“God, yes. That way I can throw together counterarguments for when he tries to tear the whole thing apart.” Ryan snorted a laugh, and his brother joined him. His dad was a tough negotiator and a great businessman. If his plan could pass Alessandro DeMarco’s tests, he’d be fine.
“So, I’ll see you in the morning?”
“Looks like.”
They bro-hugged, part handshake, part hug, part dominance display. Alex went to his office and closed the door, and Ryan walked to the reception area.
“It seems I have an apprentice,” Val said with a grin as he walked to her desk.
“Yes, ma’am.” Ryan returned the grin. “See you in the morning.”
Ryan snagged his helmet from where he’d left it and strode into the clear mid-morning sunshine. He took a deep breath, appreciating his last day of freedom.
eleven
a prayer to saint eligius
Before Elissa got out of the car on Tuesday evening, she checked her phone for the thousandth time. No messages.
Well, none from her date. About thirty from Jules. Mostly to hype her up, but the last few were bordering on begging for details as soon as Elissa said goodnight.
She’d exchanged photos with Nice-Ryan over the weekend, and the sandy-blond subject of the picture she’d doubled-checked stood right in front of the restaurant, five minutes early. Shorter than average, nerdy but in a cute way, with thick-rimmed glasses framing his light brown eyes. He was exactly her type. Her mom had done good.
“Hi, Ryan.” Elissa hurried over to him.
“Elissa, it’s such a pleasure to finally meet you.”
His handshake was firm and brief, businesslike. His smile was friendly and he kept his gaze on her face. He gave off nice vibes.
“You, too. I’ve never been here before, but my friend says Nopalitos serves the best margaritas in the city.”
“That’s a high bar. After you.” Nice-Ryan held open the door and led her straight to the bar area, finding the lone table available. “This okay, or would you rather sit at the bar?”
“This is fine.” Her short legs made the tall bar stools a bit uncomfortable. This Ryan was waving all kinds of green flags. She relaxed a bit more and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
“Be right with you!” called a voice muffled by the din.
“It’s busy for a Tuesday,” Ryan said.
Elissa glanced at the TVs above the bar. “Basketball game on.”
“Oh, sorry, I don’t follow sports much.”
“Me either, for the most part, but Wildcats basketball is the one exception, if only because my parents and brother won’t shut up about it.”
“Ah, gotcha. My sister and I were raised by a single mom. She didn’t have a lot of time for things like sports, so I was the odd man out.”
Someone cleared their throat above them.
She looked up, only to freeze as she recognized the man in front of her. Jerk-Ryan. What the hell was he doing here? More importantly, how was she going to explain his presence to the very nice, very normal guy sitting across from her? She drew in a deep breath, uncertain if she was preparing to yell at the jerk or defend her bad luck.
“Welcome to Nopalitos. What can I get you folks?”
Heat rushed to her cheeks. His voice featured in several NSFW dreams this past week, dreams let left her wanting, needing, and gasping. It was even more sensual in real life, and he looked even better than she remembered.
She vaguely noticed Nice-Ryan ordering.
Jerk-Ryan worked here? Here? With those expensive clothes and his arrogant attitude? As a server, a bartender?
