Page 17 of Blame It on the Bikini
Before either of them could speak again, the waiter cleared their plates, and Gabe returned with dessert, setting it down between them. A molten chocolate cake, its shell just firm enough to hold in the lava of ganache, was paired with a scoop of coconut gelato topped with candied pepitas.
She broke into it with her spoon, the chocolate flowing out like a secret, and she took a sweet bite, thinking this might be the best thing yet.
"Oh, my God," she murmured.
"Oh, my God!" he echoed, meeting her gaze with a look of bemusement in his dark-brown eyes. "I didn't think they could top themselves, but they did."
"I agree. And I know this restaurant will be a long-term success."
"I don't doubt it," he said.
"I just hope Madison and Gabe won't be homeless at some point while they're sinking all their money into this place," she couldn't help adding.
Grayson shook his head. "And you just asked me if I ever stop…"
"Just giving you something to think about."
"Sorry, I can't think about anything except how good this is."
It wasn't what she wanted to hear, but it was enough for now.
Chapter Five
Grayson woke up early Sunday morning and went for a long run in the cool morning sunshine. The beach path was one of the most picturesque runs he'd done in a while. For the past few months, he'd only worked out in a gym, so it felt good to be outside, to be running to the beat of the crashing waves. It almost made him feel like he was on vacation, but he needed to stop that feeling in its tracks.
He was here to assess the Ocean Shores property and spend the designated amount of time on-site before he sold it. While he was here, he would not be relaxing, working on cars or having dinner with a pretty woman; he'd be staying on top of his business deals. He didn’t want to miss a detail because he was distracted, and he'd been very distracted since he'd arrived. He would change that today.
When he returned, the courtyard was still empty, and he didn't pass anyone on his way up the stairs, which was a relief. He didn't have to meet someone new or engage in small talk. After taking a quick shower, he put on jeans and a T-shirt. Then he headed into the kitchen and made coffee, happy he'd packed his special coffee blend in his suitcase.
While the coffee was brewing, he made eggs and grabbed a banana for breakfast, then sat down at his computer. He had three emails from Carrie, his admin, who was also working on a Sunday, despite his instructions to take the weekend off. But Carrie was as driven as he was. She'd forwarded several reports he'd requested, along with his revised calendar for the month.
A month. Thirty days of his life, sequestered in this apartment building because of his father's inexplicable whim.
He sighed at the thought, waiting for the familiar feeling of anger and frustration to wash over him, but instead his mind drifted to Lexie, to the enjoyable dinner they'd shared last night, to the conversation that had been both prickly at times and entertaining at others. That had been a surprise.
He hadn't expected to spend much time with Lexie. Their first interaction months ago had been an angry clash, and he knew she was going to fight him with everything she had to stop the sale of the building. So, he'd planned to stay away from her, but instead, he'd spent hours with her yesterday and had quickly discovered she was much more than just his most vocal opponent at Ocean Shores.
She was beautiful and intriguing, sharp-witted, and oddly easy to talk to. He'd always been able to categorize people, but Lexie defied classification. She was smart and a Georgetown-educated lawyer who'd walked away from a prestigious career to take photographs. Despite that free-spirited move, she hadn't completely left the world of financial obligations, taking on photography jobs to pay the bills, and presumably helping Josie for the same reason.
While she had elements of being a passionate rule breaker, Lexie also had a practical side, which added up to a very tantalizing puzzle, but definitely not one he should try to solve. That would take longer than four weeks, and that was the length of time he would be here.
There was no point in starting a friendship—or anything else—with her. He would be leaving in a month, and, at the end of the day, he would sell Ocean Shores, and she would probably end up hating him with every ounce of energy she had.
Thinking about the bottom line reminded him of her comments at dinner. He did look at his life, at his work, in terms of how everything added up, but there was nothing wrong with that. Living like Lexie, deluding herself with grand artistic visions while she did little to actually try to make those visions happen, was not a better way to live. Sure, she might have a bit more excitement, more freedom, more surprises, but he had stability, he had achievement, and closing deals was exciting, too. He was on the right track, and he wasn't going to let her assessment of his thinking change his mind.
He sighed again, knowing he needed to get her out of his head. It was time to work. He spent the next hour going over environmental reports for a building they planned to acquire in Chicago and then moved on to the proposal for a development deal in Singapore, something he'd been working on for several weeks, but negotiations had paused when the CEO of the company they were planning to work with fell ill, which stalled everything. He was concerned that the company might back out of the deal entirely, which meant he needed to come up with a backup plan.
Despite his best intentions to focus on work and nothing else, he got distracted every time he heard someone walk down the hall. It wasn't as loud as he'd thought it would be, but there was no way to really get away from the soft sounds of conversation or the quiet notes of laughter.
Obviously, the tenants liked that sense of inclusion. That feeling of not being alone. It was never too quiet. He supposed that could be a good thing. But not if you wanted to study or work or just think about your own life and not anyone else's. He'd grown up in big, almost silent houses, with multiple floors and far too many bedrooms for their small three-person family. He was more used to the echo of empty rooms than to the sound of people talking or laughing.
Knowing he wasn't getting much done, he got up from his computer and walked to the window. There was a palm tree that blocked most of his view of the courtyard, and while that was probably a good thing, it was also a little annoying that he couldn't see who was around. Not that it mattered who was around. He wasn't here to make friends, and it would make his life easier if he didn't get to know anyone too well, because then this whole deal would become personal.
Which made him wonder again why his father wanted him to see the building's tenants as people, as a community. His father had bought and sold plenty of buildings without giving the tenants a second thought, so why did he care so much about these people, about this place?
Maybe it was time to try to find an answer to that question. He hadn't had a chance to talk to the manager since he'd arrived. While Lexie had a lot to say on all subjects involving the building, her aunt was the official manager, and, ultimately, she was the one he'd be working with when it came time to sell.
Grabbing his keys, he left the apartment. As he came down the stairs, he saw an older woman sitting at a table working on the Sunday crossword. She gave him a smile.
