Chapter 15 #2
“Unfortunately, I like you too because you made these cupcakes. That means I can’t hate you.”
“Why would you want to hate me?” he replied, feigning being struck.
“Because you’re my brother,” Connor informed him.
“Ah, yes.” Alec nodded dutifully. “I see the problem.”
Rachel laughed again, and for that alone, Connor glared at him. “Why exactly are you here again?”
“To spend time with my favorite brother!”
“He’s your only brother, isn’t he?” Rachel asked innocently.
Alec’s grin widened, and Connor suppressed a snort. “That’s correct. Hey, Maddie, you get another cupcake if you tell me what my brother did that was so awful to deserve your dirty looks. Did he sleep with you and not call?” Alec speculated.
Maddie snorted. “Oh, please. None of us would be stupid enough to end up in bed with Connor Stone.”
Connor’s shoulders stiffened. Well, technically, he hadn’t spent any time in bed with Rachel, so…
“Then what is it?”
“He doesn’t believe in love,” Maddie said, resentful.
Connor rolled his eyes, gave up, and turned away. He was okay with Maddie hating him, but that didn't mean she could twist the facts. “I believe in love. I don’t believe in Match Me! That’s the difference.”
“Match Me! is her dating agency,” Cian told Alec.
“Ah, yes!” Alec just grinned. “Well, Maddie, I’m nothing like Connor. I love love. I feel like I’ve spent the last year baking wedding cakes because everyone in my hometown of Eden Bay is in love and getting engaged and married. It’s like a sickness.”
“Wait a minute. You’re from Eden Bay?”
Rachel had spoken — and Connor would have liked to claim it didn’t piss him off that she hadn’t responded to practically any of his words yet had no problem talking to his brother. But he was an honest guy, and it pissed him off.
“Yep.” Alec pushed his chair back to get a better look at Rachel. Connor didn’t like the way his pupils dilated slightly.
“No. Impossible.” Rachel looked genuinely stunned. “Eden Bay, Maine?”
“The real deal. You know the town?”
“My best friend lives there!” she said incredulously, and the next moment, she sank into the empty chair next to Alec. “Maya McKenzie. Landscape gardener?”
“No! Stop it.” Alec’s face lit up. “Maya did my garden! I love Maya.”
Rachel laughed and picked up a cupcake. “Of course you do. She’s the sweetest person in the whole world. Isn’t that cool? Tell me, does everyone truly believe your lighthouse has magical powers? Maya claims it’s a huge deal, but come on: A magical love lighthouse?”
Alec laughed and explained that many people, including Maya and her firefighter husband, had been brought together by the lighthouse.
Maddie sighed and sank into the chair between Connor and Rachel. “Okay, looks like we’re on your team today after all.”
Yeah. Connor would burst into cheers once his lungs were working properly again.
Rachel acted normal.
That meant she was polite, smiled at him kindly when he knew the answer to a question, and, otherwise, barely looked at him.
Okay, that wasn’t normal at all. But if that was what she wanted, to bring some order to her chaotic life, he could handle it. He respected the boundaries she had set. He hated them, but he respected them. And he didn’t hate them nearly as much as the fact that…
“Wow, your brother and Rachel are really getting along,” Cian whispered when Tara brought Rachel a second Gin Buck. It was the quiz halftime break. Alec joked that the glass was so big, it should really be called a Gin Bucket.
“Hm,” Connor uttered, making an effort to loosen his grip on the pencil in his hand. Everyone got along well with Alec.
“Maddie’s in matchmaking mode, you see that?”
Connor’s gaze flicked to Rachel’s sister, who was sitting next to him and did have a certain sparkle in her eyes as she watched Rachel and Alec.
“What does that have to do with me?” he asked. Maddie’s phone rang and she rose to hand in her answer sheet.
“Man, Connor.” Cian looked at him, shaking his head. “You know, I thought you were only interested in her for sex, but the way you’re looking at her…you like her.”
“You take that back!”
Snorting, Cian leaned forward. “What’s wrong with liking her?”
“She’s not the right woman for me,” he whispered, lowering his gaze.
“Who decided that?”
“Cian, stop,” he growled.
“No. If you like Rachel, tell her you like her!”
“It’s complicated,” he whispered.
“Sure.” Cian shifted his jaw from side to side. “You know what, I’ll make it easy for you. Hey, Alec, you’re single, right?” Cian asked loudly the next moment.
Connor widened his eyes in alarm.
“Yep, but not out of conviction,” Alec announced. “Eden Bay is small and all the women seem to be taken.”
“Well, then you should sign up at Match Me!” Cian suggested innocently. “Rachel’s there too. If you’re compatible, there’s a chance you can date her.”
“Really?” Alec drawled, nodding contentedly before smiling at Rachel. “Now that’s a tempting special offer.”
Rachel laughed. “Women love being called a special offer.”
Connor’s back tensed. Cian, that asshole.
“I’m serious,” Cian continued. “You guys seem to be hitting it off, so you have nothing to lose.”
No. His best friend was a huge asshole.
“Oh, I don’t know, that would be…” Rachel started but didn’t finish.
Instead, she looked at Connor. For the first time that evening, she looked him straight in the eyes.
Uncertainty was reflected in her expression.
She was wearing a light blue dress that made her eyes look even greener.
She wasn’t wearing much makeup, just mascara and…
God, had she always been so damn beautiful?
And why the hell was she looking at him like that?
Was she waiting for permission from him?
Or was she trying to confirm that, no way, she wouldn’t be going out with Alec?
He didn’t know. He also didn’t know what he wanted to hear or see from her right then.
It was as if the room was heating up, as if the air between them was on fire.
They held each other’s gaze. Seconds or hours passed…
The pencil broke in his hand, and the loud crack apparently pulled Rachel out of her trance.
“Um, that’s…a possibility,” Rachel concluded, smiling at Alec.
A deep frown had formed between Alec’s eyebrows, and his gaze darted back and forth between them. “Huh,” he said.
Connor turned his head away. “Tara, another whiskey, please,” he called to the barkeeper, who was passing by. More alcohol seemed prudent.
“Sure.” She nodded at him across the filled tray. “Oh, by the way, the woman at the bar asked if I knew you and if you’d be interested in her phone number.” She nodded toward the bar, but Connor didn’t bother looking up.
“No, thanks.”
“Okey-dokey.” Smiling, she continued to weave her way through the tables.
“Why didn't you say yes?” Cian asked, immediately suspicious. “As far as I can tell, you’re still short two dates.”
“Two dates for what?” Alec asked, confused.
“Oh, I’ll tell you later,” Cian promised.
Great. Just great. “We’re…taking a break,” Connor replied tersely, getting his friend to finally change the subject. “With the dates.”
Rachel nodded. “Yeah, yeah. That was why I was hesitant,” she replied hastily.
“Ah, so that’s why you don’t want Rachel to go out with Alec?” Cian persisted. And if the guy wasn’t the father of the most amazing kid ever, Connor would have considered killing him.
“I don’t care who Rachel goes out with,” he said sharply. “Let Alec sign up with Match Me! and see what happens.”
“Oh, I will,” Alec chimed in immediately, pleased. “Is there a questionnaire? I love questionnaires.”
Stunned, Rachel looked at him. “Really? Okay, then…you can log on with your phone.”
And that was what the damn idiot did.