.” He reached out his hand for me to shake and I took it, wishing instead for another of those hugs he’d given me earlier.
I grinned at him, happy we were in the darkened bar as I was sure heat crept across my cheeks, desire to get to know this man riding me hard. “Anytime.” I focused on Harriet, who stood wide-eyed and amused as she glanced at us. Clearing my throat, I indicated my sister needed to get her butt over to me with a head lift. I pulled Harriet close. She immediately wrapped her arms around me. “Don’t be a stranger, okay?”
“Okay,” she answered. “Something I should know about?” she asked when she pulled away. She wouldn’t have been the only one in the bar who noticed I’d been tied up in Seb the whole evening.
I narrowed my eyes at her, trying to tell myself it was no big deal, offering Seb a job. I was having a hard time convincing myself of that, so there was no way I’d be sharing any of it with Harriet. She knew me far too well. “Nope. Just get home safe and tell Drake to not keep you locked away so much.”
Harriet laughed. “Righto, I’ll get right on that.” Before she turned, Drake appeared at her side. I took his hand in mine and stood.
After a short pat on the back, we separated. “Thanks for sorting everything for tonight,” he said.
“Anytime. You know I’ll do whatever makes her happy.”
He nodded. “Appreciate it. I was thinking more of me dragging along my brother and brother-in-law and their friends.” He grinned as he spoke, his tone lifting into a small question of sorts. Someone else who’d noticed my whole focus had been on Seb.
I peered around him, seeing Seb now stood with two couples. Damn, I’d been introduced to them but had pretty much forgotten they were here. “No worries.” I chose not to bite on how I’d hogged one of the friends the whole night. “Chat soon, yeah?”
“Yeah.” He took Harriet’s hand, and they headed towards the waiting group. I followed their movement, my eyes landing on Seb. Our eyes connected, and that sweet grin appeared on his face again. He lifted his hand and gave me a small wave. I offered a chin lift but couldn’t have kept the smirk off my face if I tried. Just as they left, the door swinging shut behind them, I jumped as a heavy hand landed on my back.
“You okay there?” My friend Cole moved past me and sat on the stool Seb had occupied all night. “Been a bit distracted?” He quirked a brow and looked far too satisfied, wearing a shit-eating grin.
I picked up the fresh beer that had appeared on the bar top at some point and took a deep pull.
“Like that, huh?”
I sighed, not wanting to answer him or get into anything Seb related. “Like what?” I did know, however, that Cole was a shit stirrer who’d go on all night if I didn’t answer him. He was the only one brave and stupid enough to push me. He claimed best friend privileges, while I’d always argued he was just a cocky bear who had no boundaries.
“The cute little button you’ve been panting over all night, he got your panties in a twist?”
“Screw off,” I growled.
He laughed loudly. “Shit, he really has. Why’d you let him leave?” He bounced his eyebrows up and down, looking like a cockhead.
“Hardly gonna force him to stay.” I sighed. “Plus, I may have offered him a job.” Cole’s laughter became louder. “He starts in the office on Monday,” I clarified. Cole was howling by the time I finished. “What? It’s not that funny.”
With his arms folded over his chest, Cole shook his head. “Elijah, my man, let’s face it. You’re screwed. After a couple of hours, you don’t even touch the man, yet you offered him a job where you’ll be seeing him what, a couple or so days a week? That’s so much more than you wanting to have your wicked way.” The arsehole was right. Bloody hell. “I can’t help but see a similarity to Drake and Harriet.” He grinned, looking proud of himself, as though he’d just solved some deep mystery of the world.
I stared hard at him, rea
lising exactly what he meant. I’d hooked Harriet up with a job working for Drake’s security firm, as the office manager of all things. Months later, they’d become a couple and had since married. I had to wonder if that was what my subconscious had been telling me when I’d offered Seb the position, but there was a huge part of me that had no desire to bring a guy into the fold. With business being too busy for me to have downtime beyond sleeping, my time was scarce.
But still, I’d already invited him in by offering him a job. Hell, Cole was right.
I was so screwed.
Two
Seb
I stared hard at my reflection, willing my eyes to brighten and my smile to ease into a more natural state, but it was no use. I sighed, and despite the frustration bubbling in my chest, my grimace-smile eased a little. Things had gone so well the past week. Elijah had been true to his word and unbelievably kind and generous. Honestly, I was still pinching myself.
Even Carla, who had been tasked to settle me in and make sure I didn’t screw up too badly, had been the perfect level of calm I’d needed to not fret and do some irrevocable damage like burn the office down or triple order beer or order the wrong item that cost a stupid amount of money.
It had all been smooth sailing. Well, if I ignored the coffee incident when I’d dropped a whole trayful of steaming hot mugs on the floor before the bar opened, but since no one had been hurt, I thought I could count it as a win. Plus there was the whole printer thing. Carla had reassured me it was normal for all the lights to flash and for it to churn out countless pages of paper, though apparently, the high-pitched beeps that refused to stop until she had yanked the plug out were different. But still, I’d survived my first week relatively unscathed.