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He crosses his arms over his chest and his jaw tightens, which means I'm not going to convince him to see my side. "I don't want Landon coming back to a pile of work. He should be able to get home to his new family at a decent hour."
"That's very nice of you." I'm willing to let it go. For now. "How was your meeting tonight?"
"Fine. What happened with your life designer business?"
I sigh. "Turns out, lots of people think they need a life designer until I tell them what they need to change. They either half-ass the changes or don't make them at all and, when their lives don't improve, they blame me." I sigh again, wallowing now in self pity. "And they ask for their money back."
"Is that why you decided to win RJ back?"
It's not the only reason, but it's definitely part of it. "I was happy with RJ. I had a future that made sense. Nothing has made sense since he dumped me. I'm not cut out to be a career woman." I've said these words before, but this time they ring hollow. This time, they feel like a lie.
"That's bullshit. You're so good at your job that not only did I have a day of record sales online and in the store, but that investor I told you about is so impressed with the changes and the numbers that he wants to move forward with my second store."
I throw my arms around Xavier's neck with a squeal. I just can't stop climbing this man. "Xavier. That's amazing. Your dream is coming true."
He pulls me onto his lap and pushes me back enough to look into my eyes. "None of it would have happened without you. You're seriously good at branding. You've turned my business around. And if your life design business failed, it's your clients' fault, not yours."
I'm sure he's wrong, but I'm tired of talking about myself. "We should go out and celebrate. I'll buy you dinner."
He smiles. "I had the same idea. Except, I'm buying you dinner. You're the one we're celebrating tonight."
My stomach flips again. I'm not sure I can handle all these compliments. "We'll celebrate your success and your candy."
"And you," he insists. "I've got reservations at St. Nick's Tavern. You've got twenty minutes to get ready."
I leap off his lap. "Only twenty minutes. Xavier! I need more time than that to get beautiful."
"You're already beautiful. You don't need to change a thing."
But I'm already deep in my tiny closet, looking for my cutest dress. This man deserves a date who looks as good as he claims to think she is.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Xavier
Cherry's done something to her eyelashes to make them look darker and bigger and she's added little sparkles at the tops of her cheekbones. She's wearing a tiny, champagne-colored dress, and heels that add at least three inches to her height. She's always gorgeous, in sweats or in a fancy dress, but she shines tonight. Cherry loves to dress up and put on lots of make-up. It makes her happy and happiness looks amazing on her.
Even so, all I want to do is take her back to her place, strip her down, and kiss every inch of her.
"What do you want for Christmas?" Cherry asks. We've already ordered, have our drinks, and are just waiting for our food. I considered moving to sit in the booth next to her so I can put my hands on her, but that would make it harder to look at her all night.
"What?" I try to focus on her words, but her lips are glossy and distracting me from the words coming out of them.
"Stop looking at me with sexy eyes. What do you want for Christmas?"
You. Stripped naked and under my tree. I can't say that. Friends with benefits don't say things like that. "Santa doesn't come to my house anymore."
She rolls her eyes. "Pretend Santa does still come to your house. What would you ask for?"
"I have everything I want." It hits me just how true those words are when she smiles and my heart warms. There's nowhere else I'd rather be than here with her. Which is a problem because she'd rather be with James.
She rolls her eyes and huffs out a sigh. "There must be something you want. Something fun and just for you. Dream big."
I lean back in my seat and watch the commotion of the busy restaurant. It's filled with a mix of tourists and locals and every one of the locals is someone I've known my whole life. Friends with my parents or my sister or me, or frenemies. Acquaintances from school or from being the owner of a candy store and the fill-in mayor. I know far more about some of their lives than I want to and worry about most of them more than is healthy. Especially Minnie Haggerty, who's in her nineties and refuses to move in with her daughter or into assisted living. It's just a matter of time before she falls and hurts herself, or worse.
"Xavier?" Cherry glances over her shoulder, trying to see what I'm looking at. "What's up?"
I return my gaze to the beautiful woman in front of me. "I want to go somewhere I don't know a single person. I want to be able to go out to dinner without worrying someone's going to come over here and tell me about their problems or share big news. I want to be anonymous for a day or ten."
