Eleven
Will walked into Side Tap, the brewpub his friend Ethan Reynolds and Ethan’s brother owned. They were in the process of opening another location and Will couldn’t be happier for them. He hadn’t seen the new location yet but this one, the flagship near the university campus, would always be Will’s favorite.
Its high ceilings and wrought-iron light fixtures gave an air of urban class that meshed perfectly with the warmth of the dark wood bar, the aged-brick walls, and the variety of seating options. A couple of long farmhouse-style tables made it great for parties or even college kids meeting up to study during the affordable happy hour.
Like the restaurant where he’d met Lexi and many of the eateries around, it had an enclosed patio space, strung with twinkle lights and decked out with low fire tables. Ethan had built that long before it was necessary; it was often hard to get a seat. When the weather wasn’t freezing or raining, the large grounds also offered a gorgeous outdoor seating area with picnic tables, canopied tents, and more twinkle lights for summer nights.
Smiling and nodding to the bartender and a couple of the waitresses he knew, he wove his way toward the back where he preferred to sit. He sent Lexi a quick text telling her where to find him, wishing she’d let him pick her up. He wasn’t all that surprised when she’d messaged and said she’d drive herself.
Ethan walked out of the office down one of the hallways as Will spotted a seat. Will grinned when he saw his friend.
“Hey, man. How’s it going?” Ethan tucked his phone away, ran a hand through his dark-blond hair.
They shook hands, exchanged the typical bro hug with a slap on each other’s backs. Will waited, knowing what was coming.
Ethan put his hands on his hips. “What the hell? I’m hurt. I’ve been busy but you still could have told me the news.”
Will shook his head. This was already becoming incredibly complicated. His mother had sent him a list of ways to spin the news in their favor. All he could think was if he really were getting married, if he’d found the one and wanted to spend his life with her, the last thing he’d worry about was his mother’s fucking lists.
“It’s complicated,” Will said.
Ethan arched one brow. “Complicated as in not true? Or more the you knocked her up sort of complication?”
Will let out a half laugh, half growl. “Shut up, man. I absolutely did not.”
“Am I the best man or is that a surprise, too? If you tell me it’s that Nolan prick, we’re done.”
Will shook his head, made yet another split-second decision. “It was a misunderstanding that got out of hand and now my parents are losing their minds. But I like this woman and want to see where it could go. So, pretty much a PR fucking nightmare over a relationship that I don’t want ruined before I get to know her.”
Ethan’s gaze widened. He huffed out a breath and clapped him on the shoulder. “Shit. Nothing is ever straightforward in your family. Mama Grand must be pissed about not getting to choose her daughter-in-law. You’re right not to tell her the truth. Who is this woman? Are you meeting her here?” Ethan looked around.
“I only met her a couple of days ago and yes. I’m going to sit in the back.”
They walked side by side to the area at the back of the room. Ethan said hello to customers on their way past the tables. Not far from the water or Seattle’s downtown, the place gave out-of-towners a taste of what the locals loved—being close to the action without all the crowds.
Will followed his friend, taking the three steps up to the raised area. The seating up here was plush and comfortable, reminding Will of his father’s study with high-back chairs and low tables arranged to encourage conversation. A large stone fireplace sat as a focal point, with framed pictures of Ethan, his family, and the staff on the wide raw-wood mantel. To the right of the fireplace, two deep-brown leather wingback chairs sat empty, facing each other. To the left, a group of six women laughed and chatted animatedly, three of them on a love seat, the others taking up the chairs.
“You two can join us,” one of them, a blonde who looked close to Kyra’s age, said.
The following giggles and suggestions made him feel older than his thirty years. Well practiced at flirting, Ethan winked at the table.
“Not this time, ladies, but enjoy yourselves.”
Will shrugged off his thin leather jacket, hanging it on the little hook attached to the chair. When he sat, Ethan took the seat across from him, pulled his phone out, and frowned at the screen.
Looking up, he shook his head. “I have to deal with something. Give me the lowdown. Where’d you meet this chick?”
“Jesus, man. Grow up. Her name is Alexandria. Lexi. She’s incredible. I met her at a restaurant. She was the waitress and…” There was no easy way to explain it. Will sighed. “It’s complicated.”
Ethan whistled. “Papers didn’t say much about her. Your parents know she’s a waitress?”
Will shook his head. Ethan knew how judgmental his parents could be about family backgrounds, education, and employment. It didn’t matter to Will. “The chemistry is off the charts. Things got messed up in the news and now I’m just trying to get her to see I’m worth a second date. Honestly, I feel like I’m spinning out of my depth.” He spoke low and fast because even though Ethan was busy, he was also Will’s best friend and Will needed someone other than his sisters to know the truth.
“Wow. Listen to you. You really like her. Maybe things didn’t get so messed up after all. Just because you didn’t write it down first doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea.”
Will didn’t like how much his friend made him sound like his parents but he was able to shrug it off when he saw Alexandria weaving her way through the crowd.
“That’s her,” Will whispered, his heart rate speeding up. He waved at her, feeling like a fifteen-year-old with his first crush.
He met her at the stairs, leaned in to kiss her cheek, inhaling the sweet scent of her shampoo or body spray or whatever it was that made her smell so intoxicating.
“Hi.”
She leaned back. “Hi. Is this a college bar? I think we’re the oldest people here.”
Will laughed. The only other people who made him laugh effortlessly were his siblings, his grandfather, and Ethan.
“I’m older than you so maybe I am but you aren’t. It’s a great place. My buddy owns it. Come meet him.”
He heard the low groan under her breath and laughed again. When he took her hand, pleasure unfurled inside him. He recognized the punch of lust that hit him square in the gut—it’d been a while and he couldn’t remember it ever being quite so sharp. However, the warmth and happiness that filled his chest, just from seeing her, were completely foreign to him.
“I had to meet your best friend,” he reminded her, happy when she laughed. It was a great sound.
Will caught Lexi’s glance toward the women, a couple of whom were watching them. Whether she realized it or not, Lexi moved closer to him, like she had the other night when Carolyn had been too friendly. It tripped something inside of him. Something protective and unfamiliar. He put an arm around her shoulders, all too aware of the way she fit so well against him. His pulse raced, anticipation humming over his skin. When was the last time a woman made his heart beat harder? Quicker? Made him so aware of everything he was feeling? Dangerous, he thought. And yet he couldn’t stop himself.
“You look beautiful,” he said before they reached Ethan.
“Thank you,” she said, looking up at him. “So do you.” She bit her lip. “Good, I mean. You look good. Really good.”
Will bit back a laugh. “But not beautiful?”
Ethan grinned. “Throw him a bone. You’re beautiful to me, Will.”
Lexi and Ethan laughed, which made it impossible not to laugh along with them.
Ethan stood, held a hand out. “I’m Ethan. Owner of Side Tap, best friend to this guy. He was just telling me about you. Alexandria, right?”
She shook his hand. “Lexi is fine. This place is beautiful.” She dropped her hand, looked around before meeting Ethan’s gaze again. “My friend Maisie is a photographer. She loves architecture but mostly does people.” Lexi’s eyes widened. “Photographs people.”
Ethan’s bark of laughter made Will’s shoulders relax. “I look forward to meeting her. With you two being engaged and all, she and I should probably connect.” He gave an exaggerated eyebrow wiggle that probably charmed women.
Will glared at him. “Off limits.”
Lexi laughed. “Great, glad the news is spreading.”
He was a little surprised that she wasn’t mad. Put off. But she seemed to be rolling with everything that had happened a hell of a lot better than he had. At least she’d agreed to a second date.
“I’ll bring her by sometime.”
Ethan’s phone lit up in his hand, and his grin faded. “I wish I could stay and chat with you two, get to know you better, Lexi, and give you the dirt on Will.”
Lexi laughed while Will frowned. “I’d like that, too.”
Ethan held up his phone. “Unfortunately, I have a mess to deal with. But I’ll send over our Fall Flight. It’s our newest selection of IPAs to celebrate the season.”
“Thanks. Everything okay?” Will asked, not liking the worry creasing his normally easygoing friend’s eyes.
Ethan shook his head. “Trickier when family and business overlap.”
Will gave a humorless laugh. “Don’t I know it.”
Saying goodbye, Will gestured to the seat, waited while Lexi removed her jacket and purse, hung them on the chair. He sat across from her. Her hair fell in soft waves around the shoulders of her cream-colored sweater. Like him, she wore jeans. Soft makeup and a slightly wary expression made her all the more intriguing.
“I hope your friend is okay. He seems nice.”
Will settled back in his chair, trying to appear more at ease than he felt.
“He’s a great guy. He and his brother own this place, and they’re in the process of opening a second one in southern Washington. Not as far as it sounds—about an hour from here. I’m sure everything is fine. Nothing about starting a business is easy.”
“That’s what my degree is in, actually. Business administration with a focus on operations.”
Will’s jaw dropped. “Shit. You should have said that when he was standing here.”
Lexi shook her head, her cheeks going pink. “Ha. I don’t think he needs anything a mature college student in her final courses might have to offer.”
Will leaned forward, rested his elbows on his knees. “Don’t do that. Don’t diminish how hard you’re working or what you’re working toward.”
Her smile was small, her gaze unreadable. “Thank you.”
The moment hummed between them. “Now, back to more important things. What’s this about me not being beautiful?”
She leaned forward, glanced toward the women for a second, then reached across and took his hand, much as he’d done to her the other night. She lifted it and kissed it, met his gaze through lowered lashes.
“You know how good you look.” She dropped his hand while it still tingled from the press of her lips and subtly hooked her thumb toward the table of women. “If not, they’ll reassure you.”
God, he liked her.
“I’m perfectly happy right here with my fiancée,” he said.
What was it about this woman? He spent his life interacting with people in a business, personal, and social capacity. But this woman with her cautious gaze, her gorgeous smile, her unparalleled laugh made him think about things he hadn’t given much thought to. Like what he really wanted. More, who he really wanted.
“Smooth. Speaking of that,” she said, pausing when a waitress dropped off their flight. “We should talk.”
He wanted to do a hell of a lot more than talk, but first, he needed to figure out how to get a third date. She was a complete surprise. Will didn’t like surprises. He liked planning things out, knowing the path he was on, and making the decisions for himself. But everything about Alexandria Danby made him feel like he wasn’t driving this vehicle. He was simply along for the ride. Instead of fighting it, he just wanted to see where it took them.