“Maybe we should reschedule?” he asks.
My eyes gradually rise to his. I contemplate what I should do. Todd assured me he’d call tonight, right?
“No, it’s fine. Let me change really quick.”
I step back into the apartment, and Davis follows me.
“This is a really nice place. You sure you need the job at CHOPs?”
I weave around the coffee table and watch his eyes ping to every surface. Tatiana’s parents bought us the furniture as a thank-you to my grandma letting us live in her rent-controlled apartment.
“Like I already told you, this says nothing about me.”
I grab my phone from the counter, and my screen lights up.
Tatiana: How did the shoot go?
“Hold on one sec, Davis.” I hold my finger in the air, not bothering to see what he’s doing.
Me: Oh, I need to talk to you. Off to go on a date with Davis.
Tatiana: What’s wrong?
Me: I don’t really know. I’ll explain later.
Tatiana: Have fun with Davis.
Me: Talk to you later.
After I change and put on some makeup, Davis and I walk through the lobby of my apartment building. The memory of our kiss last night flutters to mind, and my lips tingle with want to relive it. He glances at his watch then opens the door for me.
“I have to know, are you ever on time?”
“No, never. I was even a week past my due date when I was born. It’s a gene, I guess.” I shrug and laugh.
“Maybe you should set your clocks forward?”
“Tried. My mind does the math.”
The sun beats down on my shoulders when we step into the chilled air. Fall is coming sooner than expected.
Davis tugs on my wrist, and I turn around.
His lips brush along my cheek. “Good afternoon,” he says, giving me a proper hello.
All that nonsense about my lateness washes away.
“Good afternoon,” I murmur.
Davis leads us to his car parked along the street, and the car lights flicker, signaling it’s unlocked.
“Nuh-uh.” I shake my head.
His head pulls back in confusion.
“We’re taking the train.” My steps increase speed, and I leave him standing next to his car in complete disbelief.
“The train?”
I giggle from his shocked expression. “Yep, let’s go.” I step back toward him and grab his hand to pull him forward.
“I assumed we’d be going to the art museum?”
“Well, that art is great, but you’re missing out on some spectacular pieces by driving that fancy sports car everywhere.” I walk backward while Davis glances back to his car. “It’s fine. I thought I was in charge of this tour?”
I tug him toward me and he eventually succumbs, stumbling forward.
“With those jeans on, I think I’d follow you right into the lake.”
His steps match mine, and butterflies swim in my stomach as his fingers entwine with mine.
CHAPTER TEN
Todd
I escaped the scene before I have to witness Noodle and Davis together. Noodle doesn’t need to know that I’m two minutes away from fucking someone just to get her out of my mind.
Why, all of a sudden, is she filling my thoughts with something more than friendship?
I’m not going to deny that I’ve always been attracted to her. How could a guy not be?
But—and it’s a big but—I don’t shit where I sleep. It was a hard lesson learned, but neighbors aren’t up for any kind of fuckery. I prefer it when they don’t even know where I live.
Davis would be a good fit for Noodle—at least, I keep telling myself that. If only her piercing brown eyes weren’t haunting me right now . . .
She was concerned about me and what was wrong with me. How was I supposed to tell her it was her?
I’ve lived with regret after regret my whole life—like crappy things I did, only to wish I could take them back later. I’m done with that. I’m done with that pit-of-my-stomach guilt that overtakes me. That’s why I have to remember my promise. I’ll never take something that shouldn’t be mine. I’ll never, ever allow myself to fully care about anyone.
Pushing Noodle out of my head as much as possible, I pump myself up for another investor meeting. I’m at five meetings this week alone, and I’m drawing up shit with each one. This one is different, though. Today, I’m meeting with Edith and her daughter, Karla. They’re virgins in the restaurant business but old-timers in developing a brand.
Lavender is the first thing I smell as I step into their perfume store. Edith and Karla developed a line of perfumes, soaps, and anything else for women to smell good. The business is how they made their fortune, and they’ve been wanting to get into the restaurant business for some time. They’ve been coming to CHOPs since I started there, and lately, they’ve been requesting that I come out after their meal to thank me. One evening a month ago, I had the balls to ask them if they’d be interested. Since neither of us felt right doing it under Davis’s nose, here I am.
“Todd.” Karla circles around the display and gives me a kiss on each cheek.
“Hi, Karla. How are you?”
“I’m good. The kids and husband are driving me bonkers, but I’m surviving. What about you? I see you make it to the gym plenty.”
She coyly winks, and I chuckle. Karla constantly rags on me about my Facebook posts.
“Well, I’m single, so it’s not hard to find the time.” I follow her to the back end of the store.
“Oh, I guess we never asked. I’m surprised you’re single.” Her lips turn down. “Hold on, I’m going to grab my mom.”
She disappears through the back door, and my breathing picks up pace. Is it my imagination, or was Karla upset by the fact that I’m single? Shit. My head overflows with a zillion different girls I could ask to be my girlfriend, if that’s a deal-breaker for them.
“Todd.” Edith emerges through the door with her arms extended out to me.
“Good to see you, Edith.”
She hugs me, and the smell of lavender intensifies.
“Come on. We’re going out to lunch.”
She hooks her arm through mine, and I escort her out the door.
Half an hour later, the three of us are seated at a table in the front of a swanky café tucked away on a side street.
“This is amazing.” I sip the split pea soup off the spoon, completely flabbergasted that I didn’t make it.
“I love their food here,” Karla says.
Edith doesn’t chime in. Instead, she places her spoon down, wipes her mouth, and leans back in her chair. I guess the meeting just turned from friends to business.
You got this, Todd.
“So, we have some concerns, Todd,” Edith begins.
Well, shit. This isn’t a good start.
“What are your concerns, Edith?” I wipe my mouth and nudge my bowl of soup to the side.
“We know how Davis is. You don’t get any control in the restaurant, which means you don’t fully know what a restaurant needs to run or how to run one.”
“I’m at CHOPs for the day-to-day operations.”
“Yes, but you don’t do the inventory or the ordering.”
“Believe me, Edith, I know enough.” My stomach twists that this meeting is going nowhere. I’m forever destined to be under someone.
“Hmm . . .” She turns to her daughter, and they share a look.
What the fuck does that look mean?
“There are rumors filling the business circle. Davis is giving investors ultimatums when it comes to you.” Karla pauses and looks at her mom.
Edith nods.
“You know how much Davis has changed Brooklyn as far as restaurants go and how much clout he has in this city.”
I lean up and rest my elbows on the arms of the chairs as my blood boils. “What exactly are you saying, Karla?” My fingers lock together and clench to the point that t
hey hurt.
“He’s telling people if they do business with you, he’ll never help them out. He’s threatening that he knows too many people their businesses rely on.”
“What could he possibly do?”
Karla places her hand on my tightly woven fists. I fight the urge to pull my hands away.
“Their vendors, saying their shipments could be delayed or even canceled. Liquor licenses.”
“Why does he give a shit about what I do? He can get another chef to take my place.”
I swallow to keep my anger at bay. These ladies don’t need my wrath. If I go animalistic, they’ll shoot me down for sure.
“That’s the thing,” Edith says. “In our eyes”—she glances to her daughter, and they smile—“you’re too good to lose, which means you’re the perfect chef for us.”
“If you’re that valuable to Davis, it means you’re more than an aspiring chef, Todd. It means you must be irreplaceable.” Karla gleams.
I can’t fight the smile forming across my lips. My dimples have to be on full display.
I relax back in my chair. “That’s a good thing, right?” I’m not ready to let my guard down just yet.
“That’s a very good thing.”
I exhale a deep breath and allow my heart rate to slow down.
“But . . .” Edith’s eyes pin mine.
Shit.
“There’s another thing that concerns us.”
If Davis sabotaging any business that invests with me doesn’t concern them, I know I can ease any other concerns.
“You’re twenty-seven and single, and we looked you up on Facebook. You model,” Karla says.
It’s confirmed. She doesn’t like that I’m single.
“Clarification, if I can offer one?”
Edith nods. Perspiration beads on my forehead, and I rub my palms down my legs. I need this restaurant. If Edith and Karla are the only two in Brooklyn who are willing to work with me, I need this deal if my dream of owning my own restaurant is going to come true.
“I’m twenty-seven and engaged, and I model for . . . my fiancée, who’s an aspiring photographer.” Shit, where did that come from?
“Really?” Edith asks.
A wide grin splashes across both their faces.
“Yes.”
Don’t divulge too much information. It shows lying.
“You said you were single earlier.” Karla tilts her head to the side.
My heart thunders against my chest. “Technically, I am.” I raise my hand in the air and show no ring.
Please buy the lies spewing out of my mouth.
She slowly nods. “Touché.”
Edith sits up straighter. “We’d love to meet her before we make this whole thing final.”
Final?
My foot starts tapping, and my scream of excitement sits in my lungs.
“Definitely. Name the time and place.”
“We’ll come in one night next week, and we can all go out afterward.”
“Perfect.”
An hour later, after discussing several types of restaurant routes we could go on, I say good-bye to Edith and Karla, my new business partners . . . hopefully.
I pull out my phone, and my fingers tremble while scrolling down to Noodle’s name. My thumb rests over her name, but I can’t click it. This is something we should discuss face-to-face.
I wish that empty feeling of despair inside of me would go the hell away.
This will be easy. She’ll meet them, I’ll get the restaurant, and then we’ll break up.
Easy.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Amelia
Davis and I walk the two blocks to the train, hand in hand, and I wish it felt as comfortable as I want it to. Digging out my cash, I buy Davis a train pass for the day.
“Amelia, I’m the man. I should be paying.” He sighs, pulling out his own wallet.
“I lost the bet, so lock up the wallet, and enjoy the day.” I buy his ticket from the machine and turn around to wait for him.
He’s a stubborn one. After two people swear at me for having to go around me, he finally relents.
“Thanks. That old lady was about to kick my ass for holding up the line.”
He laughs, and his face reddens. His eyes ping around to see if anyone is watching us. I assume me paying must really bother him.
“You know I can just add this in to your paycheck, right?” he says as we wait for the train.
“You’ll have your chance to woo me, Davis.”
“In more ways than one.” He bumps his shoulder with mine.
Now, it’s my turn to flush with heat. “I look forward to it.” I breathe deeply, hoping it slows my heart rate.
The train arrives, and we file in with everyone else.
I take Davis on a tour of art that fills the train stops, making him exit the train at each stop. I point out each of my favorite pieces that happen to be mostly mosaics. They’ve forever made me envious of the talent each artist possesses. To make one solid art form from a zillion different pieces awes me.
“I can’t believe I’ve never noticed this.” Davis’s hand swipes along the art. “It’s beautiful.”
We’re on our fourth stop, and each time, he’s said the same thing. I’m guessing he’s not an art admirer, but he’s trying, and that counts in my book.
“When is the last time you took the train?”
I peer up at him, and his palm rubs his chin. A sly grin crosses his lips, and I giggle.
“That long, huh?”
He nods. “Embarrassingly long.” His eyes cast down to me as his face goes solemn. “I think I’ve stopped seeing what’s around me.”
My breathing staggers from how unnerving his eyes are on me. The train squeals to a stop, and we wait for others to file out before we enter.
“Where to now?” he asks.
I tug on his hand. “Dinner.”
“My specialty.” He releases my hand and places it on the small of my back, guiding me into the train.
With it being later in the day, there are no seats, so Davis stands behind me against the rail. His body shelters me as I grip the metal pole harder.
“Come home with me,” he whispers in my ear.
The hair on the back of my neck stands up.
“I can’t go home with you. It’s our first date,” I joke, peering over my shoulder at him.
His cheek runs along mine. The five o’clock stubble has grown since we left.
“Just dinner, Amelia.” He lowers his voice again, and the deepness dampens me between my legs.
I twist around and move my hands behind my back to grip the pole to steady myself. Then, I realize this might have been a mistake. He’s so close, those brown eyes piercing into mine. His eyes flicker from my breasts to my lips to my eyes. I wish the appeal of being laid out naked on his bed for him to devour me doesn’t change my mind about going back to his apartment. God, he’d do amazing things with my body.
“I’m taking you to a local joint.” I change the course of conversation before I really do sleep with him on the first date.
He dips down, so his face is mere inches from mine. “My condo is local.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about, and I seriously doubt it can be called a joint.”
He chuckles. “You have me there.” His hands graze down my body until they mold against my hips. “I want to cook for you.” The seductiveness in his voice has me second-guessing my decision.
“I bet you say that to all the girls.” I place my hand on his chest to push him away, but his hand lands on top of mine.
“I don’t. I cook for very few people privately, Amelia.”
I stare off to the side and wiggle in his grasp. “Another time, okay?”
He remains focused on me for an unnerving ten seconds before his head slowly moves up and down. “Promise?”
“I promise.”
He releases my hand, and I grip the pole again so I don’t fall into him when the train r
ocks back and forth.
“Where to then?” He places his hands above my head.
My eyes gaze to his hips. What would it feel like to hold myself steady with his body instead of the metal pole? If he were mine, I could touch him whenever I wanted.
“You’ll see.”
The conductor announces the stop, and my eyes light up. “This is it.”
I take his hand with mine and tug him out of the train and into the subway station. Once we scurry up the steps, the streets are dark, and a light drizzle falls down on top of us. It’s eerily romantic. As we get closer, I catch the sight of the neon sign, and Davis figures out where we’re going.
“You are refusing a five-star gourmet meal for a hot dog?”
I smile. The streetlight casts a glow across his face. He’s drop-dead gorgeous.
“I am.”
“It’d better be a damn good hot dog.”
“Better than you could make,” I tease.
He lets go of my hand and begins tickling my sides.
I squirm away.
“You think so?” He continues his attack.
Soon, he locks me against the wall outside the door to the restaurant.
“I’d make you melt over my food.”
“I think you can make me melt.” The words leak out before I can grab them back. A flush swims up my neck and cheeks.
Davis smiles down to me. There’s no guarded or scared look in his eyes.
“I’m glad,” he says.
He bends, and my breathing stops as I wait for his face to reach mine. His moist lips brush against mine, and my body calms. I thread my fingers through the back of his hair while his tongue parts my lips. He quickly becomes more urgent, his tongue delving deeper into my mouth. A low groan escapes his throat, and it takes every ounce of my willpower not to swing my leg around his hip. He steps into me more, flushing our bodies together against the wall. His fingers dig into my hips, and there’s never been another kiss my whole life that has given me a feeling filled with want.
When he closes the kiss, I inch forward, wanting more.
He holds out his hand. “Shall we?”
I take his hand and allow him to lead me into the restaurant. We order our hot dogs and sit down at one of the few vacant tables. We talk about my enormous family and him growing up as an only child.
“I always wanted brothers,” he says before biting into a hot dog.
Seeing You Page 8
