“So Des is hoping to cater to all the suits.” Paige looked around, the gleaming buildings much newer than those in both the city and South Melbourne. “Morning coffees, office lunches, things like that?”
“Exactly.” Libby nodded. “He’s not even going to open on the weekend at first. That way they can keep staff costs low and build up a reputation before they try to run at full hours.”
“Makes sense.” Paige nodded. “I’m guessing that means no mixology classes for you?”
“Not likely. But they will be licensed.” Libby tucked a stray strand of fiery red hair behind her ears. “I did some research, and a lot of the places here cater after-work drinks. So while they don’t run a full dinner service, a lot of the office workers will grab a drink or two between five thirty and seven before heading home or making a reservation in the city. Des is planning to stock a limited selection of the Libby Gal vodka range, because we’re hoping it might make a good ‘girls’ night’ spot for the people who work here.”
Paige bobbed her head. “You guys have it all figured out.”
“Well, we hope so.” Libby laughed. “This is the spot.”
The place was a hole in the wall, with the windows covered over and a sign from the previous tenants pointing customers to their new address a block over. “Is it still going to be called First?”
“He’s toying with the idea of calling it Second.” Libby grinned. “I think it’s cute.”
“So do I.” She tried to peek through a gap in the paper covering the windows, but it was dark inside. “Looks like a good spot. The tram stop is right there so people can grab a coffee before they head into the office.”
She wanted to ask if Noah would be managing Second…or whether he was going to stay at First. Not only that, she desperately wanted to know if he’d hired a new barista and had charmed the pants off them, too? Anything that might indicate whether she was a passing whim. But the question stuck like a seed in the back of her throat, scratching at her, refusing to budge when she swallowed.
Why do you keep thinking about him? It’s over—he said it, you said it. It’s done.
The truth was, without Noah she couldn’t enjoy herself. Their argument had left her feeling awful.
Understatement, much?
Okay, so in reality she felt like something that had been chewed up, spit out, rolled over, and picked apart by vultures. Emotional roadkill.
And two weeks had done nothing to dull the memory of his lips on hers, of how heavenly it had felt when she’d woken in his arms. How she’d known, deep in her gut, that they had the potential for so much more than lust. But she’d pushed too hard, tried to fit him into her predefined box of what life should be like. Instead of giving the feeling room to grow, she’d smothered it with her need for perfection.
And as angry as she was at Noah for refusing to meet her halfway, there was no denying that she was as much to blame.
…
Noah hurried along Collins Street, trying to psych himself up. So far everything was going according to plan—which made him nervous. Surely that was a sign things were about to go off the rails, especially with so many people being in on his plan.
When Libby had called to let him know that Paige would be staying with her and Paul for the weekend, Noah’s heart almost exploded. Paige was coming back. Now all he had to do was figure out how to get her alone so that he could come clean with her. This time he wasn’t going to hide behind his facade of indifference. He wasn’t going to play the noncommittal asshole.
He was simply going to be himself. Noah. The guy who often did the wrong thing while trying to do the right thing. The guy who was finally learning from his mistakes.
After much coaxing, Libby had agreed to let him hijack her lunch with Paige, so he could make amends. One conversation wouldn’t be enough, but he hoped it might be the start of something. It occurred to him now, though, that maybe it was too pushy. What if she didn’t want to be stuck talking to him when she thought she was supposed to be having lunch with Libby?
If she said no, he would respect her wishes. But knowing that he might be closing the door for good was enough to bring his meager breakfast back up.
God, how could you have been such a dick all this time?
Libby had only informed him about Paige’s visit as an FYI in case he saw them together. And she’d been wary of his plans. But luckily Libby trusted him, which was more than he deserved.
Not that she’d been totally naive, mind you. If he upset Paige again, Libby had threatened that there’d be hell to pay.
Again.
That one little word had splintered in his chest. He had hurt her the first time by being dishonest—both with himself as well as with her. That night they’d spent together was the furthest thing from a one-night stand that he could think of. And while he’d acknowledged that he’d felt something, he’d still pushed her away.
He spotted the location for Des’s soon-to-be-opened café, and saw Paige and Libby chatting. She looked confused, her head shaking as she said something. Then she turned, eyes scanning the street, widening as she spotted him. Her whole body stilled. Fuck. This was going to rip him apart even more than he’d anticipated.
Noah jammed his hands in his pockets, and Paige’s head swung from him to Libby and back again, her mouth moving a million miles a minute.
Paige came over, her head shaking. “What are you doing here?”
She was a vision. Her long hair hung in a single braid over one shoulder. Her skin gleamed with extra sun—her freckles looking even deeper and more lovely. But it was her eyes that got him—those sparkling, hope-filled eyes that shattered every bit of confidence he had.
“Heard you were back in town.” He tried to keep his voice smooth and confident, even though it felt like his chest was going to explode. “I wanted to pay you a visit.”
“I guess that’s my cue to leave.” Libby squeezed Paige’s hand. “I’m going to grab a coffee. Call me if you want to head back to my place.”
In other words, if she didn’t want anything to do with him.
“You two are in cahoots.” Her mouth hung open. “Libby Harris, I am appalled.”
“I’m not a traitor, I promise. But I’ve been where you are and…I couldn’t say no to him,” she said with a rueful shake of her head. “And I’ve threatened his balls if hurts you again.”
“He won’t hurt me again,” Paige said steadily, her eyes never leaving his.
Noah swallowed. “Thanks for working with me on this one, Libs.”
“Don’t mess up.” She gave a wave and headed off toward another group of shops, her heels clicking against the pavement.
As Noah turned back to Paige, he handed her a small paper bag containing lunch. He’d pilfered some homemade pastries from Mrs. Chapman—cannoli and crostoli, which were dusted with white sugar and were bound to make a mess of her beautiful mouth.
“I figured since I was crashing your lunch, I should at least feed you.”
“You certainly planned this out.” She plucked a piece of crostoli from the bag and bit into the end. Powdered sugar plumed in front of her, dusting her upper lip and nose. “Never try to talk sense into a hangry person.”
“I’ve got three sisters, remember. I understand the importance of sugar.” He swallowed, finding himself a little anxious in her presence.
A small smile spread over her lips, but it disappeared a second later as though she’d reminded herself that they weren’t friends.
“Why are you playing nice all of a sudden?” she asked, chewing. “Because I thought we were supposed to be done. I mean, you ignored me my whole last fortnight at First, and it’s been radio silence ever since.”
He raked a hand through his hair. “I came here with an ulterior motive.”
“Thanks, Captain Obvious, I hadn’t picked up on that with my tiny lady brain.” She laughed. “If a guy goes to that much trouble to bring a girl food, I know it’s for a reason.”
“
I was worried you wouldn’t give me the chance to say sorry if I didn’t come bearing gifts.”
Her expression turned serious. “I don’t know what I would have done. I mean, I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about you in these past few weeks. I have…a lot. But I don’t want my heart to get trampled all over again. Honestly, it blows.”
“I’ve come to understand that doing the trampling also blows.” He sighed. “I shouldn’t have treated you like that. It was a dick move.”
“At least you admit it.” Her tone was forcefully light. Unnatural. “So, I saw the spot for the café.”
She was steering the conversation away from the serious stuff. Not a good sign, where Paige was concerned. He swallowed against the tightness in his throat.
“I’m going to be managing it.”
“You are?” Her head snapped to him, her expression unguarded and happy for a brief flash. “That’s great.”
“I guess your commitment is contagious. You should have warned me.” They made it to the bridge that curled over the Yarra River and walked up to the top, standing to look toward the city. Tall buildings sparkled in the afternoon sunlight, and the water gleamed in a path straight ahead. Unending and peaceful.
“Glad something good came of my time here,” she said.
“A lot of good came of it, Paige.” Why was this so hard? Noah always knew what to say. He ran verbal rings around people most of the time. But the second it came to anything real—anything raw—he was at a loss. “Shit. I’ve never done this before. All I know is that I’m going to be kicking myself from here until the end of time if I don’t try to come clean with you.”
“Come clean with me?” She tilted her head. “About what?”
“That I suck at anything more than sex.”
She raised a brow. “Yeah, I got that from all the times you told me you don’t do relationships.”
“Look, this is coming out all wrong. What I want to say is that I really like you. Like, a stupid amount. I think it might be love but I honestly don’t know what that feels like and so I’m all messed up about it.” He sucked in a breath and let the floodgates open. “I want to say all the right romantic things, but that’s not me. What I can do is promise that I’ll learn. I’ll learn how to be the best boyfriend there is. I’ll learn to not be afraid that one day you’ll walk out because I messed up. And I won’t stop learning until I get it all right. Paige, I want to be the guy who makes you smile every single fucking day. I don’t know if there’s a word for that, but it’s what I want.”
The silence was loud enough to pop his heart like a grape. In hindsight, maybe he should have thought about what he wanted to say and planned it out. But every time he’d imagined this scenario, his brain had shut down with the fear of it all.
What if she said no? What if she laughed in his face? What if she thought this was the lamest thing anyone had ever said in the entire history of “I done fucked up” speeches?
He chanced a look at her since the road was straight and clear ahead of them. “Say something.”
“Is this why you crashed my lunch? To tell me this?”
“Well, that and to offer you a job.” He cleared his throat. “I know it’s not your dream job, but I get to hire my own team and you make the best damn coffees of anyone I know. You’ve probably already found something better by now—”
“I haven’t,” she corrected him.
“And I know you’ll want to keep looking,” he barreled on, afraid that if he lost momentum it would all be over. “But I’d love to have you on my team. Not just on my team at work, but on my team…everywhere. And I want to be on your team, too.”
Bloody hell. What was with the sports metaphors? He was grasping at straws now.
“Noah, I don’t understand how this all happened out of nowhere, but I want to be that person that makes you smile every day, too.” She paused. “When I came back to your place that night I knew it was a gamble. I knew there was every possibility I’d hate myself in the morning for going against what I thought I believed in. But you were right, you know?”
“I was?”
“What you said about me demanding commitment up front, you were totally right. I do that because I think it keeps me from getting hurt, but all it means is that I could miss out on something brilliant because I’m too scared to go with the flow.” She let out a self-deprecating little snort. “I’m a bit rigid, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
“Does the Captain Obvious designation come in a his and hers set?” He grinned when her hand swatted him. “Hey, you said you wanted honesty.”
“I want a lot of things, Noah. And I want them all with you.”
Warmth filled his chest and filtered through his veins, soothing his fears and letting hope finally take hold. “I want a lot of things with you, too. I want things that I don’t even know exist. But the only thing I care about right now is knowing that I haven’t lost you.”
“You haven’t.”
“Good.” He nodded. “So you want to work for me again?”
“I don’t know.” Her hand squeezed his. “My coffees really are amazing. I could get a job anywhere.”
“Yeah, but you’ll never have a boss like me.”
“We’ll be working side by side.” She grinned. “I like the sound of that.”
“Before that, we’ve got some catching up to do. I haven’t been able to look at my shower the same way since you were there.”
The scent of Paige’s perfume mingled with pastry filled his nostrils as she leaned over. “I could always come back to your place. I’m sure Libby won’t mind.”
He raised a brow. “Well, now. Not planning to make a bet that you can resist me this time?”
Paige’s laughter rang in his ears as she slipped her free arm around his neck, rising up on her toes as he captured her lips in a kiss. She met him hot and open, tasting oh so sugary sweet.
“No way,” she said, tangling her hands in his hair. “I’m giving up resisting you for good.”
“My plan is working perfectly then.” His lips probed hers, his hands cupping her sweet face. “How about you share some of that crostoli with me?”
“What? You bring me food and now you’re trying to take it from me,” she said. “Not cool.”
But her mock annoyance was broken by a grin as she dipped her hand back into the bag. She produced a piece of the twisted pastry for him. “How about one from lower in the bag?”
A curious expression flittered over her face. “What have you done?”
“Reach in again.” He swallowed. “Maybe rustle around a bit.”
She obliged, watching him the whole time until her eyes widened. She pulled out a key trapped in a small ziplock bag. “Is this…?”
“It’s my spare key. You’ll need it to get into my apartment.” Damn, his blood was pounding in his ears.
His apartment had been his private sanctuary for so long—his sense of stability. The place where no one could tell him to leave. He never thought he’d want so desperately to give that away…but he did. He wanted to wake up with her in his arms every damn day, not knowing what the future would hold but hoping it would be good. Trusting it would be good. With her.
“I want you to move in with me,” he said. “That way you can be here while we work together and it’ll be easier for your job interviews. It’s small but it’s mine and…I want to share it with you.”
Tears shimmered in her eyes, and she swiped at them with an irritated huff. “You’re making me cry again. I don’t cry. For anyone.”
“Again?” He frowned.
She nodded. “Yeah, second time. It’s a record.”
“That’s not a record I want, Paige.”
“No, it’s a good thing.” She turned the key over in her hand. “I don’t think I would have believed you if it was all polished and perfect, because that’s not who you are and I know now it’s not who I am, either.”
“Is that a yes?”
She bobbed
her head. “Absolutely. I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather call home.”
He pressed her against the edge of the bridge, uncaring that there were cyclists and tourists going past. That they had no privacy. This moment was important. It was everything he’d never dared hoped for—but now he could. He could hope and dream and strive, because of her.
“I think I love you, Paige Thomas.”
“I think I love you, too.”
Epilogue
One year later
Paige stepped out of the elevator and glanced around the hallway. When it was clear that no one was around, she kicked off her shoes and sighed in relief as her soles hit the carpet. These damn heels did not want to break in. Stubborn things.
Her life was now hectic, since she’d gone from having no jobs to two jobs. After six months of searching, she’d finally landed a part-time junior accounting role at a privately owned architecture firm. It was well below her experience level, but the market was tight. At one point, she would have turned her nose up at it—deeming it “off plan.” But actually, it worked perfectly.
Since Second was now open on Saturdays, she worked two shifts per week there and did three days at the accounting job. Plus she often popped into Second after work, since her office was around the corner, so she and Noah could walk home together. Only today, she’d forgotten to bring her flats and he’d already left without her.
She padded down the hallway to their apartment, juggling her laptop bag, handbag, heels, and the coffee cup from Second. She knocked on the door, hoping Noah would save her from having to dig around for her keys, but only silence greeted her. Grumbling, she fished her key out and managed to get it in the door without dropping anything.
“Hello?” she sang out as she let the door swing shut behind her. “Noah?”
She dropped her stuff onto the couch and left her shoes by the door. A little pile had gathered there, a collection of black and beige work pumps as well as a pair of hot-pink sneakers and some ballet flats. Paige grinned. She wondered how long it would be before Noah threatened to kick her out for turning his manly apartment into a mess of girlie things. She’d already put flowers and candles on almost every flat surface and filled his couch with red and purple throw cushions.
Betting the Bad Boy (Behind the Bar) Page 19
