She would’ve regretted the incredibly awkward response to a perfectly normal question, but she was too busy stepping on Alix when she went in for the hug too fast.
“Shit, sorry.”
Alix grinned, unfazed by Grace’s sudden inability to act like a regular human, and wrapped her arms around her. Thanks to Alix’s three-inch height advantage, Grace landed unexpectedly at the crook of her neck. She was returning the tight embrace when she accidentally took a greedy inhale of Alix’s scent, basking in the warmth of sandalwood and jasmine.
“Hi,” Alix repeated, voice gentle where it landed against the shell of Grace’s ear and inexplicably drowned out the noise. “Thanks for picking me up.”
Grace let go a moment after Alix did. “Yeah, of course. You know the surge pricing is ridiculous during the holidays.” She clamped her jaw shut before she could say anything else.
“What are the odds you have some snacks stashed somewhere in your sweet ride?” Alix said when she slid into the passenger seat and closed the door.
“I thought you grabbed a sandwich before you boarded.” Grateful that she had the job of driving to focus on, Grace looked dead ahead.
“I did,” Alix replied with a chuckle. “Too bad the lettuce was slimy.”
“Slimy?” Grace spared her a glance after getting into the lane that would lead them east toward Alix’s artsy Wynwood hotel. “Hello, listeria.”
“Right? No thanks.” She crossed her leg, and all Grace could see in her peripheral was the bottom of her boot and a tattooed forearm when she rested her hand on her leg. “And the smoothie place wasn’t open, but it’s fine. Whatever.” Alix waved away her complaints. “You got any trail mix in that bag?” She pointed at Grace’s purse in the back seat.
“Unfortunately not.” Grace regretted not having considered that Alix hadn’t eaten since she left her house. Not having planned for it.
“No worries,” Alix replied as ifworrywasn’t hardwired into Grace’s nervous system. “Is there like a Taco Bell or?—”
Grace snapped her head to the side. “Don’t you dare finish that sentence.”
Alix’s dark brown eyes were luminous even in the hazy afternoon. The corner of her mouth twitched before she bit her bottom lip, and Grace had to force her attention back to the road before she drove them off it.
“Are you fucking with me?”
“Only a little.” Alix chuckled. “I mean, technically no, because I love Taco Bell, but Iamhungry enough to eat literally anything right now.”
The mention of fast food reminded Grace of a place she hadn’t been to since she was a kid, but it was out of their way. “Do you want to see whether you can check in early?”
“Are you going to make me scrounge for leftover continental breakfast?” Alix shifted to pull her phone out of her back pocket.
“I’m sure you don’t want to spend hours bouncing around Miami traffic after you’ve been traveling since last night.” She slowed when the car in front of her hit its brakes. “Where I take you for lunch depends on whether we’ve got four hours to kill or not.” Eyes on her rearview, she stopped and was grateful when the driver behind her was paying attention rather than slamming into her. A fender-bender was not on the itinerary.
Looking at Alix was a mistake. Her eyes were absolutely mesmerizing in person. The same roasted chestnut as her cool, textured hair, Alix’s eyes were deep set and inescapable. Every feature on her face seemed to have been designed in service of those eyes. High cheekbones and thick brows only made her eyes more enthralling. And those dimples. Jesus.
Alix gave her a lopsided grin. “What?”
Caught, Grace tried not to jump. She furrowed her brow and pretended she hadn’t been staring. “Is that…” She leaned closer. “Glitter?”
“What?” Alix pulled down the visor to check her reflection. She checked her face and her strong jaw and long, elegant neck.
Grace laughed before whipping into the neighboring lane when she saw an opening.
“Now areyoufucking withme?” Alix flipped up the visor.
“Only a little,” she teased.
While they crawled, Alix called her hotel. “Check-in is at four? That’s so late. And no early check-in at all? I can take a?—”
The person on the other line was loud enough for Grace to hear in the quiet car. “Listen, you’re lucky you even have a room,” the lady said. “A problem at the port stranded three thousand cruise ship passengers on Thanksgiving weekend and they’re desperate for any accommodations.”
“Damn, that’s awful. I’m sorry.” Alix’s tone was so earnest. “You must have quite the job finding them somewhere to stay.”
The pause on the other end was noticeable. “It is… Thank you.”
