Chapter Two – Cullen
CHAPTER TWO
CULLEN
“ Y ou promise you’re not leading me down an alley to murder me?”
I let out a chuckle. “I’m not.”
“Okay, because I only have ten dollars on me, so I’m really not a good murder candidate.”
“Not all murder is monetarily justified.”
“Oh. I guess that’s true.”
Her brows tug together, and I bite back a smile. She is seriously cute, and the things she says are completely unfiltered. I am drawn to her without her even trying.
“Here we are.”
I come to a stop outside a small, neon yellow-lit restaurant and open the door for her. The bell jingles, snagging the attention of the worker behind the register and the lone customer sitting at one of the four small, square dining tables.
Verity gives me a glance before taking a hesitant step inside.
“It’s in here?”
“You haven’t been to a speakeasy before?”
“I have, but most of them are random, nondescript doors on the street or behind photo booths in ice cream parlors. This is a fully functioning Korean fried chicken restaurant.”
“Come on.”
I rest my hand on the small of her back, and it creates that same buzzing connection from earlier. It’s that feeling that stopped me from letting her just go home, dragging her here instead.
I lead her through a yellow curtain into the kitchen where two cooks are busy frying up food. The crackle of hot oil filters around us, and I can feel her curiosity heighten as she presses closer to me.
There’s a bored-looking girl sitting on a stool next to the freight elevator, and I greet her with a grin.
“Jenny, do you have room for two?”
Her expression morphs with recognition.
“Cullen! I didn’t know you were back in town.”
“Just for a few days.”
“Seon-jae will be happy to see you.” She grabs the tablet resting on her knees and scrolls through it.
“We’re preeeetty packed tonight, but I’ll pop you to the top of the waitlist because, duh.
Means it shouldn’t be too—” the elevator doors open and a couple steps out “—long. Well, look at that. You can head on down.”
“Thanks.”
I keep my hand on Verity’s back, guiding us into the elevator. The doors shut, and she lifts her head to peek up at me. In the fluorescent lights, I can finally see how ocean blue her eyes are. They’re just as arresting as the first time I saw her, across the restaurant.
I’d noticed her the moment I sat down at the bar.
She is stunning in that girl-next-door type of way that I am completely hopeless for, with a sweetheart face, large doe-eyes, and a cute button nose.
She stood out like an angel with that creamy satin dress and shiny blonde hair.
It would have been hard to miss her, a beautiful woman in a sea of couples.
Whoever her date was, I can’t help but feel a little grateful that he was such a dickhead and ghosted her. It gave me the perfect opportunity to sweep her up.
I don’t have a habit of picking up random chicks at bars, let alone restaurants. I gave up on finding love years ago, my hopeless-romantic soul shattered to pieces thanks to a vindictive woman. But I’ve been taking risks lately, making changes in my life, and something about Verity has me curious.
The elevator doors open into a dimly lit underground speakeasy with exposed brick walls and rustic leather seats.
One of the servers crosses over and leads us to the only available table before handing us leather-bound menus.
The seats are angled next to each other, leaving only a few inches between our knees as we sit.
“Okay, this place is cool.” Verity flips through the pages with unbridled excitement. Her energy is infectious and draws me to her even more. “God, everything looks so good.”
“What’re you most drawn to?”
“Hmm, either the hot honey or the yang…the yang…I have no idea how to pronounce that.” She looks up at me with an innocent smile.
“The yangnyeom. Let’s get both.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, of course. What about drinks?”
I remove my suit jacket and fold it over the back of my seat.
I’d forgotten how warm it gets down here.
I reach up and undo the first few buttons of my shirt, letting the day wash away from me.
The process of moving back to the city, trying to broker these new apartment complex deals, and dealing with updates from my lawyer has been more stressful than I care to admit.
Verity’s gaze is still stuck on me, and I find myself addicted to the way her eyes darken a few shades as they trace my body. I can’t help but want to tease her.
“See something you like?”
That blush returns, and she quickly throws her attention back to her menu.
“The chili mango cocktail seems yummy.”
I smirk at her quick deflection.
The server returns, and I place our order, including a drink for myself.
“So, you come to this place often?” She crosses her legs, and it causes her silky dress to ride up a few inches.
“Whenever I’m in town. A buddy I went to school with owns it.”
“Oh, wow.” She swivels her head around, taking in the whole place. “How long has it been since you’ve lived in the city?”
“Almost ten years.”
Her head snaps back.
“What? Damn. That’s a while.”
“Yeah.” I reach up and scratch the back of my neck, trying to keep my tone light.
There’s no way I’m getting into the reason why I’ve been away for so long, not if I want any shot at seeing her a second time.
You don’t lug your past relationship baggage to a first date; trauma dumping is not my style.
“And you’re living in Miami?”
“Right now, but I’ve also lived in SF and Nashville.”
“That’s a lot of moving. What do you do for work?”
“I work in real estate.”
“Oh.” Her tone sours slightly.
“Wow. That’s a great response.”
“Oh my God. I’m sorry, I—” She presses two fingers between her brows and closes her eyes. “I have no filter tonight. That was so rude.”
I can’t help but laugh.
Despite how stuffy it is down here, Verity is like a breath of fresh air. Just being around her lighthearted personality has me feeling at ease. It is a refreshing change of pace, one that I could get addicted to.
The server comes back and drops our drinks on the barrel table between us. I lift my cocktail and wait as she does the same before clinking them together.
“So, what’s your deal with brokers?”
“The guy who stood me up is one. Well, he is an agent.” She lets out a tsk before taking a long sip from her drink.
“Ah. The shitty man.”
“Yes, him.” She gives me a once over. “That explains why you have a Saturday meeting.”
“Comes with the territory.” I shrug.
Honestly, I am successful enough at this point that I don’t need to bend over backward to please clients anymore.
My name is known in the business, and companies know that if they put their trust in me, I’ll get the job done.
Tomorrow’s meeting is different though. Rumor has it that the Clifton Bank is going up for sale, and I want in on that.
The commission would be one of the highest I’ve ever dealt with, and adding a bank to my portfolio wouldn’t hurt either.
“What about you? What do you do for work?”
“I’m in graphic design.”
Now, it’s my turn to make sure I don’t pull a face. What are the odds we both work the same jobs as each other’s exes?
“Nice, have you worked on anything I’d know?”
“Everyone asks that.”
“Does that mean you don’t want to tell me?”
Excitement peeks through her attempt at nonchalance. I wonder if she knows how much of an open book she is?
“Do you know Health Potion?”
“The energy drink company?”
“Yeah, HP Energy.”
“I know of them. Don’t drink the stuff though.”
“I worked on this really cool campaign with them a few months ago.” She picks up her phone and scrolls a bit before flipping it around. “It was a 360 campaign, where I not only got to design the ads but also the product label and select merch for PR boxes.”
She swipes through a few more images, showing me the portfolio of work she did for the brand.
I remember seeing some of these cans at the airport yesterday.
They stood out among the monotony of every other beverage in the fridge section, even causing me to pause for a second. Her talent is undeniable.
“Those are amazing, Verity.”
“Thanks. It was really fun to be able to create something like that. I love being able to have something tangible, you know?”
“I get that. It’s like when I’m part of a real estate project and am working with architects to create a new building. There’s something special about seeing the final creation and knowing you had a hand in it.”
“Exactly! It’s leaving your mark on society.” She grins, and it lights up her whole face. Her passion bleeds through her features, and it just makes her all the more attractive.
“You’re stunning when you smile.” The compliment leaves me before I can think otherwise.
Her eyes widen and her lips press together in a smaller, more reserved smile as she reaches up and tucks a piece of hair behind her ear. The motion draws my attention to her neck, and I get this urge to lean forward and plant a kiss right there.
“Thank you. You know, I used to hate my smile. I had messed-up teeth as a kid and people made fun of me for it. I wasn’t able to afford braces until basically the end of high school, which meant I stuck out like a sore thumb having braces in college, which is so not ideal when your Spanish partner is a hot football player who—oh my God, I’m rambling when I should’ve just left it at ‘thank you.’ I am so sorry. ”
“I think it’s cute.”
She lets out a small huff. “I swear I’m not normally like this. I just tend to word vomit when I’m nervous.”
“Now, why would I make you nervous?” I tease, giving her a playful smirk.
Her flustered state returns as she attempts to walk back her remark. “I didn’t—I mean—It was the tequila. Three shots, you know. I—”
Her response is cut off as two plates of fried chicken are plopped onto the table between us, and a royal pain in my ass completely shatters the mood by sliding onto the arm of my chair and nudging his shoulder into me.
“You come here on a date but don’t even bother to tell me you’re in town? I’m hurt, dude.” Sonny grins down at me before turning his attention to Verity and reaching over me to hold his hand out to her. “Seon-jae, but people call me Sonny.”