She side-eyes me. “Before I divulge information like that, I need to know your name.”
“What? So you can hunt me down if I somehow find a way to use it against you?” I snort a laugh and finish up the first cocktail, pulling the second toward me immediately afterward.
Her face is expressionless, and suddenly, I realize she isn’t messing around.
“Drew,” I confirm, opting not to add my last name. “I’m the only Drew working at First Line.”
She lifts her chin and taps a fingernail on the bar in thought. “Vesper. And there’s likely only one of me in the whole of Seattle.”
I have an actual girl crush on the woman with the coolest first name ever.
“Nice to meet you, Vesper. Officially meet you anyway.”
Shiny red lips press together, and I’m mesmerized. I wonder if she’s dating a player because I’d one hundred percent be into her if I were a hot-blooded male.
“Silas Stanton. Captain and defenseman for the Rogues. He’s my boyfriend’s older brother.”
I take another sip of my cocktail. “Silas is represented by my colleague, Lydia West.”
“You can’t pull a face like that and then remain silent,” Vesper demands.
Swallowing, I’m already feeling the whiskey’s effects, and typically, when I drink, the first thing to desert me is my inhibitions.
This could end badly.
I take another sip of my drink.
“Lydia is kind of a rival colleague, and Silas doesn’t like her all that much.”
Vesper bursts out laughing, a lyrical melody to her voice when she speaks again. “Oh, well, Silas doesn’t like many people, and I think the feeling is mutual for most who have met him. Including his brother.”
My eyes grow wide.
Screw you, Will. This conversation is far more intriguing than listening to you jabber on about how many goals you’llscore this season or how many Likes you typically get on each social media post.
Or how I’ve already consumed more alcohol than you have in a lifetime.
We get it, Hotshot.
“Do you like him?” I ask.
Vesper considers my question for a second. “Silas Stanton is a complex character, and I highly recommend you leave him to your friend Lydia. Personally speaking, he’s actually pretty likeable when you peel back the layers. Professionally, I imagine that he’s a handful.”
I roll my eyes. “I guess that makes two First Line clients then.”
Vesper leans in a little closer, and I close my eyes, rueing the moment I said yes to a cocktail. I should be back at my place, getting ready for a spin class, not airing my dirty laundry to someone I barely know.
“William Jones, by chance?”
I’m part relieved, part alarmed by how easily she guessed correctly. At least I don’t have to say his name, but the very fact that Vesper knows speaks volumes about him.
“That boy is trouble,” she confirms. “Very hot, but trouble nonetheless.”
Heat prickles my cheeks. “I’m not making any comment.”
Vesper just smiles, and I appreciate that she doesn’t push me to say anything more. It’s comforting to know she respects the boundaries I’m trying to establish.
“It doesn’t matter how rich or famous these boys are; I wouldn’t accept being ignored like that.” She stands up straight and tuts. “At the end of the day, you have a job to do, too, and they should acknowledge that by at least showing up to business meetings. Even ones in a bar on a Saturday night.”
