by Parker, Ali
“Thank God for the extra space. I hope the fire marshal doesn’t stop by. I think we’re over capacity,” he joked.
“No kidding,” I said before rushing past to deliver the drinks I was carrying.
Mason and I had to jump in and help the servers. They had been overwhelmed. The last thing we needed was to provide slow service. We only got one chance to make a good first impression. There was a lot riding on it.
I had been hustling and serving for the last hour. It felt good. I loved watching Mason serve people. He’d been a little clumsy at first, but he had quickly gotten the hang of it. He was a natural. I grabbed a few empties and made my way back behind the long, sleek counter where we had two registers going for those that wanted to pay at the counter.
I moved to go into the stockroom to grab more cocktail napkins, making a mental note to order more on Monday. We’d gone through far more than I had expected, and it was only the first night of business. Deanna appeared beside me, grabbing a box of straws.
“This is crazy, huh?” she gasped.
I nodded, feeling fluttery with adrenaline. “It is. I would have never guessed this could happen. I’m in awe.”
She was smiling. “I guessed it. Mason knew it.”
I got tears in my eyes as I thought about the long nights we’d spent hashing out the details and tossing around ideas. I had been so afraid to move forward with the changes. Mason had kept telling me it would all be okay. I wasn’t as sure, until now. He had called it. He might have thought he was different from his family, but he had definitely inherited the business sense.
“That he did. This is amazing. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought it was possible for this place to be transformed into what it is now. Never.”
I laughed, tears springing to my eyes. I was emotional and weepy and felt completely foolish.
“He is amazing,” I said, the words nearly choking me.
Deanna reached for me, giving me a quick hug. “Are you okay?”
I nodded, unable to speak.
“Everything okay with you and Mason?” she asked gently.
“Yes, perfect. Everything is so good. It is so much better than okay,” I told her, a tear sliding down my face.
“It’s okay to be happy,” she said softly.
“I know.”
She shook her head. “I don’t think you do. You’ve been holding yourself back for years. You’ve been in this holding pattern, like you were afraid to get out there and really enjoy your life. I’m happy to see you moved to tears. That’s a good sign. You’re letting it in and you’re releasing those emotions that you usually work so hard to keep under wraps. You’re raw and real and I can imagine how much brighter your world is.”
I nodded, emotion leaving me with a huge lump in my throat. “Yes,” I croaked out.
“I’m happy to witness it. Now, we better get our asses back out there. Are you going to be okay?” she asked, looking into my eyes.
“Yes, I’m fine. It was a moment. It’s passed,” I told her, using my fingertips to wipe away the tears.
We walked out front, carrying our supplies and diving back into things. The clientele we had brought in were more of the exclusive business type and not the usual over-worked moms and secretaries on the run for their bosses that we generally saw in the morning. I loved that we had found a way to tap into both worlds. I smiled as I looked at the tables filled with people, laughing and chatting and enjoying themselves. It was hard not to look at the bodies and see dollar signs. I had a feeling we were doing more in sales that night than I normally did in a week. Things were definitely looking up.
“Can you grab a towel? I need to get that table cleaned. There’s a couple looking to sit down, and I don’t want to turn them away and I don’t want to seat them at a dirty table,” Mason said, slightly out of breath and sounding a little panicked.
“Got it. I’ll be over there as soon as I deliver these,” I told him, rushing toward a table of middle-aged men.
It was another two hours of running at full speed, barely having a moment to breathe. All of us worked together to keep the customers happy. Toward the end of the night, we had time to slow down and take a few minutes. Mason and I headed for the outdoor seating area, the soft candles still going at the center of each table. We sat down, each of us stretching out our feet to prop them up in the other chairs.
I took a sip of the craft beer, testing the way it tasted on my tongue before deciding it was actually very good and taking a bigger drink from the bottle.
“Thanks for tonight,” I told him.
“That was intense,” he said with a laugh.
I nodded. “We used to get those rushes in the mornings, but nothing quite so busy and not as long in duration. You hung in there like a real trooper.”
“I don’t know if I could do that five days a week. Hell, I don’t think I could do it two days a week.”
I laughed. “It keeps you young.”
“It keeps me exhausted. Too many more nights like this and I think our sex life might seriously be affected. I might have to rethink my bright idea to grow your business,” he joked.
“Too late. The damage is done. If it keeps up like this, I will definitely be hiring more staff. I don’t think I want to run around like that too often,” I told him, my feet throbbing.
“I think it is going to keep up just like this. Hell, I think we might have to think about opening another location. It’s a hit. Just think what will happen when all these people go home and tell their friends about the new spot they found. It’s going to blow up,” he said.
I could see the excitement in his eyes. He’d had a blast tonight. I could tell he’d been bit by the business bug. He was going to be searching out more investment opportunities.
“My dad would be so proud,” I said, staring up at the night sky.
“I wish I could have met him,” he replied.
I scoffed. “I’m not sure the two of you would have hit it off right away, but he would have grown to like you. He was stubborn as hell.”
“The apple didn’t fall far from the tree I guess,” he joked.
“Hey,” I retorted.
“You’ve done well for yourself. I’m proud of you. Your dad would absolutely be proud. Any parent would be. You fought hard for this place. I didn’t get it before, but I get it now. I understand why you were so possessive of this place. It’s your baby and it’s your connection to your dad. I’ve also gained new understanding into Grayson, I think,” he said thoughtfully.
“How so?” I asked.
“Because he fought and did some questionable things in order to hold on to his spot in my dad’s company. It was like he could see nothing else but being the head of that company. I wanted nothing to do with it, but he was all-in. It was my dad’s and he had to prove something to him. You and Grayson have that in common,” he explained.
I laughed, thinking of his very straight-laced brother. “I think that’s about all we have in common.”
“You did good, Adelaide Sinclair. You did really good,” he said, taking a long drink from his beer.
The words made me feel good. They were cheesy, but perfect. He always knew just what to say to make me feel better.
Chapter 72
Mason
I felt like a kid in a candy store with endless credit. Today was the day Adelaide was moving in. To me, it was the first step into a real, full-fledged adult relationship. My life had changed dramatically in the last few months. Everything felt different. I felt like I had woken up in a new world. I wasn’t anxious. I didn’t feel like I had to run. I was right where I was supposed to be, and I didn’t want to leave unless she was with me.
I walked up the flight of stairs to her apartment. The movers had shown up about thirty minutes ago and were already making quick work of loading up her small apartment. I had hired the crew, but they weren’t moving fast enough. I was helping load boxes into the truck, trying to move things along.
“Is this one ready?” I asked Adelaide, trying my hardest not to get distracted by the very short cut-off jean shorts she was wearing.
“Just about,” she said, wiping sweat from her brow.
She tossed in a few more things from a kitchen drawer into the box before closing it up tight. She pulled a sticker from the roll and slapped it on the box, marking it as kitchen.
I leaned forward. “You look hot, literally and figuratively,” I told her.
She laughed. “I’m a hot, sticky mess. Moving in the middle of the summer on what has to be the most humid day on record is not the best idea.”
“But you look so good hot and sweaty,” I said with a laugh.
“I think you’re full of it, but for now, I’m going to accept the compliment. I have a few more things to pack and then the kitchen will be done,” she said.
“Sounds good. Are you sure you don’t want to take the furniture?” I asked her.
She shook her head. “Nope, don’t want it. I have a couple things I pushed to the side for the movers. The rest of it will be picked up on Monday.”
“If you’re sure. If you want it, we’ll make the room or we’ll get rid of some of my stuff,” I told her.
“I like your stuff and I want to give this to someone who can use it,” she insisted.
“Okay. I’m going to take these boxes down,” I said, bending over to grab them.
“You hired movers to do this. Why are you doing it?” she asked, a hand on her hip.
“Because they aren’t moving fast enough. I should have hired two crews,” I mumbled, turning to walk back out the door.
I heard her laughing behind me. I spent the next hour carrying boxes and tossing more of her stuff into boxes. By the time she was ready to call it good, I was exhausted. We walked to my car, both of us stopping to look up at the window of her living room.
“I can’t believe we’re really doing this,” she said wistfully.
“We can have the movers take everything right back up there if you want. I don’t want to pressure you. I don’t want you to feel like you’re doing something you don’t really want to do,” I told her, turning to stare at her over the hood of my car.
Her eyes met mine. She smiled and shook her head. “No. This is what I want. I’m ready. This door has closed.”
“All right then, hop in and let’s go home,” I said, the words almost making me feel giddy.
The movers were already at my place, the elevator making their job a little easier since they could use the hand truck to move more at once. Adelaide and I stayed out of the way, watching them make trips in and out of the place, depositing her things in the living room and spilling over into the dining room.
“That’s the last one,” one of the guys said.
I grinned. “Thank you,” I said, pulling out my wallet and handing the guy two very crisp one-hundred-dollar bills for him and his partner.
“Thank you!” he exclaimed, looking at the bills in his hand.
“Thank you for doing this on such short notice. I appreciate it and thank you for allowing me to help. I know I was in the way,” I said with a laugh.
He nodded his head and left, leaving Adelaide and me alone in the apartment. I took a second to look around at the rather large mess now covering the living room.
“Do we have to unpack?” she groaned.
I threw my head back and laughed. “How in the hell was all that stuff in your apartment?”
She grimaced. “I don’t know. I always thought I lived without clutter, but I was wrong. I’m going to have to go through all of this and decide what stays and what goes. Would you believe I already did that when I packed?” she asked, looking at me with disbelief.
“You have a lot of stuff. I don’t think I have that much,” I told her.
“Are you regretting your decision to ask me to move in?” she said with a giggle.
“Not at all. You could move five truckloads in here and I would be okay with it.”
“Be careful what you wish for.”
I opened the fridge, pulling out two cold beers and handing her one. “Hungry?”
She nodded. “Famished.”
“I’ll order pizza,” I suggested.
“That sounds amazing. I’m going to take a quick shower. I’m sweaty and icky and I need a nice cold shower.”
“Cold?” I asked, raising my eyebrow.
“Not that kind of cold,” she said with a wink and walking out of the kitchen.
I grabbed my phone and quickly ordered a pizza with everything on it along with an order of breadsticks. We had both worked up a serious appetite. I grabbed another beer and surveyed the situation. It was going to take some effort to find places for everything to go. I didn’t mind. I was looking forward to our things co-mingling. I wanted to see her little figurines on the built-in shelves, and I wanted to see her shoes scattered around the apartment like they had been at her place. I wanted her sexy panties in the dresser and her dresses hanging in the closet. I wanted to feel her presence everywhere.
I meandered into the bedroom, listening to her sing along with some song on the radio. The sound filled my heart. I grabbed a clean shirt from my drawer, stripped off the old one and pulled on the new one. I was too hungry to worry about showering before I ate.
Adelaide emerged, her hair wet and her skin looking fresh and dewy. “Pizza here yet?”
“No. It’s only been ten minutes.”
She pouted. “I thought for sure you would wave your magic wand and the pizza would magically appear.”
“Not today, princess.”
She scowled at me, her hands resting on her hips that were clad in a pair of loose black shorts. She had put on a tank top that hung loose around her. As usual, she looked hot as hell.
“Princess? Are we back to that?” she asked.
I grinned. “Now I can call you princess and mean it. Although I think I should call you my queen.”
She laughed, shaking her head. “I cannot believe I’m here.”
“Here, in the apartment?” I asked, wondering if she was having second thoughts.
“Yes. Did you ever think you and I would be shacking up together? Me and Mason Bancroft, the guy I thought was absolutely despicable. The guy that made me want to pull out my hair,” she said, that sexy grin on her face. “I remember thinking that night how much I wanted to leave. I was so pissed you were going to show up. The only reason I stayed was because I really needed a night out.”
“You were not nice at that dinner. You went out of your way to be rude,” I reminded her.
She grinned. “I know. I was enjoying myself. I liked getting under your skin. Did you ever think this could happen?”
“Actually, no I didn’t. You were probably the last person on earth I ever wanted to dine with, let alone live with or spend my life with,” I told her honestly. “That night I kept thinking I wanted to dump a drink on you. You kept looking at me like I was a maggot.”
She walked into my arms, resting her cheek against my chest. “I guess it’s a good thing we got drunk enough to let down our guards that night.”
“A very good thing,” I whispered, leaning down to kiss the top of her head.
The doorbell rang and you would have thought it was a gun going off with the way she pushed away from me. “Pizza!” she exclaimed.
I laughed, following her to the door. She already had it open by the time I made it out there. She nearly tripped over the boxes as she moved to the dining table.
“Let’s sit on the couch. I want to put my feet up and pig out,” I said.
“I’ll grab a couple plates,” she replied, handing me the hot cardboard box.
I carried it into the living room, flopping down on the sofa and sighing as my body was cradled by the comfortable leather of the couch. Adelaide returned a minute later carrying two more cold beers, napkins and plates.
“Thank you,” I said, taking another long drink.
“I think this was fate,” she
said, sitting down next to me.
“The pizza?” I teased.
“Me and you.”
I put a slice on a plate for her before grabbing one for myself. “You sure put up a hell of a fight. You kicked and screamed the whole time, but I finally won in the end.”
“We’ll see about that.”
“You’re helpless to fight my charms. I’m a Bancroft. We’re born with it. We can charm anyone,” I said with a laugh.
She scowled at me. “Your charms didn’t work for me.”
“Bullshit.”
“You think so? Who says I didn’t charm you?” she retorted, taking a bite of her pizza slice.
“Oh, you charmed me. You bewitched me. You probably cast some spell on me that makes it impossible for me to escape your clutches,” I said with a laugh.
“You found me out. I guess I’ll have to toss out the magic potions I packed in one of those boxes.”
“Baby, you don’t need magic to win me. You’ve got me. You are stuck with me,” I told her.
“Good. Now finish that pizza. You’re going to need your strength.”
“Oh, really? You have plans for me?” I teased.
She nodded her head, finishing her slice of pizza. “I do. I’m going to get us a couple more beers.”
“You’re feeding me and getting me liquored up?”
“Yep,” she said, rising from the couch and sauntering away.
I turned to watch her walk away, the sway of her hips drawing me in. I wasn’t hungry anymore. I wanted her. She was what I craved. I would let her finish eating before I took her into our bedroom and showed her just how happy I was to have her with me. She needed to know she was my everything. I had tried to tell her, but I wasn’t sure I’d gotten the message across. I had to show her.
Chapter 73
Adelaide
When I returned to the living room, all it took was one look to know he wasn’t hungry anymore. He had that look that I had come to know very well. He was in the mood for something else entirely. I was as well. I put the beers on the coffee table and stood in front of him. He looked up, his eyes holding mine as I reached out to grab his hand. I gently pulled, telling him without words I wanted him up.
