Page 63 of The Main Event

“What?” I had no idea what he was getting at.

“Jesse invited me out, too,” Levi replied. “Well, he invited Corey, so I’m going too.” He shot a quick warning look in Daisy’s direction, and I didn’t have to ask what it was about. Daisy had mentioned that Levi and Corey were keeping whatever they were doing between themselves, at least for now. “You’re going, right?”

I swallowed hard and forced myself to think about something other than Daisy’s soft hair. “I am. I’m sure it will be fun.”

“I’m sure it will too.” Levi hesitated, but only for a moment. “I’ll meet you in the lobby, and we can walk over together if you want.”

“That sounds great.” I was relieved to have a reason to leave. “I guess I’ll see you later,” I said to Daisy.

“Sure,” she said. “We’re work colleagues. We see each other at work.”

She was still holding a grudge for my word choice. That much was obvious. “Okay, I’ll be going.”

Neither of them said goodbye. They just went back to their previous conversation.

“Well, if your dad brings a date to your family dinner tonight, I want to hear all about it,” Levi said. “If you’re bored after—or freaked out—we’ll be over at Finz. On the patio.”

“I can’t see that happening,” Daisy replied. “But thank you for the invite.”

I was secretly relieved. The last thing I needed was to be around Daisy and alcohol at the same time again.

It was better this way.

I was almost certain that was true.

16

SIXTEEN

Watching Jax walk away caused an odd pang in my heart. Why, though? That was the part I couldn’t figure out. I barely knew this guy. Sure, there had been a spark, and I’d felt it right up until the point where he said he didn’t want me to get too attached. If he’d said he was afraid he would’ve gotten too attached, that was one thing. He put it all on me, though, and I hated him for it.

Despite that, it had been odd to watch the struggle wash over his face when he had to talk to me. It was almost as if he were going through some sort of ordeal.

Because I had questions, I slowly tracked my gaze to Levi.

His hands immediately went up. “Don’t look at me. I don’t know anything about anything.”

I didn’t believe him. “Figure out what’s up with him tonight,” I instructed.

“Or you could just ask him how he feels about you,” Levi fired back. “You would not put me in an awkward position because you’re afraid to get the truth out of him.”

I set him on fire—and not in a good way—with a single glare. “I’m talking about the hotel. I want to know if he’s stickingaround for the whole renovation or if he’s going to try to unload it before it’s finished.”

“Why is that even important?” Levi asked. “I don’t understand why you’re so worked up about it.”

“Because the sort of buyer that would come in mid-renovation is the sort of buyer we don’t want.”

“It’s just a hotel, Daisy. You can get a job planning parties anywhere. Your reputation is that good. Why are you so insistent on saving this hotel?”

“Because it’s what George would’ve wanted. It’s one of the last things he said to me. He was desperate for the hotel to be his legacy.”

“That’s not your responsibility.” Levi looked tired more than anything else. “I love you, Daisy, but you can’t take all of this responsibility on your shoulders. You can’t change what’s going to happen here. Take a breath.”

That was easy for him to say. He hadn’t assured George that the hotel would be fine. Of course, I hadn’t known at the time that would be the last conversation we ever had. I simply couldn’t let George down now. I didn’t have it in me.

“Just figure out where his head is at,” I ordered. “You’ll be out drinking. It shouldn’t be too difficult.”

Levi looked pained. “You know I’m terrible when I try to James Bond it.”

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