Chapter 27
27
Drew
The day’s been busier than I expected, but with Juni, I always crave more time. Her honesty, the raw emotions, and her trust were placed in my hands when she opened up about her parents.
She’s made me an insider. That’s a role I don’t take lightly.
After sex, well, duh, and a short nap, I’m woken up by my phone buzzing across the nightstand. Nick. I’m tempted to let it go to voicemail, but he usually just texts. So the fact he’s calling has me curious as to what’s going on.
Grabbing the phone, I slip out of bed and go into the bathroom so I don’t wake Juni. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Did you forget? You forgot. Fuck, Andrew, I promised Natalie.”
I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror. I look like shit with my hair in disarray and my unshaven face. Great, I silently grumble. I’m turning into a New Yorker. “Slow down. What did I forget?”
“Dinner at my house. I told you about it weeks ago.”
“That’s on the twenty— oh fuck .”
“Yeah, the twenty-fourth, also known as today. You better get dressed and get over here, but I’m not letting you back out even if I have to come drag you over here myself.”
Peering back at Juni sleeping, I keep my voice low, and ask, “What time is dinner?”
“You have an hour. I can stall for another thirty minutes, but after that, Natalie will lose it if her meal is served cold.”
“You still have me down for a plus-one?”
“If it’s Juni, yes. Anyone else, I don’t want to do the dog and pony show. I just want to have a relaxed and fun night surrounded by people we know.”
I know what he means without the details. Not only is he cursed with the tycoon last name of Christiansen but his wife and her family are Manhattan famous. Reminded of Juni and her parents and the fame that came with that has me glad she’s been able to live in relative peace all these years. She carries a lot of burdens, but she’s good at keeping her last name in relation to her parents on the down low.
I had no idea, so I assume most people don’t. It’s become her story to tell, and I’m one of the lucky ones to hear it. “I’ll see if she’s up for it.”
“Okay, but I’m warning you, Andrew. You better show up.”
“I will. You have my word.” My word is as good as gold, too. He knows that.
When I return to the bedroom, Juni asks, “Where are we going?”
Fuck. Why does she have to look so good and be naked saying it?
I shift my dick, willing it to stay down when it overrides my ruling and stands at full salute just for her. With a mischievous grin settled on her face, she struts past me and starts getting dressed. “Nick’s?”
“Yes,” I say, grabbing my shirt from the floor and trying to hide my erection.
It doesn’t work, but it’s the effort that counts.
“When do we leave?”
“Forty-five minutes. Is that enough time?”
“I’ll be ready.” She slips on her shoes, leaving the laces untied. “Meet you down in the lobby?”
“That works.” Every answer is more clipped than the previous one.
She laughs and then blows me a kiss. “See you soon, handsome.”
I hurry to the hall just to get another look at her shaking that great ass. When the front door closes, I return to the bathroom and put the shower on cold. It’s the only way I can hope it will keep me from ravaging her until we get home, and I have little faith it will work.
Feeling loose after the low-key day, I don’t bother shaving or putting pomade in my hair. I like the feel of Juni’s fingers grazing across my scalp, and she only does it when it’s not perfectly in place.
I look in the mirror once more before I head out the door. I may not have done some of the things I’ve added into my routine since moving here, but I still want Juni to look at me the same as when I catch her ogling me with that hint of lust in her eyes.
The lobby is empty when I arrive five minutes early. I was taught never to keep a woman waiting, and the lesson has served me well. I was expecting to see Gil, but a guy I don’t recognize enters dressed in the doorman’s uniform. Jolly with red cheeks, he says, “You must be Mr. Christiansen. I’ve heard about you.”
“Hope it was all good.”
“It wasn’t all bad.”
Funny. I think I’m going to like this guy. We shake hands, and he says, “I’m Mike, the other doorman. I was out with a broken leg, slipped on the sidewalk after a late winter freeze.”
“Are you doing all right?”
“Good as new.” There’s a mobster quality to his accent and the raspy, smokes a lot of cigarettes a day tone and a hacking cough threading through his words don’t dispute the image. Leaning over like he’s going to tell me where Jimmy Hoffa is buried, he adds, “I also needed to get out of the house. I couldn’t take my girlfriend, Adrienne, doting all over me. I couldn’t watch a program on the big screen without her wanting to cuddle. It’s good to be out of the house again.” The back of his hand hits against my arm as he passes. “Know what I mean, Mr. Christiansen?”
Not at all, but I nod anyway. Once he’s seated and the chair stops squeaking, he asks, “What can I do for ya?”
“I’m actually waiting on . . .” The elevator doors open, drawing our attention. Black fitted pants stop just shy of her ankles, and the jewel-toned green top has thin straps that tie on her shoulders. The gold strappy heels bring her a lot closer to reaching my mouth, and she has a jacket draped over her arm. She looks spectacular, but it’s her hair and makeup that have my mouth hanging open. “Wow.”
Her hair is long and straight, all the colors from brown to blond are on display while a soft wave frames her face. The makeup is light, but those lips . . . those full red lips are going to have me fantasizing all night.
Before I can say anything to Juni, Mike is headed her way. “June, it’s good to see you.” I mentally note that he called her June. Barry the barista down at the coffee shop did that, and she never corrected him. I’m thinking the same has happened here.
She says, “Mike? I wasn’t expecting to see you. You’re back.” Rushing to him, they hug, and when she steps back, she looks down. “How’s the leg?”
“I survived.”
“You sure did.” Her eyes finally meet mine, and her smile lights up her expression. “Have you met Mr. Christiansen?”
My insides tighten like Pavlov’s dog to her calling me that. Work should be fun come Monday . . .
Mike whacks me on the back. “Yeah, we’re old friends now.”
“We sure are,” I reply, entertained by him but bitter that I missed the moment to appreciate her properly. “I bet Gil’s happy to have a night off.”
Moving toward the door, Mike says, “He wasn’t upset,” and then opens it. “Have a nice night.”
We can take a hint. I hold my hand out to Juni, and whisper for only her ears, “You look incredible.”
She reaches up and weaves her fingers through my hair just above my right ear. “I like your hair like this.” After a quick rub over the scruff on my face, she adds, “And this. You’re looking every bit California tonight, Drew, and I approve.”
“That’s why I did it.”
She takes my hand, and we hop in the car to go to dinner.
Together.
On a date.
Like a couple would.
I kiss her when we’re tucked in the back of the car. It’s not something I felt I could do in the lobby and has me now wondering what we should or shouldn’t be doing at all. My brother’s house is a safe place. I’m not worried about us going tonight. I worry about work on Monday and how we’ll separate the two parts of our lives.
“Drew?”
“Yeah?”
Still holding hands between us, she says, “Where’d you go off to?”
I push down the what’s-to-come scenarios playing out in my head and refocus on what’s happening right now. “I’m here with you.”
Accepting my answer, she nods and then stares out the window.
Are we making a mistake?
Or is it too late?
There are so many ways this can go wrong.
But I don’t want to dwell on those. I want this night with her, my family, and my friends.
We walk up the stairs of the brownstone with our hands still clasped together, and I knock. The large wooden carved door opens, and my mom throws her arms wide. “Andrew!”
“Mom? What are you doing here?”
“I flew in to surprise you, and Nick and Natalie. I’ve been missing you guys so much. It’s too quiet at the house. Come here.”
Releasing Juni, I embrace my mom. “Oh wow. Yeah, it’s a surprise, all right.”
She squirms, and I know what she’s about to do. Juni never stood a chance to escape before my mom is hugging her, too. I say, “She’s a hugger.”
Juni’s grin is as wide as her face when she hugs her in return. “It’s so nice to meet you.”
Standing back, my mom still clings to Juni’s arms. “You too. Natalie was telling me about you.” Shooting a glare full of daggers in my direction, she adds, “Because my sons don’t think it’s important to talk about anything but work.”
When my mom takes Juni’s hand, Juni says, “That sounds just like Drew.” She’s led inside, leaving me on the stoop staring at these two women becoming fast friends.
“I love that you call him Drew. We tried to get that one to stick when he was a preteen, but he’s only ever wanted to be called Andrew.”
They move into the living room while I shut the door and hang Juni’s jacket up. When I reach the kitchen where everyone—Natalie, Nick, Jackson, Tatum, my mom, and Juni—are hanging out, Nick greets me with a whiskey neat, and says, “I swear I didn’t know.”
“Mom meeting the woman I’m dating on the first date I take her on . . . yeah, make it a double.”
When I see my mom showing Juni her crystal necklace, I’m on the move. “Excuse me, Mom, I need to speak with Juni in private for a minute.”
My mom smiles like I’m trying to get away with kissing my girlfriend in the closet. Actually, that’s not a bad idea. “Take your time.” My mom winks at Juni. Oh God, this night is going to be long.
Juni and I step outside on the back patio, and I close the door behind us. The lights and the group’s laughter stretch out here, but I know we’ll have a few minutes to ourselves.
With a glass of wine in hand, she asks, “What is it?”
“Don’t tell my mom about the science fair project being tied to your parents’ theorem. She’ll flip out, and we’ll never hear the end of it.”
“It’s pretty unbelievable.” Juni believes in fate and all that, maybe not to a New Age guru level, but more of the romantic notion side of things. I don’t want to hurt her, but I’m just not a believer in that stuff.
If I had known my mom would be here, I would have prepped Juni in the car. The words race from my mouth on borrowed time. “It is, so she’ll jump on that bandwagon and talk about recognizing the signs when you see them, and that will lead to talk of the list?—”
“The ex-elementary science fair champion and the daughter of the winning topic’s discoverers now seeing each other . . .” She shakes her head and takes a sip of wine. “Yep, no signs there.”
She glances up to the stars and adds, “I know you don’t believe in destiny. You’ve made that clear, but if there is magic in the universe, I’m glad it brought me here.”
The two things I didn’t want to do were hurt or disappoint her, and from her tone, it sounds like I’ve just done both.
Natalie pokes her head out the door, and says, “Dinner’s ready.”
I say, “We’ll be right in.”
Before the door closes, Juni says, “We’re coming now.”
“Okay,” Natalie says, her eyes volleying back and forth between us. She leaves the door open when she returns to the kitchen.
Stepping closer, I catch her arm. “Juni?” When she looks back over her shoulder, I say, “Why are you upset?”
“I guess I thought there was more to us than what’s on the surface. Is it so wrong to want a little magic?” She goes inside, but I stay a minute, needing to process what just happened between us.
Juni’s not a fact or a figure, a report, or a stock I can analyze. I need to stop treating her like I can.
When I go inside, Nick hands me the freshened drink and then gives my shoulder a squeeze. “It’s going to be okay. Now drink up. You just need to relax.”
“You’re right.” I walk to the empty chair across from Juni and next to my mom.
My mom is already regaling the small group with tales of me in a suit and tie at one year old. “He’d cry if I took his gavel away. He called it gav gav. It was so cute. Of course, he didn’t pursue law. Nick did. I think the boys ended up in careers that played to their strengths.”
Tatum asks, “Did it ever surprise you to see Andrew become CEO of the company?”
Cookie loves to talk about her boys and knowing she’s proud of me as CEO has always given me confidence. But I know she’s also had concerns about what it takes from me to run the company. She watched the toll it took on my dad. So, perhaps her answer won’t shock me. “It doesn’t surprise me he’s in a position of power at the company. It surprises that he wanted the job in the first place. He doesn’t show the other side of himself to people outside his inner circle, but there’s so much more to him than CEO. What do you think, Juni?”
Shit. Juni’s gaze is slow to meet mine, but she sets her silverware down and takes her time to think through her answer. Looking from my mom to me, she replies, “I haven’t known him long, but I do see that other side of him, the man under the armor of the company.”
Cookie’s pleased. Not that it was a test question. My mom isn’t devious like that. But that was a good answer, good like Juni.
That’s when I realize I just really fucked up.