The Long Game (Seattle Sentinels #1)

Chapter Thirteen

Lexi

The next day, a huge delivery of orange and pink tulips were delivered to my office.

I grab the card off the desk and read it:

Sorry I came barging in unannounced yesterday. Hope these flowers make your day a little better than yesterday.

Also, sorry I made your dad think you were pregnant. I’m an idiot!

-Sebastian

I look out my window to his office, but he’s not there. I leave the flowers in the spot I think will have the best viewing effect when he returns to his desk.

Since I’m leaving my office for lunch, I tape a sign to the window for him to read when he returns.

Thank you.

Also, You’re Forgiven.

I head down to the cafe a little early to reserve a table for our large group. The restaurant host takes down my name and says it won’t be a problem. She’ll have a couple tables moved together for us.

Today is a beautiful day so I sit out on a park bench in the courtyard between the two office buildings. A newly familiar voice wakes me from my trance.

"I was hoping I’d run into you today. How are you?"

I look up to find Sebastian standing in front of me. The man knows how to wear a pair of slacks, and he has the sleeves of his dress shirt rolled up, baring his bulging forearms. The clothes fit his body like they’re tailored, but I suspect that’s because the fabric is dying to touch him just as badly as all the women in this courtyard who are currently making eyes at him.

I feel honored to be the one getting his attention.

"Sebastian! I’m good, how are you?"

"Just dealing with tight timelines and a few hundred clients who all think they’re my number one. Somehow, it feels like they all call the same day. It’s job security."

He sits down on the other side of the bench.

"Hey, I hope I didn’t freak you out yesterday. You seemed really upset, and I wasn’t sure how to make you feel better from all the way across the courtyard.. I couldn’t get any work done until I knew you were okay. I kept reading the same damn line over and over on my patent submission. I hope I didn’t overstep."

He seems a little self-conscious as he lays it all out there.

"You didn’t overstep. Us ninth floor, left side corner office people have to stick together," I tease him.

"You know… you’re the only person I wave to across the way. No one else seems to even look out the windows at all. Well, except the guy two floors up from your office. One morning he thought I was waving at him instead of you. He shut his blinds and hasn’t opened them since."

I break out in laughter that I wasn’t expecting.

"And you put in more hours than anyone else I’ve noticed. Beautiful, smart, work-a-holic… you’re quite the catch, Lexi."

My cheeks warm at his compliment.

"Well, I don’t seem to be able to outwork you. Seems no matter how early I get to the office or how late I stay, you’re always beating me to it."

"I’m pleased I’ve been holding your attention enough for you to notice. I was hoping I could convince you to come to an art show this evening. It’s not a formal thing. My client is a little eccentric and paints as a hobby. He holds these pop-up galleries around town in odd locations, parks and street corners. One time he held a showing down an alley by the dumpsters. But collectors are starting to get into his unconforming stance on where art should be enjoyed."

"Oh, is this the show you were telling Sonia about?"

"Yeah, same one. I think she’d really enjoy the artist and his take on unconventional background and lighting for showcasing."

"Seems like you take an interest in learning about what makes people tick."

"That’s what I do for a living. People bring me their vision of how things should be… not how they are now. They offer up their hopes and dreams, and then they ask me to safeguard it for them. I take their trust in me with the utmost seriousness." His intensity has my stomach fluttering. "What makes you tick, Lexi?"

Before I can answer, Sebastian stiffens at the sight of a newcomer to our conversation.

"Lexi, you ready for lunch? Everyone’s waiting at the hostess’s booth. We weren’t sure what name you put the reservation under," Tucker says.

"Oh, yeah."

I look down at my cell phone that reads I’m six minutes late for our lunch date.

"I ran into Sebastian after I made the reservation and lost track on time."

As I stand, so does Sebastian and he grabs my hand to make sure I’m steady. Not that I needed it, but the gesture was appreciated by me, and only me. Tucker’s eye settle on where Sebastian is touching me.

"Tucker Evans. This is Sebastian Clark. He works in the building across the from my office. Sebastian, this is Tucker Evans. A longtime family friend."

I can feel Tucker tense up at the reference to friends, but I offer up a smile to cover the awkwardness of this exchange.

The two shake hands and exchange noticeably short, uninspired greetings to each other.

"Well, we better get back to our group. Thanks for sitting with me. Oh! And for the flowers."

"Yeah, I saw the note." He laughs and points up to my window. "Let me know if tonight works for you. Just throw out the bat signal. Or tape a note to the window." He smirks. "I’m leaving here around five, and we can ride together… if you want," Sebastian says.

"Okay, I’ll let you know if I can make it," I say as Tucker leads me away with his hand on my lower back.

As we walk away Tucker asks a question in a low rumble.

"What did you have to forgive him for?"

"Huh?" I ask.

Tucker points up to the window sign we can vaguely make out from the ground.

"Oh. He thought I was pregnant. Made my dad think it…"

"You're pregnant?!" he stops and pulls me around to face him, his hands gripping firming around my arms as he assess me. "Shouldn’t you be sitting down or something? Are you going to see Brielle’s OBGYN? He’s the best in Chicago, right? We need to get you into their office. My agent’s team can make a call if they say they’re overbooked. We’ll get you the best of the best. Anything you need, Lex." His breathing is labored when he finishes rambling.

"Wow. Hold on there, King Kong. I don’t need you taking out small aircrafts just yet."

I hold his stare. I need to put his mind at ease before we sit down for lunch with our families. I’ve never heard Tucker talk that fast with that much concern in my life.

He lets go of my arms and takes another step closer. He places a free hand on my lower belly. My stomach breaks out in butterflies at his touch.

He speaks before I can.

"Whatever you and the baby need, I’m here."

My heart just about jumps out of my chest. There’s no physical way this non-existent baby could be his- but he just spewed, in two seconds flat, how he’d take care of me no matter what.

My female hormones peak and for a moment, I almost wish I was pregnant with a Tucker Evans baby.

"Thank you for your concern – that’s really sweet..."

He scans my body quickly but doesn’t find signs from this dress to suggest that I’d be pregnant. Unless it was the incredibly early stages. I work hard for this flat stomach.

"…But I’m not pregnant"

Tucker makes an audible exhale as if he had been holding his breath since the minute I uttered the word "pregnant". He’s noticeably more relaxed.

"My dad made a comment. Sebastian took the meaning to mean something else. It was a mistake."

"He’s met your dad and he’s sending flowers? Is there a reason this guy might think you're pregnant?"

"That is none of your business, Tucker," I hiss, but then instantly regret being so defensive. "It’s not what you think. He saw I was upset after our conversation earlier. He wanted to check on me. He sent flowers to cheer me up. Not a big deal."

"But you’re going on a date with him tonight? Seems like something, Lex."

I start walking again. The moment we just had has passed. He’s either accusing me of being ignorant or not being honest with him about Sebastian.

He follows right beside me. He’s a RB for goodness’ sake. I don’t know why I thought I could power walk in four-inch heels away from him.

"It’s not a date. And you were there, I didn’t agree to anything. I still have a lot to do for this merger and someone else is making me stop working through my lunch today and tying up a decent part of tomorrow evening, too."

We’re getting within earshot of the seven other people waiting for us to arrive.

"Can we just enjoy lunch? Please?" I plead.

After a few hugs with our group of family waiting for us, the hostess takes us back to our table. Once we’re all settled, my mom chimes in.

"So, now that you guys are playing on the same team, what’s the plans for the off season? Any chance I can convince you two boys to come out to the lake house this summer?"

Luca glances over at Brielle.

"I don’t know, we might be busy making baby number two?" Luca winks at Brielle.

Brielle takes a huge gulp of her mimosa. Everyone laughs.

This time my mom directs the question to Tucker.

"Anything new in the works, Tuck?"

I don’t realize I’m holding my breath waiting for his response, until he lets us all in on his news. I realize I’m going to pass out if I don’t inhale quickly.

Tucker

I couldn’t have planned this better unless I had asked Sheila to ask this question. I’m relieved she did it right out of the gate, because the interaction between Lexi and her neighbor have got me doing everything I can not to take her aside and lay out my plan before she goes on a date/not date.

"I do have news."

"Oh, really!?" Sheila squeals.

"Yeah. First, I sold the penthouse in Seattle this week." Cheers ring out all around the table. "Second, I’m putting down roots in Chicago." I can see in the corner of my eye that Tom is smiling to himself.

"What?" Lexi whispers out loud in confusion.

"I just put an offer on Mr. McKinny’s house last night, and he accepted," I inform them.

No one needs to know I’m paying way over what Sabrina thinks the place is worth.

Mr. McKinny jumped at the offer and agreed to finalize paperwork this month. Turns out he’s been wanting to move to Florida where his two kids have houses.

His wife passed a couple years ago and he hasn’t had any reason to stay in Chicago. He even called me this morning and said his daughter and son-in-law are so excited, they’re flying out to help him start moving everything into storage next month.

The house is bigger than the Benson’s which is already three times as big as the house I grew up in – a nicer middle-class home.

I’ll admit, I’m intimidated about the size of the place for a bachelor, but I’m hoping not to be living in it alone for long, or at all.

And by the way my heart pounds hearing the words "pregnant" come out of Lexi’s mouth. I’m now hoping she’s going to let me knock her up as soon as possible. Never thought I’d want kids this soon but there’s something purely primitive rising in my chest at the idea of putting a baby in Lexi.

It’s stupid, but when she first said pregnant I did the math in my head quickly. The last time I touched her was over two years ago. It would be scientifically impossible that she would still be pregnant with a baby we would have conceived that night in Los Angeles. Nonetheless, a sense of pride blooms at the thought of Lexi carrying a baby we made together.

Tom’s eyes go even brighter at the prospect. "Way to recover the fumble, Evans." He nods over at Sabrina. The three of us share a quick glance.

"What? Carl is selling. When did this happen? He never said anything to me. That little stinker!" Sheila is pretending to be vexed at her neighbor for leaving her out of the sale. "We share gardening tips, and he didn’t think to share this information with me last week when we talked about his petunias," she joked. "So, we’re going to be neighbors then?" Her smile widens.

I can feel Lexi gawking at me, but I’m still rushing this ball home. I won’t be distracted.

"Yeah, we agreed for him to take a few months to move. He has a couple lifetimes in that house. And I’m not in a hurry to move in. I’d like to have a contractor come in and do some renovation over the summer. I hope to be in the house before the start of next season."

My dad, who’s sitting next to me, gave me a good hardy slap on the back. "I’m proud of you, my boy. And of your sister. I’m sure she did something spectacular to get this deal for you. We’ll all be happy to have you home more. Looks like you’re accomplishing everything you set out for."

"Almost," I say as I lock eyes with Lexi.