Chapter 5
Chapter Five
W hat was Max really doing in Pride? When she’d met him a little over a year before in New York, the attraction had been instant. Who wouldn’t be drawn to the sexy successful man with kind eyes and an easy way about him.
The first thing she’d found out about him was that Max Wilson was never in a hurry to do anything. Including making a move on her.
Four months later, after their first impromptu date, he’d asked her out on an official date, which had ended in a sweet passionate kiss that had knocked her socks off.
The fact that she’d instantly compared the kiss to the one that Palmer had given her long ago had just made her pursue Max harder over the next few weeks.
Now that he was here, however, she realized that over the past few months, her feelings for him had fizzled, replaced by the old spark she’d felt for Palmer. Still, she felt guilty for pursuing him so strongly in the city. Was she really what had led him to the Oregon coast?
She didn’t think he was a stalker. He wasn’t the type. She’d met his mother and sisters once when they’d come to New York to visit him, and she knew that they lived in Portland, Oregon. No doubt he’d moved to the West Coast to be closer to them. His sister Ally had a two-year-old and was going through a messy divorce. His other sister, Faye, had had a few medical issues the previous year and had to have a few surgeries.
Still, she wanted a chance to talk to him and make sure he knew that her feelings for him had fizzled. Hadn’t they?
After leaving Palmer and Parker at the bakery, she and Avery headed to Sassy and Classy boutique to purchase a few things for the baby’s room.
They had recently refreshed the inside walls with a bright pink and teal paint and had several new furniture pieces that Avery fell in love with for the nursery and arranged to have delivered. Sophia spent her time looking at the new spring clothes that had been recently stocked. She ended up purchasing some new shorts and blouses for herself in hopes of warmer weather. She really wanted a sundress, but the weather wasn’t that warm yet.
“So,” Avery said when they sat down almost two hours later in Brew-Ha-Ha bookstore with fresh cups of hot tea and coffee. It was shortly before lunch, and the place was quiet except for a children’s reading session in the back corner. “I’ve never seen a real-life love triangle out there in the wild.”
Sophia rolled her eyes and said clearly before taking a sip of her hot tea, “There’s no love triangle.”
“That’s not what I witnessed,” Avery said, leaning back and nibbling on a scone she’d ordered.
Sophia was still full thanks to just having eaten breakfast but knew that Avery was always hungry now.
“What exactly did you witness?” she asked, curious.
“Well, before tall, fit, and mysterious showed up, you and Palmer had major flirt going on. Then…”
“Max,” she supplied when Avery seemed to struggle with remembering the name.
“Right, then Max showed up and suddenly you could cut Palmer’s jealousy with a knife.”
“Really?” She perked up slightly. “Palmer was jealous?”
“Seriously?” Avery laughed. “The entire bakery could smell it on him. Not to mention, Max laid on the flirting extra thick because of the vibes Palmer gave off.”
“What vibes?” she asked.
“The ‘she’s mine’ vibes.” Avery sighed.
“You are imagining things.” She relaxed back. There was no way Palmer thought of her as… his.
“No. I’m not. Palmer has it really bad for you,” Avery said as she finished her scone. “Do you want to split a cookie with me?” She glanced back at the counter.
“You’re going to give that kid diabetes before it’s even born,” Sophia warned.
“It’s not my fault. Junior wants what junior wants.” She shrugged. “He also loves spicy food.”
“He?” Sophia asked.
Avery shrugged. “Until I know differently, it’s a he.” She smiled. “And no, we do not want to know ahead of time. Your brother likes the suspense.”
“He’s always been like that.” Sophia rested her elbows on the table. “What names do you and my brother have picked out?”
“He wants Lucas the fourth.”
“What do you want?”
“I haven’t decided yet. I do, however, believe it will be difficult to figure out who is who if they’re both named Lucas.”
“You could always call him Luke?” she suggested.
“Luke.” Avery tilted her head. “I like that.”
“Or you could name him Lucas but he could go by Marcus, Lucas’s middle name. What if it’s a girl?”
“I haven’t talked to Lucas about it yet, but I was thinking… Emily Marie.”
Sophia’s eyes stung instantly at hearing her mother’s name, knowing that she would continue on in her niece, even if in name only.
“She would have loved that.” She dashed a tear away.
Avery reached over and took her hand. “I didn’t mean to make you cry.”
“Good tears.” She used her napkin to wipe her eyes, and the conversation turned towards decorating the nursery.
When Avery yawned, she suggested that she take her home since she was due to head into work soon.
The drive back to Avery’s house was filled with idle chatter about Avery’s new ideas for the nursery, while Sophia’s mind remained elsewhere. Max’s sudden reappearance, Palmer’s quiet intensity—it all felt like too much for one morning.
“Thanks for hanging with me this morning,” Avery said as she unbuckled her seatbelt. “See you later.”
Sophia gave her a small smile and a nod. She watched her sister-in-law waddle up the steps to the house and then drove to work.
Sophia parked out back and walked through the kitchen doors, already bracing herself for the day. The familiar hum of activity greeted her: pans clanging, orders being shouted, the savory aroma of fresh bread wafting through the air.
But her moment of reprieve was cut short when she heard raised voices near the hostess stand.
“No, I’m not splitting it with you! I was the one who took the table in the first place!”
“Are you kidding me? I refilled their drinks five times while you were on your phone!”
Sophia sighed and stepped into the fray, her authoritative tone cutting through the argument. “Enough!”
Both employees—Claire, a hostess, and Jordan, a server—turned towards her, their faces flushed.
“What’s going on here?” she hissed, folding her arms over her chest. She hadn’t even had time to put on her uniform yet and already she was breaking the two women up from another argument.
Jordan huffed, crossing her arms. “Claire thinks she deserves half the tip from table seven, but I was the one who did all the work.”
“I seated them and got their drinks,” Claire shot back.
Sophia held up a hand to stop the bickering. “You’re both part of the same team and arguing like this isn’t going to help anyone. Claire, you did start the service, but Jordan finished it. Split the tip. Next time, communicate better.”
Both employees muttered begrudging agreements, and Sophia walked away, shaking her head. The drama never seemed to end with those two. She walked into her brother’s office and sat at the desk. She waited for the computer to boot up, then switched Claire’s work schedule so that she and Jordan wouldn’t be on shift together the following week.
She was heading out of the office to hang up the new schedule when the faint clinking of glass drew her attention. Frowning, she followed the sound through the back kitchen door and into the alley.
There, leaning against the wall with a bottle of whiskey in hand, was Kyle, a middle-aged man who worked part-time in the kitchen. He was almost a hundred pounds overweight and had always smelled of stale cigarettes and peppermints.
“Kyle!” she barked, startling him.
He froze, the bottle halfway to his lips, then quickly tried to hide it behind his back. “Sophia, hey... I was just... uh, taking a break.”
“With a bottle of whiskey?” Her voice was sharp, her patience long gone. “It’s technically not even lunch hour yet.”
“It’s just one drink,” he mumbled, his eyes darting around like a guilty teenager’s. “No big deal.”
Sophia stepped closer, her jaw tightening. “Drinking on the job is absolutely a big deal, Kyle. You’re fired. Head inside and get your things and leave. Now.”
His face darkened as he straightened up, his movements aggressive. “Fired? For what? Everyone needs a break once in a while!” he shouted.
“This isn’t negotiable,” she said firmly, holding her ground. “We don’t tolerate employees drinking during their shifts or breaks.”
Kyle’s expression twisted with anger, and before she could react he lunged forward, shoving her shoulder. She stumbled back a step, her heart racing as adrenaline kicked in. She hadn’t expected this. It hadn’t even crossed her mind that he’d be aggressive towards her. If it had, she would have asked her brother or another employee to be with her. Sheer panic caused her entire body to freeze up.
“Hey!” a deep voice thundered from behind them.
Sophia’s eyes widened as Palmer strode into the alley, his expression a mix of fury and protectiveness.
“You don’t touch her,” Palmer growled, and before Kyle could respond, Palmer’s fist connected with Kyle’s jaw, sending the man sprawling to the ground.
Kyle groaned, clutching his face, but Palmer didn’t let up. He stood over him, his fists balled. “Get out of here before I call the cops.”
Sophia’s chest heaved as she tried to steady herself. Kyle glared at Palmer and then at her, but he didn’t say another word. He staggered to his feet and shuffled down the alley, disappearing around the corner without even going inside to get his things.
Palmer turned towards her, his gaze softening and turning to worry. “Are you okay?”
She nodded, still catching her breath. “Yeah. I’m fine.” She was shaking and her teeth were rattling. Her entire body trembled, betraying her words, and Palmer noticed it all. Without a second thought, he stepped closer, his hand brushing her arm.
“You shouldn’t have to deal with that,” he said, his voice low but firm. “Next time, call me or your brother to deal with jerks like him. Don’t face guys like that alone.”
Sophia nodded slowly and looked up at him, her heart still racing—not from fear, but from the way his concern wrapped around her like a warm blanket.
“Thank you,” she said softly. She hated confrontations. “I… I… Thank you.”
Palmer gave a slight nod, his hand lingering for a moment before he stepped back. “Let’s get you inside.”
As they walked back into the restaurant together, Sophia glanced at him from the corner of her eye.
What would she have done if he hadn’t come along? Then her mind snapped into gear. Why was he here?
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Avery asked one of us to stop by earlier this morning. Remember?” He smiled slightly and she forgot all about Kyle and the danger she’d just put herself in as she enjoyed Palmer’s sexy crooked grin.
“Right, the dancing fridge.” She motioned to the large silver fridge, which was normally filled with chilling wine but had sat empty since it started slowly walking across the floor.
“Are you okay?” he asked again, his voice lower as he touched her arm.
She nodded and swallowed. “Yeah, I just hadn’t expected Kyle to react that way. I don’t think anyone here knew he had a drinking problem.” She walked him back to the fridge. “Well, I’ll leave you to it. I have to go change and get to work. Now that Kyle is gone, I’ll have to call in Leo to cover his shift.”
She turned to head back to the office but stopped when Palmer called out, “Sophia.” When she turned back towards him, he seemed to think for a moment. “I’m glad I stopped by when I did.”
She wanted to tell him that she was too, but her brother walked out of the large walk-in fridge at that very moment, his arms full with a box of tomatoes.
“Palmer, my man.” Lucas set the box down and gave Palmer one of those hugs adult men give one another while trying to look cool.
Rolling her eyes, she turned and went to work.