Page 32 of Get Lost

Chapter Twelve

As if Alyson finally finding Alex the perfect location for his restaurant wasn’t good enough, he also ran into Kelsey at brunch. What were the odds?

Alex had been coming to Nineteen-Twenty since Mikal came on as head chef, which was almost as long as the place had been in business. It was a great little brunch spot, so Alex tried to bring his mom here at least once a month.

Today, he’d decided on a whim to treat the ladies to lunch after they toured the new property listing because they had cause to celebrate. Nothing was set in stone yet, as acquiring real estate took time, but he’d been the first potential buyer to submit an offer and, thanks to Drew hiring him for the wedding, he’d been able to bid well over asking price. Plus, Alyson had an in with the seller’s firm that she trusted would work in Alex’s favor, and, in her words, the property was as good as his.

Tomorrow morning, Alex hoped to receive the good news that the place was his. Then he could start counting down the days and in about thirty, give or take a few, he could start really moving forward in his plan.

Alex’s restaurant would be open by the end of the year. Sooner, if all things went smoothly. He’d love to aim for a soft launch in the fall. October, possibly.

Kelsey glanced over her shoulder, catching his gaze, then quickly looked away. Alex smirked, lifting his beer to cover the movement. His mother certainly didn’t need to get any ideas.

“What’s the story there?” Alyson asked, pulling Alex’s focus back to the women he dined with, rather than the one who consumed his thoughts.

“Hmm?” he asked. “Story?”

Alyson rolled her eyes, then motioned toward the table where Kelsey sat with her friends.

“Nothing.” He shrugged.

“Right.” There was a tightness in Alyson’s eyes he hadn’t seen before.

His mom patted his forearm. “Alex and Kelsey were best friends all through elementary school, weren’t you?”

Well, up until third grade, anyway.Alex nodded.

“They weren’t as close in middle school and high school, but they still did so many things together. They chaperoned youth club events at church, and he was on the football team and she was a cheerleader…”

“Oh?” Alyson’s eyebrows rose. “How very all-American of you two. Did you date?”

“No,” he answered quickly, hoping that would be the end of it.

“I’ve been trying to convince him to call Kelsey and take her out for some coffee. She could use a nice man like Alexander in her life.”

Alex groaned. “Mom, stop.”

“What? The things her mother tells me…” She shook her head. “And she’s such a nice girl. Just needs a nice man to help her settle down.”

“She doesn’t need help settling down, Mom. Kelsey is fine.”

Alyson looked back and forth between them, then over at the table where the four girls were laughing and getting louder with every passing minute. “She’s drinking from the bottle,” Alyson said with disgust.

Alex looked over at Kelsey, smiling as she drank champagne straight from the bottle. Her friends whooped and hollered, cheering her on. She really was something, wasn’t she?

Alyson cleared her throat as she focused on pushing her food around the plate some more and pretending to eat. “You can take the girl out of the valley…”

Alex’s jaw clenched as he swiveled his head toward Alyson. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, you know, just that you’re both from the valley, and—”

“And?” Alex watched Alyson, waiting for her to say what was on her mind. Her implication was easy enough to decipher, but he waited for her to own it anyway.

She smiled sweetly, then reached over and placed her hand on his thigh. “Nothing. Forget I even said anything. The valley is a great place.” She patted his thigh, then rubbed up and down a couple times, a bit toofamiliarfor their professional relationship.

Alex stood quickly. “Excuse me.” He inclined his head to his mom, then placed his napkin down beside his unfinished lunch and headed toward the main restaurant. He wanted to get away from Alyson’s questions about Kelsey and his mom’s assumptions about her. He made sure to go the opposite direction from Kelsey and her friends as he made his way inside, then through the restaurant, slipping back into the kitchen when no one was looking.

He scanned the busy kitchen for his friend, smiling as he located Chef Mikal near a row of shelves of canned goods in the back.

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