Chapter 35
LIAM
Iwas never this guy the morning after. London had me doing all kinds of crazy things, cooking breakfast the other day and waking her up with coffee now, like some kind of sex butler.
I scrubbed my palms over my face and strode into the bathroom, then reached into the shower and turned on the water.
Stripping out of my shorts, I climbed in and stood under the spray, inhaling and exhaling deeply to slow my racing mind.
Doing these things for a woman wasn’t like me, but it was like the man I’d always thought I’d eventually become.
What it came down to was that I would go all in on London if she would go all in on me, too.
It was a huge risk, putting my feelings out there and it potentially hurting whatever we had going, but I’d be willing to do it if there were signs that she was feeling the same. So far, I’d seen hints, but only little ones. Nothing concrete or that I could act upon.
The iron wasn’t hot, which meant I probably shouldn’t strike. I’d have to give it some time and see if it ever started seeming like she was reciprocating. Until then, things would have to stay the same as they always had been.
Fuck.
I tipped my head back under the spray and ran my hands through my hair, wetting it all the way through before squeezing shampoo into my palms. I washed my hair and used the shampoo suds on my body, then rinsed off and stood under the warm spray for just one more minute.
The truth was that I’d known for a long time that I wanted London Walker. I’d just never been willing to admit it. Not only because the cost could be sky high, but also because she didn’t want to be wanted the way I wanted her.
Whenever I thought about settling down and building a life with someone someday, it was her I pictured in my mind’s eye. Her I wanted to come home to, raise babies with, and spend the rest of my life loving and teasing.
This was just the first time I was going there, even in my own head.
At least, the first time I was going there intentionally.
What I didn’t think she realized was that I’d never hold back.
Things could stay exactly the way they were right now in terms of our working hours and her ambition in her career.
Sure, eventually, if we had kids, we’d have to adjust, but I was willing to cut down on my own hours. I’d never expect her to do anything she didn’t want to, but that was the thing. She didn’t want any of this, though I didn’t quite understand what she was so afraid of.
Shaking my head, I grabbed the towel and dried off, wrapping it around my hips and leaving the bathroom. She was still sitting in bed, her back against the headboard and her mug cradled against her chest.
A serene expression softened her features as she looked out at the water park, the comforter pulled up high enough that I couldn’t see any sensitive bits even though I was pretty sure she was still naked. Blinking hard, I tore my gaze away from her and motioned at the bathroom.
“Shower’s free. We’ve got a little bit of time before we have to leave, but I’d recommend getting started if you don’t want to be rushed again.”
She glanced my way, her eyes meeting mine before slowly lowering. After raking them openly across my shoulders, chest, and abs, she smiled and finally looked back up at me. “Thanks for the tip, but I’ve been getting myself ready on time since I was six. I’m sure I can manage”
I tilted my head slowly to one side. “What exactly do you think the phrase ‘on time’ means, Ms. Walker?”
She laughed and grabbed my pillow, tossing it at my head, but it fell harmlessly to the floor only about halfway between us. Chuckling as I walked around it, I headed to the closet and grabbed my clothes, changing once she’d finally disappeared into the bathroom.
Against all odds, we made it to the ice cream factory right on time.
From the moment we parked, I was amazed.
It was a much larger operation than I’d been expecting.
The building itself was painted light pink and blue, which kind of made it look like a sundae—but it was industrial and modern at the same time.
London arched an eyebrow as we climbed out of the car. She stood still for a moment, taking in the wide windows into the lobby, the giant, revolving plastic ice cream cone outside, and the truck loading dock to our left.
“This is a much bigger company than I realized,” she said, clearly impressed. “I knew they were big, but how many trucks can that depot accommodate? How much ice cream can go into one truck? It’s…”
“Almost unimaginable?” I finished for her, nodding my agreement as I hit the lock button on my key fob and started toward the doors.
London followed, falling into step beside me with that faraway, thoughtful look already in her eyes.
Since I knew that meant her mind was already at work starting to plan a potential campaign for these people, I left her to it, taking the lead when we got to the front desk and giving the receptionist our names.
The woman beamed at me. “Of course! We’re all so excited to have you here. Dominic and Jenny are in their office. They told me to let them know immediately when you arrive. Oh, and you’re going to be needing these.”
She glanced down at her desk, shuffling some papers before she came back with two plastic pouches. I frowned when she slid them across the desk toward us. “What’s this?”
“Everything you’ll need for the day,” she explained after putting in a quick call to her bosses. “There’s a hair net and booties, as well as your lanyard that will provide access to all the areas of the factory you’ll want to visit today.”
“Right. Thank you.” I scooped both up and snapped my fingers in front of London’s face to get her attention.
She’d been looking around the lobby, taking in the surprisingly high ceilings and the silver tubing running across it.
When she refocused and looked at me, I handed over a pouch.
“This is yours. It’s got your hair net in it. ”
“Hair net?” She blinked rapidly and scoffed, her head immediately shaking as her eyes widened. “No, I don’t think so. Thanks for trying, but I don’t buy it.”
Before I could explain that I hadn’t been kidding, Dominic’s booming voice rang out behind us. Wearing jeans and a T-shirt, he looked like he was ready for a ballgame instead of a regular day at the office, but the vibe in here was pretty relaxed.
We’ll have to keep that in mind when we develop their marketing strategies.
He grinned at us and spread his arms out to his sides. “Welcome to our humble abode, guys! We’re so happy to have you. Jenny’s stuck on a call, but she’ll join us as soon as she can.”
We shook hands with him. As he released us, he produced a hair net of his own from his back pocket and quickly tied it around his head.
“Are you ready for your tour? We thought it might be fun for you to be put to work in the factory today. That’ll allow you to experience the whole process from start to finish. ”
London’s gaze got stuck to the blue net on his head. “Is that really necessary?”
He chuckled. “I’m afraid so. We’re very particular about cleanliness and hygiene around here.”
After chuckling under my breath when I saw the look of stricken horror that crossed her features, I cracked open my pouch and pulled out the net. I spread it between my fingers to figure out which way was up. Then I popped it on my head, tying it off so it would stay on like I’d seen Dominic do.
“I’ll wait for you over there.” He pointed at a pair of sliding doors on the other end of the room with a card reader next to it, presumably what the receptionist had meant when she’d said we’d need the lanyard for access. “I just need to make a quick phone call.”
“We’ll be there in a moment,” I promised, though London was still holding her pouch like she was afraid it might bite her.
She glanced at me, not even trying to fight the giggles that spilled out of her as her gaze swept across my hair net. “Wow. You look ridiculous.”
“Like you’re going to look any better.”
She sniffed and pumped her eyebrows, then reached in and put it on. If I was being honest, I would have told her that the color made her eyes seem so much bluer and that she was still gorgeous, but honesty was overrated sometimes.
I snorted. “I need to get a picture of this.”
“Like hell you do.” She pointed a finger at my chest when I pulled my phone out of my pocket. “Don’t you dare.”
Opening my camera, I took a quick snap and laughed when she tried to grab the device from me. Thankfully, we both remembered that we were at a client meeting when the receptionist chuckled and cleared her throat. “You’re a very cute couple.”
London groaned, but for a change, she didn’t contradict the woman immediately.
Instead, she spun around and stomped toward Dominic, muttering threats to me under her breath.
“If that photo ever sees the light of day, you’re going to be waking up without eyebrows for at least a year.
I’ll also tell every girl you meet that you have an itty, bitty winky problem. ”
I laughed. “Don’t care. You already know that’s not true and who needs eyebrows?”
“I swear, Liam, I will make your life very, very difficult.”
Since we’d reached Dominic, I didn’t respond, but I hadn’t been planning on doing anything embarrassing with the picture anyway. It was for my personal collection.
Dominic grinned as he held up the lanyard around his own neck and swiped it in front of the reader. The doors opened with a soft whoosh. “Right this ways, guys. Just clock yourselves in or you won’t be able to get out later.”
London nodded and held up her lanyard, a quiet, digital beep announcing that she had been scanned in. She followed him through the door and I brought up the rear, inhaling deeply as we entered the factory.
“That smells awesome.” I groaned, my mouth watering at the sweet scent that infused the air in here. “Seriously, how do you work when it smells so darn good while you’re supposed to be paying attention?”
Dominic chuckled. “If we could bottle that smell and sell it, we’d be billionaires.”
“No doubt.” I agreed wholeheartedly, finding myself wondering if there was a way to incorporate that scent into our campaign strategies.
As we started moving through the place, however, I focused on what Dominic was saying.
Surprisingly, I really enjoyed learning about their business.
He showed us the massive machines that they used as well as explaining how their product was packaged and labeled.
He introduced us to their staff and comprehensively explained every little part of the process in between.
The day flew past in a blur of learning, helping, and best of all, tasting.
I might have a future as an ice cream factory worker. This is awesome.
At the end, he stopped at a mixing station of sorts and grinned at us. “We thought you might like to create your own flavors and have a cup full of whatever you come up with. Have fun.”
Jenny appeared when Dominic left, helping us navigate the world of creating flavors and laughing when I ended up with salted lemon. “That’s a good one. What’s it like?”
She dragged a spoon through my mixture, her eyes glazing over with thought after she’d popped it into her mouth. “You know, if you add something sweet to that, you could really be onto something.”
I smirked and held up the handful of M&M’s I’d already been holding. “One step ahead of you.”
London took a bite of her raspberry ice cream and groaned as she swallowed. “This is delicious. It may not be a new flavor, but I love it so much.”
She watched me drop the M&M’s into my cup and gave me an exasperated stare. “You’re such a child.”
“What? Only a psycho doesn’t like M&M’s.”
“Well, I guess that makes me a psycho.”
I shrugged. “You said it.”
She laughed and shook her head, tucking into her ice cream and asking Jenny some questions about the different flavors she and her husband had created. When we were done eating, Jenny walked us to the door and we chatted for a few more minutes before I said my goodbyes.
London was still talking to her when my phone rang. I pulled it out of my pocket and swiped the net off my hair before I answered. “Nate! I was just about to call you. We had a terrific time at the factory.”
“I can’t wait to hear more about it,” he said. “What about you tell me everything over breakfast tomorrow morning?”
My eyebrows shot up, a grin spreading across my face. “Breakfast, huh? You’re coming to Orlando?”
“Yep. An old client of mine wants a meeting. On the golf course. It seemed like the least I could do to say yes.”
I chuckled. “What a sacrifice to make, man. But I think you’re doing the right thing. Breakfast sounds amazing. Just let us know the details and we’ll be there.”
Maybe seeing Nathan tomorrow would be good for me. Nothing like breakfast with the girl’s dad to remind you that unless you’ve put a ring on it, your dick shouldn’t be anywhere near his little princess.
On the other hand, as I got off the phone and turned to look at her waving her final goodbye to Jenny, I knew that I’d seriously think about giving her that ring.
The only problem was that she’d probably just throw it at me. The likelihood of her ever putting it on her finger? I didn’t know the exact odds, but I definitely knew that they were not in my favor.