Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Two weeks later, Connor was at a breaking point.
He and Lexi had mastered the art of stolen moments—kissing in the pantry, locking her office door so they could make out like a couple of teenagers, and one particularly adventurous attempt at sneaking out to the boathouse so no one would find them.
But they always did.
Always.
And it was frustrating as hell.
There was so much happening at the resort the closer they got to opening day, and honestly, they were both ridiculously busy, but that didn’t stop him from thinking about her all day, every day. And those brief escapes just to be alone and kiss weren’t enough anymore.
“Hey, Con?”
“What?” he snapped before he realized how hostile he sounded. Turning, he found Slater standing next to the stainless-steel workstation, smirking. “Sorry. What’s up?”
“Sorry to bother you, but Lexi and I are working on remaking the drive-in movie setup that we used to have here when we were kids.”
“And?”
“And we were hoping you would whip up some concession stand food for it. I know it’s last minute and you’re busy, but we were going to test it out tonight.
Harlow invited Swati, and she’s bringing some of her nieces and nephews, we invited some of the staff and their families, and then of course our key group will all be here. So? What do you think?”
“I think I want to punch you in the face for waiting until the last minute to throw this at me. Exactly how many people are we talking about?”
“Um…twenty-five? Thirty?”
The string of curses was out before he could stop them, and then he had to force himself to mentally count to ten before responding. “Uh…yeah. Sure. I’ll figure something out. Hot dogs, popcorn, candy…I’m not sure how I’ll get it all done, but I will.”
“Great!”
“Next time, ask before you plan something like this. I’ve got too much to do to have stuff like this thrown at me.”
“Will do.” For a moment, Slater just stood there. “What if I said I have a way of paying you back?”
“I doubt it, but…go ahead.”
“Well, I can’t help but notice that you and Lexi have been trying to have some alone time.”
“That’s because you’re primarily the one who keeps interrupting us.”
He chuckled. “True. But that’s only because Lexi and I work together. Anyway, what if I told you that me, Axel, and Walker are going to have a guys’ day with Jonah tomorrow?”
“A guys’ day?”
Nodding, Slater explained, “Yup. We’re going to test out a bunch of the amenities and activities geared toward kids. Jonah’s been asking about stuff and we figured we’d have him join us to check it all out.”
“That sounds great, but how is that paying me back?”
“Obviously we couldn’t have a guys’ day if the girls didn’t have a girls’ day,” he went on.
“So, Harlow and Maisie are planning on having Annabeth do a whole day with them. They’re going to have a spa day, go to lunch, and when they come back here, they’ll all meet up and have dinner together.
We’re making it sound like they’re getting a break from you and Lexi. ”
It took a moment for him to realize exactly what Slater was saying.
“Wait, so…then Lexi and I will have an entire day to ourselves?”
“Exactly. So if you want to go somewhere, great. Or if you’d like a room up on a high floor so you can’t see or hear anyone and we can’t hear you, that can be arranged too.”
As much as he’d love to take Lexi somewhere, he knew she was going to be anxious about being away from Jonah. “And you talked to Lexi about this already?”
“I did. She’s on board with it if you are.”
“And did you mention the room here or us going somewhere?”
“Nope. That seemed a little too personal. She’s in her office. I’m willing to hang out here and monitor the kitchen for about ten minutes so you can go talk to her. But just know…I’m going to eat while I’m here and not clean up after myself, so…”
Without thinking, he walked over and hugged his friend enthusiastically.
“Thank you! And eat whatever you want! I’ll be back in ten minutes!
” Then he ran out of the kitchen, across the dining room and lobby, and down the hall to Lexi’s office.
He nearly tripped over his own two feet in his haste to get to her.
When he all but stumbled into the room, he was met with wide-eyed amusement.
“Either the place is on fire or Slater told you about the plan for tomorrow,” she said with a sweet smile.
Breathless, he asked, “How could you be so calm about it? We’ll have an entire day to ourselves. No kids. No work. No interruptions. It’s practically a miracle.”
Standing, Lexi walked around her desk and came to stand in front of him, resting her hand on his chest. Big brown eyes looked up at him seductively, and he inwardly groaned.
“What do you think we should do with all that free time?” she asked.
“There’s no place near Harbortown that’s good enough.
If we ever get an entire weekend to ourselves, I promise to take you someplace fabulous,” he murmured against her lips and then kissed her because he simply had to.
“So I’m thinking we take a suite up on the top floor, far away from everything going on down here.
I’ll prepare us a gourmet basket of everything we might want, but I’m open to requests.
” Another kiss. “And then we spend the day locked away in our own little world. What do you think?”
She smiled, caressing his jaw. “I think that sounds perfect.”
“Good.” As much as he wanted to linger, he had far too much to do. Reluctantly, he pulled away. “I need to go and figure out how to make thirty concession stand meals for tonight.”
She looked a bit remorseful. “Yeah. Sorry about that. I mentioned it to Slater, and it just snowballed. I didn’t think he’d want to do it tonight, but when everyone else heard, it took on a life of its own.”
“I get it, but my day just got crazier than usual, so…I’ll see you tonight at the movie.” Leaning in, he kissed her thoroughly.
When he pulled back, her cheeks were flushed, and she looked a little dazed. “Tonight.”
“And then all day tomorrow.”
Turning, he sprinted out the door and back to the kitchen. Now he had the motivation to get everything done, because the sooner he did, the sooner tomorrow would be here.
And then Lexi would be his again.
“I remember when this used to be the perfect distraction so we could make out without our parents seeing us,” Slater commented when they were all getting set up for the movie.
“True. But I know Annabeth will never do anything like that,” Connor replied as he put the final touches on their concession stand.
“Pfft…sure she won’t. Right now, she’s only eight, but at sixteen it’s going to be a completely different story.”
“Why are you trying to provoke me right now?” he asked wearily. “I managed to pull together all the food and snacks for tonight, and you’re actively trying to put me in a bad mood?”
“Dude, you’ve been in a bad mood for like…two weeks. Talking about teenagers and the things they do behind their parents’ backs isn’t the issue. You’re going to be pissy until you and Lexi finally have some uninterrupted time alone tomorrow.”
“No arguments there,” he mumbled.
People were arriving, and he couldn’t help but smile when he spotted his daughter walking with Lexi and Jonah. Whatever they were talking about had them all laughing, and it did his heart good.
That could be our family…
It wasn’t the first time that thought had occurred to him, but lately it felt like it could be a reality.
He and Lexi weren’t strangers, and no matter how much she said she didn’t want to look back, they had a past, and it could very well feed into their future.
They already knew each other so well that it took away the awkward getting-to-know-you phase.
Sure, there were gaps that needed to be filled in—things that shaped them as adults—but who they were at their core was still the same.
Was he rushing things? Maybe. But he’d already had to put his life and things that he wanted on hold in order to appease his family. So now that it was his turn, he was eager to have the life that had been essentially taken away from him.
All the years without her—all the years of thinking about her, all the what ifs—carried him through to where they were today.
“Dad!” Annabeth called out as she ran to him. “I got to pick the movie! This is going to be so much fun!”
Hugging her, he agreed. When Lexi and Jonah caught up, it took every ounce of self-control not to kiss her. They’d been careful not to show that side of their relationship in front of their kids, but hopefully after tomorrow that would change.
“You ready for movie night, buddy?” he asked Jonah.
“Yeah! Annabeth said we’re gonna watch Zootopia!”
“And you like that movie, huh?”
He nodded enthusiastically. “And maybe tomorrow we can watch Zootopia 2!”
Connor ruffled the boy’s hair. “I hear you’re having a boys’ day tomorrow.”
“Uh-huh! And I get to test all the stuff for kids to do!”
“That is so cool!”
Another enthusiastic nod. “But Mom said I’d have to ask Mr. Slater if we can watch another movie.”
“We should do that tomorrow after dinner!” Annabeth chimed in before glancing around. “I’ll ask Harlow and Maisie!” Then she dashed off with Jonah chasing after her, leaving him and Lexi alone.
Stepping in close, he said, “I have a confession to make.”
“Oh, really?”
He nodded. “Uh-huh. I don’t even feel a little bit guilty about the kids asking for even more time and more movies.”
“Can I let you in on a little secret?” she whispered before adding, “I don’t either.”
Unable to resist, he kissed her. “Is it tomorrow yet?”
“Mmm…soon,” she hummed. But before she could say anything else, Harlow and Swati joined them, and that was the moment that his countdown clock began.
Saturday morning, Lexi stared at herself in the full-length mirror and sighed. She was already up in the suite she and Connor were staying in today and trying to calm her nerves.