23. Cora #2
“Aiden Callihan!” a man said, interrupting us halfway across the floor. He was older, with a head of thick grey hair, and a smile I was sure had women calling him a silver fox.
Aiden cleared his throat. “Wilson,” he said, shaking his hand. “So glad you could make it.”
“Wouldn’t have missed it. Gotta keep up with the competition.” He winked.
Aiden chuckled politely.
“And who’s your friend?” Wilson asked.
Aiden stepped aside, holding his hand out for me to step forward, careful not to actually touch me.
My gaze landed on his hand, which hovered just shy of my elbow.
It was like he was worried he’d burst into flames if he did touch me.
I didn’t know if he was being hands-off out of respect for the “secret identity” I had thanks to the mask, or if the mask was giving him an excuse to be distant.
“This is the Masked Mixer, the brains behind the new Elixir Free line.”
“Lovely to meet you,” I said to Wilson.
“Wilson Manning owns Imperium Spirits,” Aiden explained.
I nodded, unsurprised. The man looked like he bathed in money.
“The superior spirits,” Wilson joked. “But if anyone’s going to give us a run for our money, it’s this guy.” He clapped Aiden jovially on the shoulder. “This young man is going places.”
“I’d argue he already has,” I said.
Wilson tipped one long finger in my direction, giving me a sharp smile. “I see why he’s brought you on board.”
“Excuse me,” Aiden said, gesturing to some people trying desperately to get his attention.
“Duty calls. Good seeing you, Wilson. Let’s grab a drink later.
” Henry nodded as Aiden was pulled away into another conversation.
From the corner of my eye, I watched him greet more guests with handshakes and fake smiles while I stood with Wilson, making awkward small talk.
The man was polite enough, but we struggled to find anything to talk about.
He had no interest in brand deals or influencers or mocktails.
I might be the one wearing the mask right now, but it sure as hell wasn’t doing anything to hide the awkward blush that spread across my cheeks as the conversation stagnated.
Wilson finally nodded to his empty glass, using it as an excuse to set off for the bar, leaving me standing there alone.
I considered darting after Aiden, but the last thing I wanted to do was chase him around like a lost puppy.
“…get a picture?”
“Oh, sure!” I said, coming back to myself as a young woman stood at my side, her phone held up for a selfie.
She smiled, and I blew a kiss at the camera.
She immediately tagged the photo on Instagram. Rubbing shoulders with the Masked Mixer at the #ElixirFreeLaunch.
“Thank you so much,” she said. “I’m such a huge fan. Really loved the different takes you did on the Whiskey Sour recently.”
“Did you go for the Red Sun Sour or the Apricot Sour?”
“Oh, definitely the Red Sun. How can you pass up passionfruit and vanilla?”
“You can’t,” I agreed, leaning a little closer. “Just between us, the new Elixir Free Raspberry Chai Royale makes a great base for whiskey drinks.”
“I’ll have to stock up,” she said, smiling. “So great to meet you.”
“You too. Make sure to tag me and let me know what you think about the new mocktails.” She hurried off, and I’d barely turned away before I was stopped for another selfie request.
I smiled and schmoozed, playing up my part as the Masked Mixer, the face of the new line.
But as I did, I couldn’t stop thinking about Aiden making the rounds on the other side of the room, barely sparing me a glance.
I felt like I’d been cut adrift, or like I was trying to get the attention of a stranger.
I knew there was a certain amount of glad-handing we both had to do tonight to fill our respective roles, but why hadn’t he bothered to make his way back over to me?
He’d said he was going to introduce me to the group of influencers, but now he seemed perfectly content to have a sea of people between us.
“Masked Mixer,” a woman said, snagging me for a conversation. “I’m Elenor Weisner.” She shook my hand. “I believe we reached out to you on social media.”
I spotted the logo on the business card she handed me. “Oh, right. Ironwood Distilleries. Yes, I remember.”
“It’s great to meet you in person. I was hoping we might bump into you tonight.” She gestured to the bar. “My colleagues are off trying the new line.”
I chuckled politely. “Hopefully they’re impressed.”
“It looks like you’ve done a brilliant job here.” She gestured to the row of Elixir Free on display in the middle of the room. “And now that you’ve delivered on your contract with Elixir, I’m hoping that means your time has freed up. I wanted to renew the offer for a partnership.”
Oh. When I’d turned them down before, I’d believed Aiden might renew my contract…
which he had, but only on a limited basis.
What would happen when this current extension ended?
I’d been toying with the idea of staying on with Elixir for a while longer, but it didn’t hold as much appeal as it had, now that things were strained between Aiden and me.
Maybe that was what was going on—he assumed that we were wrapping up with our business relationship, and he figured I’d be moving on, personally and professionally?
I didn’t want to leave Aiden, didn’t want to give up on what we had.
But I’d learned long ago that I couldn’t count on him.
I needed to make my decision based on what was best for me.
So maybe it was smarter not to close this door completely.
“I’d actually really like to hear more about that.
Do you think we could set up a meeting?”
Elenor beamed. “That would be great. Shall I have my assistant DM you?”
I pulled a business card from my clutch. “Actually, email would be better.”
Elenor took the card. “I look forward to our conversation.”
I smiled. “I look forward to hearing what you think about the mocktails. Good to meet you.”
With a nod toward the bar, Elenor set off.
She exchanged words with her colleagues, one of them high-fiving her, the other taking the business card and immediately jumping on her phone.
I suspected I’d have an email in my inbox within the hour.
But until then, I needed a drink of my own.
I clocked a relatively empty bar on the other side of the crowded room and made a beeline for it.
Before I could even get halfway there, I froze.
Ice flooded my veins as a horribly familiar figure cut through the crowd toward me.
“Hi, Cora.”
I stared up at him in shock. “What the hell are you doing here, Levi?”