He rubbed his hands together. “I’m so hungry, my stomach is grumbling. Are you going to be timing me?” he asked.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. “I just need to set my timer. I’ll be at the bar, but I’ll be watching. As soon as you take your first bite, I’ll turn the timer on.”
“You can take the milk with you,” he said with a wink. “I won’t be needing any.”
“Are you sure?” she asked. “Hot wings are no joke.” She hadn’t been expecting this level of bravado.
“Have a little faith in me,” Xavier said, subjecting her to another grin. He held up one of the ciders. “I still have some of this to wash it down with.”
True walked back to the bar area with the carton of milk in hand.
“Oh no. He’s trying to be a hero, isn’t he?” Bonnie asked, her eyebrows raised.
True let out a sigh. “Nothing we haven’t seen before.”
What was it with men and hot wings challenges? They always acted like they were invincible. In her experience, the bigger they were, the harder they fell.
The moment Xavier lifted the first chicken wing to his mouth, True started timing him.
Bonnie grabbed her arm. “Wait. Did you tell him they were ghost pepper wings?”
True slowly shook her head, her eyes never straying from Xavier. He was chowing down on the wings at a record pace. Beads of sweat were now pooling on his forehead. He was fanning himself with his hand. But he continued to eat at a rapid speed.
“I can’t say that I did,” True admitted, avoiding eye contact with Bonnie.
Her friend let out a shocked gasp. “True! That’s terrible.”
Bonnie’s horrified reaction immediately caused guilt to crash over True.
She turned toward her friend. “What? He was acting so cocky about the challenge, practically calling it lame. Plus, he’s an expert at eating hot wings, so who am I to talk him down from the ledge?”
Bonnie shook her head. “You’re letting your personal feelings cloud your actions. It’s not his fault that he’s set to inherit Yukon Cider.”
“And Northern Exposure,” True muttered. “Don’t forget that.” A sinking feeling grabbed hold of her. “All of my dreams are going up in smoke.”
“That’s not true. You’re being dramatic.” Bonnie covered her hands with her eyes. “I do not want to watch this train wreck.”
Unlike Bonnie, True couldn’t look away for anything in this world. Xavier picked up another chicken wing and placed it in his mouth, quickly devouring it with finesse. His fingers were long and graceful, like a pianist’s. His tongue darted out to lick sauce from the corner of his mouth. Over and over, he picked up a wing and treated it like a precious object. He was making this a spectator sport for the tavern’s clientele. A ring of people now surrounded him, shouting words of encouragement. When he devoured the last wing, the group started clapping and cheering. He’d finished with a whole minute to spare.
And even though she’d decided to dislike Xavier on sight, True couldn’t help but feel a grudging respect for him. He’d eaten the platter of ghost pepper wings like a boss, even though she suspected he was about to hurl all over her hardwood floors.
Xavier placed a hand on his throat as a burning sensation threatened to permanently damage his esophagus.Stay cool.Surprisingly for this time of the afternoon, the place was packed. People were watching and treating him like a conquering hero. The most beautiful woman in Alaska was gazing at him from a few feet away, and he didn’t want to make a fool of himself. Too late, he realized, as hot tears ran down his cheeks. He quickly swiped them away with his sleeve, careful not to get hot wing residue in his eyes. The heat from the wings had invaded his nostrils, his eyes, and the inside of his mouth and throat.
Bring on the fire brigade! He was burning up!
“You did it!” True called out as she made her way over from behind the bar. “And you lived to tell the tale.”
“Barely,” he croaked.
“Here you go, hotshot. Milk will make it a lot better.” True placed a carton of milk and a glass down in front of him. She poured him a healthy serving.
Hotshot?The way she tossed the word out made him want to frown. It wasn’t exactly a term of endearment. There would be plenty of time later for him to analyze her choice of words, but for now all he wanted was to guzzle down this glass of milk. Xavier had never chugged milk so fast in his life. The only thing he could compare this experience to was when he’d gobbled down a box of fireball candy as a kid. His mouth had been on fire for what felt like hours. But this!This was worse. Way, way worse.
“Are you all right?” True asked, concern flaring in her stunning brown eyes.
“I—I think so. Are my lips still here?” he asked. “I can’t feel them.” He raised his hand to his mouth. Or at least whatused to be his mouth. A few minutes ago, it had been tingly, but now he felt nothing. Had he burned his lips off?
Even though it had been a minute since he’d smooched anyone, he still wanted to be able to kiss someone. The thought had crossed his mind that True’s lips looked very kissable.
