Page 6 of Sensuous

“I doubt it,” I say and take another drink of whiskey. “So let me get this story out because I have to tell someone since it’s so wild. So these three producers from some cooking channel come into the restaurant tonight and say they want to talk to me. Turns out they want me to be on some reality show. Can you believe that? What the hell would I want to do that for?”

Oddly, Cade doesn’t look like he finds any of this as amusing as I do. As he mixes a gin and tonic for some guy I think I saw on the stairs coming up here, he says, “Is there some monetary benefit to doing it? If there is, it could be fun.”

“For someone like you. You love that shit. I bet they found me because you roped me into that ridiculous bachelor auction for charity last month. You do know the woman who won the bid for me was like seventy, don’t you?”

Throwing his head back in peals of laughter, he pushes the glass to the drunk guy at the end of the bar before turning his attention back to me. “Did you do her?”

“Fuck you. Did you do the woman who bought you?”

“No, but not because she wasn’t hot. I didn’t do her because I’m madly in love with Hailey. You have no such excuse.”

“I don’t need an excuse. I don’t recall being told participating in the auction meant I had to fuck the winner.”

“Well, there’s always the woman from earlier tonight who seems to like the dark hair and brown eyes look we have going on with our side of the family.”

Cade looks down at the people on the first floor and points at two women standing near the bar. “There! She’s the one in purple. Not bad. I could see you with her.”

I follow where his finger is pointing and see two women, one in purple and one in black. Both are beautiful.

“Best friends, I’m betting,” I say with a smile.

“One’s nice, but two can be even better,” Cade says with a knowing chuckle.

“And you say she was into your father first? Not sure I want sloppy seconds,” I joke.

“Sloppy thirds,” he corrects me as his replacement slides behind the bar. “She was into me for about a nanosecond until she found out I was taken.”

“And the friend?” I ask as he starts heading for the stairs.

With a shit-eating grin, he answers, “She was teasing her about having daddy issues. I don’t think she was into our look at all, strangely enough.”

I follow him to the stairs and give the woman at the top of the steps a wink and a smile as we pass. “Go figure. She must not have any taste at all.”

Throwing his hands up, he laughs. “I know, right? Probably likes fucking blond guys with blue eyes who look like surfers or some shit like that.”

When we reach the first floor, he nudges me toward the two women. “I’d introduce you, but I didn’t get their names. Jesus, I really am a hopeless cause.”

“That’s what love does to you. I’m okay without an introduction. I’ll just drop your father’s name and I’ll be in with the one who likes old guys.”

Cade’s eyebrows shoot up into his forehead at my not-so-subtle jab. “Well, now I hope you don’t get either of them for that crack, fucker.”

“At least you know you’ll still have it when you’re Stefan’s age, right?”

Shaking his head, he turns to walk toward the office, leaving me to my own devices. While I walk over to them, I can’t help but notice they’re both pretty hot. Maybe if the one who’s into our side of the family’s look doesn’t work out then the other one might.

Just before I reach them, the woman in the purple dress sees me and her eyes grow wide. She really does have a thing for dark hair and brown eyes, I guess.

“Are you the cousin of the bartender from before?” she asks as I join the two of them.

“Yeah. Cade’s my cousin and the owner of this place is my uncle. I’m Alex, Alex March,” I say with a smile as I size up the two women in front of me.

“I’m Sadie,” the woman in purple says before turning to her friend. “And this is Katerina.”

The one in the black dress corrects her. “Kat, actually.”

“Nice to meet you two. I’ve never seen you here at Club X before. First time?”

“Yes, and I love it! It’s so full of fun people. My friend doesn’t like it so much, though. Too noisy for her.”

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