EvieI checked the time, mentally noting that everything was right on schedule. I walked to the bar being set up under Nelle’s direction. The woman did not mess around when it came to setting up her workstation. There was a wrong way and there was Nelle’s way. There was no in between. It was why she was so damn good at her job.“Hey, drill sergeant,” I said.She turned to me, putting a hand on her hip and giving me that look that said she was going to murder someone. “I’m missing a case of liquor.”“Uh oh. Is that on my end or your end?”“Mine. Not mine but mine.”I nodded with understanding. One of her minions had failed her. “Do I need to do anything?”“Nope. I’ve got it handled.”“I knew you would.”“Walk with me,” she said in a way that made it clear it wasn’t a request.“What’s up?” I asked.“I just wanted to make sure you are okay. I didn’t hear from you last night and I got a little worried.”“Xander showed up at my door.”Her eyes bulged. “No way!”“Yep.”“Oh my god! I’m so ha
Evie“My wife and I have secrets,” he said without taking his eyes off the minimal cleavage showing in the dress I was wearing.“Really? Because the way she is looking at you, I would say your secret is out of the bag. Get lost, buddy. This lady is way out of your league.”I looked at Nelle, trying to tell her to calm down with my eyes. She wasn’t getting the message.“Excuse me?” he growled. “Aren’t you the bartender? Why don’t you make me another drink and do your job? I assume I’m paying you.”“You aren’t paying me shit,” Nelle replied without missing a beat. “This is an open bar.”“And I’m the damn owner of the firm that is paying for it,” he snapped.“Congratulations. I hope you have an excellent attorney and an even better prenup. Your wife is only with you for your money and I would guess she is tired of your secrets. You’re about to be a very broke man. She looks like she could be a gold digger. She was just waiting for you to screw up, and here you are, giving her all kinds o
XanderI got up and immediately knew I didn’t want to be in the house. Last night had been awful. No matter how hard I tried, I tossed and turned. I couldn’t bring myself to forget. I thought about taking Evie up on her offer, but I knew I had to test myself. Was there a chance I could come home? Not now. Not after my long, sleepless night.I promised her I would tell her I was leaving and that was what I was going to do. I didn’t want to wake her and found myself trying to kill time while I waited until it was an appropriate time. When nine o’clock rolled around, I felt I’d waited as long as I could. I was confident she would be up by now.“Good morning,” I greeted when she answered.“Hi,” she said, her voice filled with hesitation.“I didn’t leave,” I told her right away.“When you weren’t here when I got home, I assumed you decided to go. You didn’t answer my texts.”“I’m sorry,” I quickly apologized. “I fell asleep early, and by the time I saw your message, it was late and I didn’
XanderA little over an hour later, we were parking the car in an overpriced lot. I took her hand in mine and we found ourselves almost immediately absorbed in a crowd of people. After about an hour of mingling with the crowd, we broke off and found a small café for us to grab a snack and a drink.“I’m glad you and your dad are talking again. I hated thinking you guys were at odds because of me.”“We’re good,” she said. “Trust me. I don’t want to pry, but can you give me a hint about what happened between you and your dad?”“I was born,” I said dryly.“Stop,” she said. “For real, what happened? Were you especially rebellious in high school?”“Not really. I’m serious. I cannot name any one specific moment in my life that led to his dislike for me. It was kind of a gradual thing from the moment I was born. That is the honest truth.”“You are not a bad person,” she insisted. “I don’t get it.”“I truly believe it is because I didn’t want to go into the military. He had this idea in his he
EvieWe were both avoiding what was really going on. I refused to acknowledge it. I wanted to pretend we were on a normal date for as long as possible. We laughed and played and joked with each other as we strolled over several blocks of Hollywood stars before heading to the museum.“I think this is all a little creepy,” I told him after a while.“You don’t like being surrounded by wax figures staring at you,” he teased.“It’s giving me the heebie-jeebies.”He burst into laughter. “It is a little creepy. Cool but creepy. Do you want to check out some of the shops? We could go to the Dolby?”“Do you actually want to go shopping?” I questioned. I got the impression he was trying to make me happy, doing things that he thought I wanted to do as a way to appease me. I didn’t need appeasing.“I don’t mind browsing,” he answered.It wasn’t exactly an enthusiastic answer, but I would go with it. We spent a few more hours doing absolutely nothing except walking around and seeing all there was
Evie“That isn’t my intention.”“Just say what you need to say,” I murmured. It was better to get it over with.“I’m not in a position to be with anyone.”I rolled my eyes. “Because?”“You know me. I’m not good at this kind of thing. I’m not good at relationships in general. The one person in this world that I truly cared about is gone.”He may as well have slapped me. It hurt. His words tore at my heart. “I see,” I said, nearly choking on the words.“Kade got me. He understood me. He was… well, he was the one person that I could say I had a meaningful relationship with. He’s gone. His death has turned me inside out. I can’t do this again. I can’t feel like this ever again.”“Grief?” I questioned. “That’s what you don’t want to feel again?”“No, I don’t. I can’t.”I slowly nodded. “I understand. Your solution to your situation is to avoid relationships so you never have to experience loss. You would prefer to be permanently be alone than to know love and maybe feel some pain.”“I gues
XanderThis was probably one of the top ten dumbest things I had done in my life. In fact, it could be in the top five. I turned off the engine of my car but made no move to actually get out. I was still trying to talk myself into keeping the appointment I had made. I knew if I didn’t call and make an appointment, I would never actually follow through with it.I stared up at the building for several long minutes. I was a grown man. I was a successful, grown man. I should not be intimidated. I would not be intimidated. I could do this. I needed to do this. It wasn’t for me. It was for Charlie and his guys. One moment of humility would not kill me.I opened the car door and climbed out. My shoes felt like cement blocks as I made my way inside the building that was all too familiar. I followed the directions from the registry and made my way down the hall. I paused in front of his door and reviewed what I would say to the man that had tried to kill my dreams.“Fuck it,” I mumbled under m
Xander“So, you can shoot it down again? Because you don’t trust me and my science?”He shrugged. “I don’t.”I didn’t care what his opinion was. I knew better than him, whether he thought I did or not. I was the guy that had changed the shipping industry. I was the guy that the ship owners trusted. At least, I used to be that guy. One failed meeting did not mean I didn’t know my shit.“It’s a way to keep rudders from being damaged. With my new design, rudders will last longer. It’s all very technical, and I can send you the plans if you think it would help you better understand, but in a nutshell, it’s good. It’s really good. This is just the beginning. With existing ships being retrofitted with the design, ship owners will save thousands on repair costs. Shipping lines are going to be running smoother with ships staying on the water where they belong. Lower operating costs mean better prices for everyone. It’s a good plan. It’s a great plan and I know it will work.”“You sound very—”