Her comment dumbfounded me. She thought I was questioning her cooking methods when what threw me was the fact that she had grilled. I had never known a woman to grill before.
“Well, I’m impressed, Audra. And I bet I’ll be even more impressed when I get to sample the goods tomorrow.”I’d like to sample all her goods, please, and thank you.
She looked up at me through her lashes, smiling warmly, and it hit me square in the chest. It was worth coming over here for that look alone. “I’m glad you showed up. You’re not so bad, Donovan Wright,” she said right before her face dropped. “I mean, no! Not that I ever thought you were bad,” she scrambled, “I just … didn’t think you liked me. You’ve never really seemed interested in getting to know me or even talking to me when I’ve come by the office.”
I shook my head. “It was never that, Audra. I’m … how can I say this? Not an easy person to know.”
“Maybe one day you can expand on that,” she said with her head tilted, curious about my cryptic answer, but she didn’t push the topic or try to follow up with probing questions. She just moved on, and I really appreciated that.
“Maybe one day I will,” I said, then moved the conversation to something much more light-hearted.
Easy banter and laughter filled the next thirty minutes,which flew by, and before we knew it, Bennett came back and offered to take her home. I didn’t argue, even though I was hoping for that honor tonight. As I walked out with them into the early morning air, I knew that drink was worth coming here for, no matter how far outside my comfort zone it was.
“Thanks for the drink, Bennett. Maeve talks about you all a lot, so it’s great to put a face to a name.” I reached out and shook his hand again. “And as for you, Audra, I will see you tomorrow for lunch.” Bennett looked between the two of us, and I didn’t realize how that sounded until it had come out. “She has food from tonight ... she’s bringing it to the office…” I tried backpedaling, not that I owed him an explanation, but the insinuation of having lunch with her felt forward.
My initial impression of this man was that he caught on to everything. I’ve known a couple of very successful restaurateurs, and not only are they always in the know, they’re surprisingly good at reading people. I can imagine that is magnified tenfold by owning bars in a smaller town. So, I’m sure he picked up on my stutter. I never fucking stuttered. Jesus.
Bennett’s eyes narrowed at me, and with a completely stoic face, he asked, “How many pumps do you have in you?”
When Audra swatted him, his face cracked, and he burst into laughter.
Giving her a knowing smile and wink, I responded, “Well, I’ve never had any complaints.”
Her mouth fell open, and I enjoyed letting the weight of those words hang between us before I said goodbye and walked to my car.
You couldn’t wipe the grin off my face. That was a lot of fucking fun, and it was definitely not a fluke. Flirting with Audra again, and the small interactions with Bennett, I wondered if I was finally at a point in mylife where I could connect with people again. I had essentially cut off everything from my past life, but Savannah Springs was so fundamentally different from New York. Here I was, Donovan Wright, a socially removed, wealthy guy who was building a lodge. In New York, I was Donovan Wright, son of Dennis and Carol, half a billion dollar net worth, most eligible bachelor, tabloid fodder. I liked the former so much better. And maybe, just maybe, this small town was exactly what I needed to stop hiding and finally put myself back out into the world.
6
AUDRA
Irolled over to turn off my alarm and was surprised that I had even fallen asleep. One Donovan Wright completely preoccupied my thoughts. I embarrassed myself a couple of times last night with how loose-lipped I was, but he seemed to roll with some of the ridiculous things I was saying. Heck, he even left off the night with a wink that sent my mind spinning about all the ways he’s ‘never had a complaint.’ Man, I bet he was a fucking God in bed …I should have gone home with him, I laughed to myself. Maybe I was ovulating or something because I was ready to jump into bed with anyone, apparently. However, you’d have to be a fool not to want to jump into bed with Donovan. Even Bennett said that he thought Donovan seemed like a ‘cool dude’ as he was getting me home. He questioned me a little more because Bennett Connelly was a shameless gossip, and he wanted the scoop on what had gone down with Donovan and me after he left us alone. Turns out, he had nothing to do in the back of the bar, he just wanted to give me a little space with him because he said he felt a ‘good vibe’ between us. Bennett had so many more layers to him thanmost people saw. He was probably the most perceptive person I knew.
Rushing through my morning routine and errands, I intended to show up at the office a little earlier than I said I would. I was buzzed last night, and apparently horny, so maybe I was reading things wrong. Maybe he was just looking for a friend. But a friend doesn’t drop an innuendo like that andwinkat you, right? Jesus, I’d been out of the game a long time. No matter, I’d get a better read on things today when I was sober. Maybe he’d hide in his office again as if we hadn’t flirted our way through the late-night hours. Wavering on what to put on, I decided to just wear my scrubs. He knew I was headed to work, and it might be strange if I showed up looking like I was trying too hard. That didn’t stop me from putting a little curl in my hair and extra cute makeup on, though.
At 11:00 a.m. on the dot, I went into the office with bags of leftover food, a tablecloth, and a little centerpiece I made with some of the flowers he bought for me the other day.
“Knock, knock!” I announced as I walked through the doors.
Maeve’s head shot up. “It’s 11:30? This day is flying! Hello, my love!” She popped out of her chair to hug me and grabbed some things out of my hands. “Sir Donovan is on the phone, so we have to be a little quiet. Is this all for me?” As she pulled out the containers, her eyes widened when she saw how much food was in the bags.
“Ugh, I am dreading each minute that passes by, and you are eagerly anticipating them,” I said. “But it’s only 11. I got here a little early. I figured you, me, and Donovan can eat, and then whatever is left, you and him can split to take home.”
“Psssh. What did he do to deserve this?”
I laughed. “I told him I’d bring him some last night.”
Maeve furrowed her brows and cocked her head to look at me funny. “Last night? When did you see Donovan?”
It felt like Maeve could see right through me, but I wasn’t ready to admit that I had an exceptional time last night and was looking forward to seeing him again today. He was hot as hell, made me giggle, and I felt fuzzy inside after both last night and the flower shop.
“He showed up at The Yard for a nightcap. I was there with Noelle and some of her friends.” I shrugged it off.
Maeve was expressive every day, but her utter confusion when I said he came to the bar was laughable.
“Oh my god,” I continued, “I have to tell you about my night, though. Bennett gave me a massive save. I was itching to go home with someone and started making out with a very handsome and forward man on the dance floor. But when we went outside to wait for a car, Bennett came out and told the guy to get my number and not to be a dick. After the stranger programmed his number in and left, Bennett informed me the guy’s name was Harold, and he was a two-pump chump…”
“Noooooo,” she howled as she cut me off. “Holy shit, you were going to hook up with Harold?! How did you not know who he was? The single only thing that could get me to shift gears from Donovan being at the bar is for you to tell me you made out with Harold.” She pulled out her phone and shot off a group text.
