Page 5 of Brewing Up a Bad Boy

“Good for you. Try harder. I need to know what I’m walking into. You and I don’t speak the same language.”

He inhaled deeply, making his chest flex, something she noted and tried to ignore. But Alistair had always been a physical guy, working out, and it was hard to ignore how ripped he was. One of the things that had originally drawn her eye to him was his body. He looked like a sexier version of Harry Styles, mixed with Timothée Chalamet, with a little old-school Chris Pine—Princess Diariesera. One look at him, and she’d fallen hard.

“Fine. I am on a leave of absence—”

“You need me to get you back in?” Disappointed in herself for believing for half a second that he might be here for some other reason. Of course it was about pleasing his father and reclaiming his place in the family company.

“No. NO. Let me start over. I don’t want to get back in. I am trying to right past wrongs. I should have read that contract before I told you to sign it. I want you to get what you deserve, not continue being screwed over by Lancaster-Spencer Tea Makers as you have been.”

If what he was saying was true... But how could she trust Alistair again? What did it say about her that she really wanted to? It had taken her five long years to start repairing that damage, and it was only the bond she had with Sera and Liberty that made the healing easier. “That’s nice,” she said.

“If you’re going to be like that, then don’t bother.”

“Like what?” she demanded, feeling her own anger building for the first time. Something she hadn’t allowed since she’d walked out of their flat in Kensington.

“Treating me like I deserve to be treated. If this isn’t the time and you’re not ready to let go of the past, well, I respect that. But my father is going to come for you, and he’s got good corporate solicitors that rarely lose.”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” she said. But his honesty here was appreciated. “How would us pretending to be married help?”

“As my wife, you have some sway on the board. Mum and George will stand with us when we go up against Dad. We have enough power to sway him, but they want the tea blend for Lancaster-Spencer, and if you don’t do this, they’ll side with him. They’re both looking at the bottom line.”

Of course they were. Part of her understood, because she and Sera and Liberty had to do the same thing. Running a business was eye-opening and sometimes challenging. But at WiCKed Sisters, they never screwed anyone.

“If I went, when would we leave and return? I can’t just jet off and leave my store,” she said.

“I thought we’d leave on Sunday—”

“In two days?”

He had the grace to look sheepish. “I was afraid if I gave you too much time to think, you’d say no.”

“I haven’t said yes.”

He totally ignored that. “The wedding is on Saturday, and I figured we’d fly back on Monday. I’ll pay for everything.”

“Legend,” she said sarcastically.

He pushed his hand through his hair and looked down at the table before locking eyes with her. “I get it. I’m an ass, and I treated you poorly. I am sorry. You know that. I’ve apologized. I’m trying to at least get something good for you out of the mess that our marriage was.”

Her heart tugged. She couldn’t resist Ali when he was sincere, which wasn’t as often as she would have liked. But now...when the change in him flashed...

Goddess, don’t let me be wrong again.

“Sorry for being a bitch about it. I accepted your apology in that email. But I didn’t expect... Well I had no idea what it would be like seeing you in person again,” she said.

Damn Ali. At this moment, he embodied all the things she liked about him, owning his mistakes in a way that he’d only done when they were dating. She wouldn’t deny that hearing him say she deserved better than Lancaster-Spencer made her melt a little.

“Me either,” he admitted.

“I need some time to think.” But she already was leaning toward going with him. Did that make her the most pitiful woman on the planet? Luckily, she had “Bad Idea Right?” by Olivia Rodrigo on replay in her head. At least other women also struggled with exes they still had feelings for.

Cutting herself a break, she was going to send him on his way. Chances were, she was going to the UK on Sunday for a week, which meant she needed to get more staff in. That didn’t mean that Alistair shouldn’t sweat a little. Things came too easily to him the first time...

“I’ll give you my answer tomorrow,” she said, standing.

Alistair gave her a tight nod and then turned to walk out of the shop.

Watching him leave, she tried to concentrate on anything but the silver lining of this offer. Alistair was clearly different, but that didn’t mean he was better for her than he’d been before. Maybe she could finally get over him after this one final adventure together.

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