Page 11 of Mixed Connection
If I am going to stay on target for this house, I need to finish up the budget for both the selling potential and the marketability of it as a short-term rental.
When I was younger I always thought I would wind up playing football and be some kind of NFL star. Don’t get me wrong, I love the game but now that I am really working within my passion, I couldn’t imagine being a professional athlete.
Shaking my head, I pull my locs back and pull on a deep-green beanie that matches my tracksuit before spraying my favorite cologne. If I’m going to get my truck detailed and oil changed before meeting up with Anders, my gaze snaps down to my watch, Ineededto head out the door about five minutes ago. Toeing on my white sneakers, I rush out the front door.
With the maintenance for my truck out of the way I was able to make it to the bar a little earlier than Anders, looking around the parking lot to ensure I don’t see his SUV, I make my way to the front doors.
Shaken Tropes has a lime green neon sign out in front, with large leafy green plants that line the walkway of the brickbuilding. From the outside I can see the history of the building, the aged brick is something I have learned to love since I started flipping houses. This building reminds me why I fell in love with flipping and buying properties for possible clients.
The new builds we do for Triple C are beautiful but there is something about older buildings, there is a charm to them that is nearly impossible to recreate, and people will pay top dollar for character.
Cool air greets me as I pull open the bar’s front door; the inside is modern with a cozy feel to it. Creating nooks for readers to lounge in while they sip their drinks. Edison bulbs hang from the ceiling allowing a sultry glow that pulls me closer towards the bar.
If luxury living and the coziness of a winter cabin had a baby with a library, this would be the vision, and I can’t lie, I’m feeling it. The bar top is smack dab in the middle of the space with low back barstools that beg to be sat in, and I would do just that if I didn’t have ulterior motives for being here.
Grabbing a booth in the back corner, I don’t have to wait too long before a door swings open next to me and those wide hips come swaying out. My hands strain at the effort it takes for me not to reach out and grip them, to not slide her onto my lap. Those pictures she sent me are seared into my mind and now that I’m here she is all I can think about. Like the creep that I apparently am, I continue to watch her.
I can tell this is her happy place, she smiles at all the customers and laughs with her friend who’s behind the bar. She looks oddly familiar, but I don’t spare her another glance as I am focused on Cassidy. I have it bad for a woman who I have had two conversations with, if I can even count the messages as a conversation.
I get up and start moving before I really know what I am going to say. But I do know one thing, I haven’t gotten her off my mindsince literally bumping into her, and I don’t see that changing any time soon.
5
Babes at Benny’s Group Chat
J-babe
Is “let him read your recs” code for sexy time?
Paloma doubles over in laughter as she wraps her arms around her stomach. I just finished showing her the message Jameson sent me about his old-lady girlfriend. “I don’t think I have laughed that hard in months! So, you’re competing with granny now, huh?” She laughs again and this time I join in.
“Imagine her coming out like, hold my bag, Helen!” She imitates what she thinks an old woman sounds like and sticks her tongue out, holding back a laugh. “I, for one, can’t believe that is the same guy from high school. Age has done him more than good, babe!” She licks her lips and I playfully nudge her arm with my own.
“He is most definitely a cold glass of yummy I’d like to sip on. But I don’t think he lives here. At least that’s what it seems like when I look through his social media profiles.”
“Yeah, well, maybe he doesn’t keep it updated andmaybeeeeyou should still get yourself a little taste of him.” Paloma’s voice takes on a mischievous tone laced with a playfulness that I know will get us in trouble. Chaos, my best friend is chaos and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I hip bump her and as I’m turning to help the customer who filled the stool behind me, I watch my best friend’s eyes turn to saucers, and the scent of citrus and bourbon wraps around me.
“Taste of who?” The familiar voice is deep and sends a welcomed shiver down the center of my back, right to my core. When I fully face Jameson, his gaze is directly on me and I don’t miss the sly grin that graces his lips. “Sounds like something I may enjoy, given that my girlfriend isn’t much a fan of drinking in her old age.”
Sinfully handsome and funny too, my kryptonite. “Hmm, maybe you would, but the verdict is still out on that.” Cringing inwardly at myself, I can’t, for the life of me, figure out why that is what I chose to say, but he only situates himself further, his eyes roaming over me. My body heats in response to his perusal which feels much more like a physical touch. “Anyway, what are you doing here?”
“I’m actually meeting a friend of mine about a project that I’m working on in town and I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to see you,” Jameson answers, pulling a stool out, he gets himself comfortable at the bar.
“Can I get you anything to drink while you wait, or maybe a book?” I wiggle my eyebrows at him as he huffs a laugh.
Forget the damn drink. Meeting his gaze again, I notice he is taking me in like I’m a cool beverage—the only one that can quench his real thirst. Without missing a beat he says, “Unfortunately, what I really want isn’t on the menu.” His voice lowers, causing me to lean further into his space to hear him. “So I’ll settle for a whiskey and ginger ale.”
I very much want to be on his menu.
Jesus, what is wrong with me?I read about instant love and lust all the time, but I never thought I would be standing here feeling some of those same feelings myself.
I turn, grabbing a tumbler and a whiskey from the top shelf, add a splash of ginger ale, and hand him the drink. Our fingers brush as he grips the glass, I don’t miss his eyes connecting with my own as the heat from his fingertips warms my hand, traveling up my arm like an intimate touch. A touch that sends shockwaves of surprise through me, lighting up my entire body. Makes me wonder what his hands would feel like elsewhere.Calm your nips.
“You want to tell me how you managed to give me the wrong number?” His voice has an authoritative tone to it, his eyes still on me as if we are the only two people here.
I cough to hide the laugh at the thought of his elderly girlfriend before I answer, “Maybe you just misdialed.” His eyebrows raise just a bit, a sardonic gesture that tells me even he knows better than that; he tips his head forward, urging me on. “Or…maybe I was a tad nervous and it was dark. Plus, all the strobe lights. It’s a wonder my eyes don’t twitch.” Why am I rambling over a man I shared a few dances with? Maybe it’s because, even though I’m nervous, he is every bit into me, and that is a power I am thrilled over.
Before I can say anything else, Paloma grabs my attention as she bumps into me. A quick apology is on her tongue, but I can tell she is quickly getting overwhelmed. Peering around this hulking man, I finally see things have picked up, significantly.
