“Thanks.” Niko waited for her to leave before he cleaned the dirty glass. He cashed out her bill and tucked the change into his tip jar, along with the card.
“Are you really going to keep her card?” Alice asked from over the edge of her menu.
“You used to tend bar. You know the game. Flirting and tips go hand in hand. And why not? She’s been coming in for a while, has a good job, is articulate, and is pretty. Let’s face it, I don’t get a chance to meet very many nice women because I’m working all the time.” If he didn’t know better, he’d think she was jealous.
Good.
“I met Richard on the job. I did a college campus challenge a few years back. He helped coordinate the show.” Alice put the menu down and lifted her wine glass.
“An office romance,” he said, unsure why he felt bitter over her comment. They were two friends discussing their pasts, nothing more. “Since you broke up with Richard, why are you still wearing the ring?”
Alice glanced down at her hand and twirled the band, moving it to catch the light. “Habit and I’m afraid to lose it. I need to send it back to him. I think I might get a fake one to replace it. You’d be surprised how many times this has saved me from an awkward situation. Not that it’s a lot but still.” She shrugged.
She was being modest. If Niko had to hazard a guess, he’d say it was a lot. “Have you tried saying no?” Like you did to me?
“Yes, multiple times, even with the ring. This seems easier.” She tapped the stem of the wine glass with her nail.
“Less complicated, I suppose. Being single on the job has its rewards.”
“Like getting business cards from random women?” she asked, mouth quirking.
“Yep, it pays the bills. Did you decide on dinner?”
“I’d like the salmon and some steamed vegetables, no starch and no butter.” She lifted her wine and drank deeply, her throat working as she swallowed.
He wanted to lean in and kiss the hollows of her neck, to explore what lay hidden beneath her turtleneck. Contrary even in her clothing choices. He rang in her order and grinned over his shoulder. “No fun.”
“I know, right?” She settled her forearms on the bar, her slender fingers adjusting the coaster beneath her drink. “I learned my lesson the first year on the road. By the time we’d traveled to the second city, I had to buy new clothes.”
“Let me guess, black skirts and white shirts?” He poured himself a glass of soda water and squeezed a lime into it. “Your uniform.”
“Yes, my uniform. When you travel as much as I do, you tend to pack what’s easiest.”
“I managed to streamline my luggage to my equipment duffle and a backpack full of necessities.” He’d lived a nomadic lifestyle, moving from place to place in search of adventure, using his winnings to fund his lifestyle.
“The life of a professional athlete, adventurer, or a vagrant, depending on your motivation,” she said, lips quirking in a mischievous grin.
“In my case, all three. In between training and fighting, I was on a mission to learn all I could about chocolate. Don’t get me wrong, my path might have strayed a bit. I spent a summer in Istanbul, wait for it…learning about coffee.”
“A Renaissance man.” Laughter softened her features and she twirled a piece of blond hair that had fallen over the swell of her breast. Soft hair that had brushed his face while she kissed him. Breasts he’d explored in detail and ached to explore again.
“Yep, I was a rebel, can’t deny it.” He’d been one his entire life, until Jon’s death made him grow up. “You said you had some questions.”
“The charity you were talking about. Did you find the contact for me? I’d like to get in touch with them as soon as possible. Grace is doing an exposé on her show about all of the charities and we’ll be sharing the footage. Think of it as a cross collaboration.”
“Sure. It’s because of Grace that CG has been so popular. Who would have thought three months ago, it would lead to me being on your show?” he said, sipping at his water. The same night her show had aired, he’d received the first foreclosure letter on the shop.
Thanks to 3Square, he’d be able to get CG out of the red, at least temporarily.
Then he wasn’t sure what he’d do.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Alice used the base of the glass to swirl her wine as she tried to maintain a casual air. Inside, her stomach churned. It had been madness to come here tonight but she needed to talk to Niko about the charity. And an instinct greater than her will wanted to see him, to talk to him as they were doing now. The other woman had been an unpleasant surprise but she was gone and Alice had stayed. “I meant what I said the other day. You’re really good in front of the camera…” and you’re gorgeous, charming, and downright sexy “…you should consider your own cooking show.”
The dimple in his cheek appeared, eyes bright in the dim light of the bar. Her pulse picked up and she licked nervous lips.
“Are you offering me a job?” he asked.
