Chapter 20
Jeremiah
Itook another long sip of wine. Damn. The waiter had been right in suggesting the vintage cabernet because the slight sweetness ran down my throat with ease.
Maybe too easily. I looked to see the bottle was mostly empty.
I felt sheepish for a moment, knowing I was definitely drunk and Sadie was sober across from me, but the small smile on her lips reassured me that it was okay.
I didn’t even know what I had been yammering on about for the past few minutes, but the way she looked at me made me felt heard.
Her green eyes were flecked with gold against the candlelight from the table, making it seem as if they were dancing.
I found myself entranced by them and the way her long lashes slowly fell open and closed.
I didn’t think I had seen anything so beautiful.
“Should we order dessert?” I asked.
I didn’t wait for her to answer before signaling for the waiter. Sadie just giggled and shook her head at me before taking a sip of her ginger ale.
“Is there something I can get you, Mr. Mason?” asked the waiter, by my side in moments.
“What dessert would you recommend?” I asked.
“I’m torn between the crème br?lée and the flourless chocolate cake. Both are different, but so decadent,” he said confidently.
“Then we will have both.”
He flashed a smile that I had taken his recommendation and also added a new sum to the already hefty bill, which meant a bigger tip. I always tipped generously though, and he had been an attentive server.
“You trying to fatten me up?” asked Sadie, raising an eyebrow. “Between this morning’s brunch and tonight’s dinner, you might have to roll me into the elevator.”
I laughed out loud.
“I like that you eat.” I shrugged. “Most women I take on dates hardly touch their food.”
“Well, good thing this isn’t a date then.”
I looked up at her in surprise. Her words cut a little deeper than they should. She was right. This wasn’t a date. This was business. Business at a very romantic rooftop restaurant with a woman I had already been intimate with and couldn’t stop thinking about.
Sadie gave me a smirk and I realized she was just being her snarky self, a side I had grown to really enjoy. Whatever this was, it seemed we were both enjoying this evening.
The waiter brought out our dessert on a silver tray, each displayed intricately on ornate, white dishes.
The crème br?lée was the perfect caramel color and topped with fresh whipped cream and raspberries.
The flourless chocolate cake was a tower of rich brown topped with sprinkled sugar and a drizzle of raspberry puree.
“These look too pretty to eat,” said Sadie. “Thank you.”
“Enjoy,” said the waiter before excusing himself.
I studied her for a moment as she looked between the two desserts, as if debating which to try first. I loved how excited she was about every little thing, and how she thanked every person she had come across today, from the flight attendants to the hotel staff.
It was a kind of genuine warmth I didn’t see much.
“I’m going for the crème br?lée,” she said, digging her spoon in and taking a bite.
I watched as her eyes rolled back in her head and remembered when I had made them do that in my office. I would pretty much do anything to get that chance again.
“You have to try this.” Her mouth was full as she pointed at the dessert.
I picked up my spoon and dug in. She was right. It was perfectly sweet with just the right amount of salt from the burnt caramel to balance it out.
She sat back in her chair and looked at me curiously as I took another bite.
“What?” I asked.
“This life you lead. I’m just getting the smallest taste of it, between first class and this hotel and this beautiful rooftop restaurant. Have you always liked the finer things?”
I looked at her thoughtfully before looking out at the city lights that seemed close enough to touch.
I suddenly felt something I normally didn’t feel with anyone: vulnerability.
Being here with Sadie, there was no judgment, aside from her sometimes sarcastic wit.
I felt relaxed with her. The guard I usually had up had been slowly chipped away the more time I spent with her.
It felt as fresh as the evening breeze that blew gently around us.
“Not always,” I said, still looking off in the distance.
“I’m sorry…I didn’t mean to…” she said warily.
I shook my head, turning back to her. I gave her a reassuring smile. “I didn’t always have money like this.”
“Really?” she asked, surprise in her voice.
“Yeah. I didn’t grow up with much.”
“What was your family like?” she asked, leaning her chin on her hand as she rested her elbow on the table. Her eyes were warm, inviting me to speak the words I hardly shared with anyone. I wanted to with her.
“We weren’t very close because we hardly saw each other.
” I shrugged. “My dad spent most of his free time at the bar, hedging bets and pissing our money away. He tried to make something of himself in all the wrong ways. But the problem is, money doesn’t make the man.
It’s how you earn it. He just didn’t want to put the work in. ”
“And your mom?” asked Sadie softly.
“She worked three jobs trying to make ends meet, all while my dad drained her. It was a vicious cycle, but she never left him. She just kept busting her ass to pay the bills and put food on the table. I knew she thought she was being a good mother, but I needed her. You know?”
“Did you have any siblings? A brother? A sister?”
“Nah.”
“You had to go through that all alone…” she said, her voice barely above a whisper as her eyes grew glassy.
“Ahh, don’t do that.” I waved her off. “I had a few good friends.”
“Well, friends are as good as family if you choose wisely.” A hint of a smile tugged at her lip, as if she was trying to muster up a brave face for my lonely childhood.
I chuckled and took another sip of wine.
“If only I had chosen more wisely. My friends dragged me to hell and back before I got some sense in me and left that all behind.”
“What happened?”
“Ah, that’s a story for another time.”
I looked back out at the city, hoping she wouldn’t pry any further. As much as I was enjoying opening up, there were some things about my past I never intended to tell her. What happened all those years ago had changed the trajectory of my life forever.
“You okay?” asked Sadie warily.
I turned back to her, shaking my head from the intrusive thoughts from my past. I wanted to be in the present with her here and now.
“Yeah. I’m sorry. I’m fine.” My voice betrayed me with its lack of confidence and slight slur, thanks to the wine.
She didn’t buy it. She signaled for the waiter and told him to charge the bill to our room before standing from her chair.
I let my gaze run over her as she took a step toward me.
That dress was made for her. I would give her several more bonus checks if she bought more just like it. One in every color.
“Let’s go back to the room.” She held out her hand and I took it as I stood from my chair. My feet felt unsteady beneath me, making me sway.
“Whoa. You okay?” she asked, placing one hand on my back and the other on my chest. A touch both gentle and firm.
“Remind me not to drink an entire bottle of wine next time.”
“You’ve got it, boss.” She laughed, and it lightened the guilt I felt for drinking so much.
We stepped onto the elevator and rode the short ride down to our floor, her hands still on me.
I should have been embarrassed, but I also considered myself lucky to have her hands on me.
The only person who had seen me this drunk was Kevin.
But Sadie didn’t make me feel bad about it, even as I stumbled over my own feet down the hall to our room.
Outside our room, she steadied me against the wall as she fished out the room key from her clutch.
“You really do look beautiful tonight,” I slurred.
She looked up at me and let out a little laugh.
“Easy there, Romeo. Are you sure you can even see straight?”
“There’s actually three of you. It’s a dream come true,” I joked, even though it wasn’t far off from what I was seeing through my liquored up eyes.
“I think you need to lie down.” She rolled her eyes playfully.
I swayed slightly. She was probably right. She held the keycard to the door before steadying me by slinging my arm around her shoulders. I laid my face against the top of her head as she led me through the door.
“You smell good,” I said into her hair.
“It’s the fancy hotel shampoo,” she said.
“Nah. It’s your perfume. You’re like a warm sugar cookie.”
She laughed and led me through the living room and to the bedroom.
“Sit,” she said, unhooking me from around her shoulders and guiding me to the foot of the bed. I eased myself onto it and laid back against the plush duvet cover.
“Or lay.” She stood overtop me and looked me over like she was trying to assess what to do with me. I put my hands behind my head and grinned deviously.
“Jeremiah, you are something else. I’ll tell you that much.”
I laughed out loud before growing serious, my eyes trailing up the curves of her little black dress to the nape of her exposed neck to the loose tendrils of hair that kissed her perfect face.
“And you, Sadie, are beautiful.”
She sucked in a breath and looked as if she was about to say something, but instead she seemed to think better of it.
She looked away quickly as she kneeled at the foot of the bed and tugged my shoes off.
She stood and next helped me out of my jacket before scooching me back on the bed and sliding the covers over me.
“I’m going to get you some water and some Advil to help ward off the hangover you’re sure to have in the morning. You have to be ready for your big meeting.”
I groaned and buried my head deeper into the cloud of a pillow. Sadie was back in a minute with a large glass of water and two liquid gels.
“Sit up,” she said.
“Well, aren’t you bossy?” I propped myself up on my elbows.
“I learned from the best.” She handed me the water and two pills before sitting on the edge of the bed.
I popped the pills in my mouth and chugged the entire glass of water before lying back down. She reached over and ran her hand through my hair gently before cupping my cheek with the softness of her palm. I nuzzled my face further into it, and looked up at her gratefully.
“Get some sleep, bossman.”
I smiled, thinking it sounded a hell of a lot better than bosshole.
She stood from the bed and walked to the bathroom, leaving the door open just a crack.
Through it, I watched as she washed her face and pulled her hair out from the topknot, her hair falling in long waves.
She ran her fingers through it as she hummed a quiet tune to herself.
I fell asleep to the music, thinking she was the most beautiful woman on the planet.