We Never Kissed

Chapter 10

Alex

Sitting at my desk, I enjoyed a rare second cup of coffee since my 10:30 a.m. conference call was canceled. My mornings typically flew by with no breaks: a 5:00 a.m. wakeup, checking emails from home, then I’d hit the gym, shower, and then off to the office where I’d start with two back-to-back meetings, the second one being with my team. Some might find my schedule too hectic, but I reveled in it. I’d earned my spot at this firm. I went from analyst to associate in less than two years and associate to VP in less than three. It wasn’t unheard of but it was rare.

Bringing my own deals to the table was the best part of my job, and the one I was currently working on, would go a long way to solidify my value. Which was why I had been in Vegas. Except for not getting to see Ava again—despite being in the same city at the same time—the trip had gone exceptionally well, and I definitely planned to take a breather once everyone signed on the dotted line.

Would Ava be ready to spend some time together then? Was I?

I sat back in my chair, a smile curling my lips. Typically, I took the occasional moment to gaze out my window, but on this day, I pulled up an image of Ava on my phone. Had I dreamt that kiss? It didn’t seem possible that a little more than a week ago, I’d held her in my arms, something I’d only dreamed of doing.

I still held a crapload of reservations about any future that looked like us being together. A war waged inside me—fighting to have Ava as mine and convincing myself it would never work. That I’d fuck it all up, and the Steadmans would abandon me.

While I held very few memories of my biological mother, Sue was the one who received the Mother’s Day gifts and the flowers for no reason and could call me away from work just to help her carry boxes in from the garage. And Denny…he was more like a father to me than the man I had lived with, who had often been away and was barely present when he wasn’t.

I swiped from the image of Ava and pulled up my message thread with her, my finger hovering over the screen. I’d never hesitated with a woman I wanted, but with Ava it was so much more complicated, and it had me questioning every decision. This was why staying busy was a good thing. Despite my reservations, I tapped out a message:

Me: Where are you?

Ava: Who is this?

Me: Very funny .

Ava: Gunnar and I are out looking at apartments. Remember I told you that…

Me: Oh, yeah I forgot. How is it going? Any good prospects?

Ava: Good, yes. Affordable, no.

Me: But you’re still working right?

Ava: I am, but editorial assistant doesn’t exactly bring in the big bucks. I haven’t really been dedicating a lot of time to furthering my career. And even though Gunnar is a trust fund baby, he’s tired of living off his parents and then hearing about it afterward.

I had to admire that, but until I spent some time with this guy, I wasn’t about to start doling out compliments.

Me: Maybe you need to look outside Ladera Ranch.

Ava: Trust me, we are.

Me: You know, you could let me help…

Ava: What are you going to do, be my sugar daddy ?

Of course, I knew she was joking, but the thought sent my mind spinning and my pulse kicking up. It wasn’t how things were supposed to be these days but if that was what Ava wanted, I’d give it to her. I’d give her anything…

Me: Well…

Her reply was a series of emojis ranging from surprise to laughter and a few I didn’t know the meaning of and wasn’t about to ask.

Me: I meant I have some connections both in real estate and publishing.

Ava: Thank you, but seriously, I have to do this on my own. Mark helped me to get my job, and I don’t want help anymore. I need to do this on my own.

Me: And you will. I have faith in you. You are a strong and determined woman, and you can do anything you set your mind to.

Three dots jumped for a minute, and I wondered if I’d said the wrong thing, even though I couldn’t see how.

Ava: Apartment manager is coming back. Gotta run… Talk soon?

I didn’t get a chance to reply before my phone rang, and I immediately answered it.

“Alex Bannister.”

“Alex Bannister! Answering his phone, and on the first ring? Did you get canned, sweetheart?”

I let out an uneasy breath. “Not even close. You just got lucky.”

“Oh, you know how I love to get lucky…”

“How are you, Jessica?” I replied, ignoring her innuendo. Jessica tended to lay it on thick whether she meant it or not. And it was a dicey line to balance on with her since her father owns one of the companies in a deal I’m brokering. She’s sort of unofficially involved, but the way she constantly flirts with me makes me forget that we are supposed to be doing business together.

“Listen, honey. I’m just having brunch with my dad, and he says the lawyers are taking longer than they should, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I don’t want you to worry.”

“I wasn’t. But I don’t think that’s the only reason you called.”

“Of course not. I was just making sure we’re still on for Friday night.”

This was something I had been dreading. She’d been asking me for a dinner date to talk about another deal she wanted to present to dear daddy, and I finally gave in, but this really could complicate things with Ava. I had to tread lightly with Jessica and not upset the current deal, but I also wasn’t about to be her boy toy just so she wouldn’t tell her daddy to put the kibosh on our deal because of her wounded ego. If I were being honest with myself, before kissing Ava, I wouldn’t have been opposed to sleeping with Jessica, but now…

“Looking forward to it,” I said.

When I ended the call, I swiped back to the picture of Ava on my phone. Maybe I was reading too much into Jessica’s motives. Maybe it was all about business, and that was just her way. One thing I was sure about—I couldn’t tell Ava about this.