Page 52 of Untethered Heart
“Is it just me, or is it tense as fuck in here?” Mason says.
“Yep,” Lee says. “Why don’t we get you something to drink, Mase?”
Claire, Lee, and Mason take off, leaving Lex and me still staring at each other.
“How have you been?”
She looks around the room, avoiding my eyes. “Good. You?”
“Better now.”
She peers up at me, and I see the way she wants to fight our chemistry, shift the focus to where it should be. She’s so determined, so dutiful in her aspirations. Not at all pretentious in her pursuit. I so desperately want to learn all the pieces that led her here, to the woman she is standing before me. So tender and ambitious.
“How old are you?” I find myself asking.
“I turned twenty-three in June.”
Holy shit. I didn’t think she was that young. Of course, she looks young, but it’s hard to know from looks alone. With how she conducts herself, I would have thought she was a few years older. Not that it changes anything. I just want to learn every crumb of knowledge about her I can get.
“So, you were quite young when the tavern was passed down to you, then?”
“I was fourteen when my dad passed.” She clasps her hands in front of her, interlacing and unfolding her fingers every fewseconds. “Dylan was twenty and already working at the tavern, so he took over. Since I was so young, I had to move to the city to live with my grandmother, so I haven’t really had much time working there, except for a few holidays since I turned eighteen. Then I decided to stay in the city to get my business and marketing degree.”
Pride swells in my chest. Her motivations. Her intelligence. She’s level-headed, kind-hearted and stunningly beautiful all wrapped into one. How did I manage to make this woman give me the time of day? I feel painfully out of her league, but I know in my heart, I could be so good for her. I would be so goodtoher. She deserves nothing less.
“I’m sure your father would be very proud of everything you’ve done. You and your brother.”
She smiles and nods but says nothing more.
“I wanted to talk to you about last week.”
“What about it?” The words are curious and open.
“I just wanted to clarify what I meant when I said I’d done something wrong before. When I mixed business and pleasure.”
I see her take a deep breath as if she’s preparing herself, then she turns her body so we’re standing side by side, both looking out into the crowd. Maybe it’s easier for her if we’re not looking into each other’s eyes for this. “Okay.”
“When I started working at my grandfather’s company, I met a woman who was also working there, and we started dating casually.” I shake my head, not wanting to go back to the past. “Long story short, she was just using me to get my money, and my grandparents had to do damage control when it hit the tabloids. It was bad for a while, and I felt so guilty, so stupid. Ever since, I’ve been very careful with who I get too close to. Especially if it mixes with work.”
The clinking of wine glasses interrupts us. Turning, I see Claire and Lee standing in front of a gathered crowd. He kisses her cheek, then steps asidewith a proud smile.
I look around for Mason, spotting him closer to the front. He’s standing with a young guy, half a head of light brown curls above him.
Claire starts her speech, making a special note to thank her best friend. Lex sniffles beside me, and I reach my hand out, brushing my pinky against hers.
She doesn’t pull away, she keeps her soft skin touching mine. I take a deep breath and dare to wrap my finger around hers while Claire continues to shower affection upon her.
When her pinky finger stays wrapped around mine for the entire speech, I can’t stop the grin on my face.
“I didn’t know you were the investor before that night,” Lex whispers.
I look down my shoulder at her. She twists her hand around, interlacing our fingers, and lets the truth of her words seep in. She turns her attention to me, letting me see the doubt as it slips away, leaving room for hope.
Chapter twenty-seven
I’ve never been to Hallucinogens. I’ve walked past the entrance a few times when I’ve been to the casino’s many restaurants for business events, but never inside the neon club where Lex works.
A huge lit-up tree sits in the centre of the wide-open room. More greenery fills the space, hanging interwoven with pendant lights and lined along the shelves where bottles of alcohol stand on display behind the bar.
