Page 18 of Single Chance

“I bet you do. I hadn’t thought of it that way before.” I chuckled. “If not for the fact we were making alcohol, tours would be a great opportunity for high school chemistry classes.”

“If not for that fact,” she repeated, grinning.

I walked to the door, and she followed me.

“I’m glad we talked,” I said.

“Me too. Going forward, strictly coworkers.”

Facing her, my hand on the knob, I peered down at her and got caught up in her expressive brown eyes. I had to fight not to glance at her lips, not to let myself think about kissing her.

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow, coworker.” I opened the door and got the hell out of there before I did something dumb.

As I went out into the crappy weather, I forced my thoughts to my daughter and pulled out my phone to make dinner plans with the only female I had room for in my life.

Chapter Seven

Rowan

After two and a half weeks at my new job, I could say with certainty this had been a good move for me.

This small town felt healing somehow. Anna, who managed the inn for Ava, claimed it was the lake, even in the winter. The scenery and the half-frozen water were soothing to gaze at from my balcony door or the inn’s cozy living area. So was being able to read when I wanted to and nap when I needed to, which turned out to be embarrassingly a lot more than I’d ever napped before.

I genuinely liked working at the brewery. The atmosphere was warm and positive. Holden and Chloe were gracious and patient and appreciated having an assistant. The other employees, Chance included, seemed to enjoy what they did. After working in a tension-filled, bureaucracy-laden, big-city high school, I welcomed the intimate, low-pressure environment. I still hoped to go back to a classroom eventually because I was dedicated to education and thrived on connecting with teenagers, but this was the ideal respite while I recovered from the past few years.

Working with my one-night-stand guy?

On the surface, I was handling it okay.

No one at work knew about our fling. Chance had told me, when we both found ourselves at the coffee machine one morning, that no one else from the brewery had been at the inn’s party, but everyone knew people who had been, including some of Chloe’s close friends. If someone figured out our secret, we’d acknowledge it, point out it wasn’t an issue, and move on.

Inside I wasn’t so unbothered or indifferent. My attraction to him hadn’t dimmed. Seeing his professional side, where he was intelligent, confident, and damn good at what he did, did nothing to cool the flames. I hadn’t been drunk on New Year’s Eve. My judgment held up in the daylight. He was, to me, the kind of guy I could fall for in a different lifetime, or maybe just a different era of this lifetime. The few times we’d been alone, my pulse raced, and my mouth went dry. My bodyremembered.

I made a point of blocking out those memories as much as possible. What I’d told him still held true. I had zero mental space for entanglements or drama. I was grieving the woman who’d raised me, as well as recovering physically and mentally from a relentlessly stressful multiyear period of caretaking. There was a reason they said people shouldn’t make major decisions for a full year after a loss.

Not that Chance was a major decision. But a relationship with anyone could lead to one.

Anyway, work was good. I could ignore my attraction to my fling. I was learning my duties and so far could handle all of them.

Best of all, I’d received my first paycheck, so I could breathe—and afford an evening out like tonight.

“There she is,” Chloe said as Presley made her way through the tables in Henry’s Restaurant toward us.

“Hey, ladies,” Presley said when she reached our table in the farthest corner of the restaurant. Even though it was off-season and a weeknight, Henry’s was filled to the rafters.

Both Chloe and I stood and hugged Presley in turn.

“Hey, you,” she said to me, holding on to me a little longer, conveying concern. “How are you doing?”

I nodded as I said, “I’m doing okay. At least until some kind, caring girl goes out of her way to ask me how I’m doing.”

We all laughed, relieving the pressure behind my eyes, which was what I’d intended.

“My girl Chloe’s treating you okay?” Presley asked as she sat across from Chloe, next to me at the table for four that looked out on the dark lake.

“Chloe’s the best boss ever, and I’m not saying that to kiss up.”

“Aww,” Chloe said. “Dinner’s on me tonight because, thanks to you two, my life is slightly smoother. Thanks for connecting us, Pres.”

---