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“I don’t, and it’s better that it comes from you anyway.Thanks, man.Now I can focus on this bid proposal for the new hotel they’re building off Sunset.”
“When do you meet with Cline?”
I checked the time on my phone.“Four hours.We’re getting drinks at a restaurant in Santa Monica.I should probably get off the phone so I can shower and finalize some numbers for this bid.”Cline was a stickler for numbers, and he could be a major cheap ass, but this project would set us up for the rest of the year.
“Go get ’em, Tiger.”
I didn’t bother saying goodbye as I hung up the phone.Instead, I hustled off to the shower, got dressed in a nice suit—even if I preferred jeans and a T-shirt—and then sat at my desk going over the numbers one more time and filling in any of the blanks based on my latest research and projections.I needed to know this like the back of my hand.Cline might be cheap, but he was smart and very well connected.Everyone knew if he liked your work, he used you for other projects.Even better, he was notorious for having a big mouth, which meant if you got on his good side, he’d sing your praises to everyone he’d ever met, and jobs would come pouring in faster than you could blink.
I’d watched him do business for decades, but I was a nobody back then, just a guy who worked on the job sites.
I wasn’t a nobody anymore.I was a self-made man, and it was time to show him that I was the perfect guy for the hotel gig.No one would work harder or be more dedicated to it than I would.No one was more qualified or driven.And absolutely no one would get in the way of me getting this gig and solidifying my name in this business.
The restaurant wasn’t busy when I arrived since it wasn’t quite the dinner hour yet.The dark wood accents matched well with the beige tablecloths, and the place somehow managed to be both appropriate for business and for a date.The sconces on the table were just slightly more romantic than might be necessary for a business meeting, but the restaurant itself didn’t scream romance or elegance.It was cozy and classy.
The hostess greeted me with a flirty smile, even as I kept mine polite but professional.With Beth still on my mind, no other woman ignited a spark of interest.The hostess guided me back to the table where Cline was already seated, a glass with dark amber fluid sitting in front of him.
“Walter Cline,” I said, extending my hand.“Travis Jones.”
“Ah, Mr.Jones.”He glanced down at his watch and raised his eyebrows with a happy little hum.“A man who shows up early.I appreciate that.Time is money, after all.”
I smiled confidently.“Couldn’t have said it better myself.”
I knew how to play the game, even if I didn’t always love how fake it felt.Sometimes to win a bid you had to stroke some egos.Cline was brilliant at what he did, and his ego was as big as a skyscraper.I knew walking into this that I was going to be on show.It was exhausting, but a necessary evil.
I reminded myself of all the things I could do with the funds from this project.I could give my guys a much-needed bonus or help Jenna pay for grad school, even though she’d been stubbornly persistent about wanting to do it on her own.This project was my chance to move up to the next tier in my profession.
Which meant it was time to turn on the charm.Cline liked being wined and dined, and talking sports, particularly LA Wolves football.Since I was an avid football fan myself, I had no problem talking sports with him all night.I placed the portfolio with my bid and projections on the table face down and prepared to charm him like he’d never been charmed before.
But before I ever got a chance to speak, the waiter arrived and asked what I’d like to drink.I ordered a Jameson neat and then turned to Cline.
“So, Jones, you’re a whiskey man.I like that.I enjoy a fine whiskey myself although I’m drinking a bourbon tonight.I recently went to a distillery and tasted a most unique bourbon blend.Bought several bottles for my collection.Did you know…”
Cline talked about the difference between bourbon, scotch, and whiskey and shared his knowledge of all three for the next hour.I barely got a word in edgewise as I watched his eyes start to glaze with his third glass.My fingers slid across the back of the portfolio, and all my plans slowly disintegrated as I realized he had no intention of going over numbers tonight.
Knowing I needed to stay on his good side, I sipped my drink, then a second, and even a third when he convinced me Ihadto try the one he was drinking.As the alcohol took effect, I relaxed back in my chair, letting my guard down more and more with every moment that passed until my mind wandered to thoughts of bright blue eyes, long blonde hair, and the most luscious lips I’d ever tasted.I had to find that woman again because with every drop of my inhibition from the alcohol, my need for her increased.But nothing could have prepared me for how those low inhibitions would come to haunt me.
Keep a two drink limit on dates
SADIE
“Another drink, Miss?”The waiter asked me as he tipped the wine bottle toward my glass.My hand immediately shot out to cover the top.
“Uh, no.Thank you.”I probably shouldn’t have started drinking already since my date wasn’t here yet, but I got nervous and thought it might take the edge off.
It didn’t.
Of course, some of that might be attributed to the fact my date was now twenty minutes late.I glanced down at my phone, but there was still no response to my text asking if he was on his way.
I reached for my wine glass only to remember that it was empty, which was probably for the best.Glancing around the room, I started people watching, wondering what each person’s story was.Were they here with a lover, partner, business associate?Were they celebrating an anniversary or merely going through the motions until the night was over?Were any on a date that started out as disastrously as mine seemed to be?
Then my heart stopped when my gaze landed on the familiar dark hair, square jaw, and broad shoulders of Mr.Jones.A smile spread across his face as he patted another man on the back while shaking his hand.Then they both turned and made their way over toward where I was seated.Shit.He was going to walk right past me on his way to the exit.
I reached for the menu and tried to put it up in front of my face as quickly as possible while curling my shoulders in some lame attempt to hide.But when his warm voice washed over me with recognition, I realized I was thirty seconds too late.
“Sadie?”He stopped while his associate glanced back at him.“You go ahead, Walter.I’ll follow up with you tomorrow about that bid.”
“Looking forward to it,” the man said before he continued on to the exit of the restaurant, and then Travis’s piercing hazel gaze focused back on me.
