Everly wasn’t sure she’d heard her right. “What?” She put a hand on Stacey’s shin.
“What you said about Rob? You weren’t wrong. I got all weird because it was a different kind of internal butterfly thing going on. Usually, it’s just the lusty ones that wake up when a cute guy is around, but these ones, they felt heavier.”
Everly frowned. “I’m trying really hard to follow, but is butterflies a synonym for feelings? Because you could just say feelings.”
Her friend’s gaze shifted, became more playful. “I’m a serial dater because I’m terrified of finding the one. I mean, I’d have to stop dating,” Stacey said dramatically.
Everly laughed. “I can’t tell if you’re being serious.”
Clearly done with the conversation, Stacey swung off the chair. “Me neither. That’s the thing, Ev. We all have our quirks. Even Chris, I’m guessing. So, finish up the contest, and then maybe it’s time to ask yourself a very important question.”
When her friend said nothing else after a moment, Everly asked, “What?”
Stacey’s lips tipped up in a cross between a grimace and a smile. “Whether or not you’ve already met Mr. Right. If he’s been right under your nose the entire time.”
A lump lodged in Everly’s throat, and goose bumps dotted her skin. No, she didn’t want to ask herself those questions. They’d found a new normal between them; she knew he cared for her, but he didn’t like her that way. He’d had ample opportunity to put it out there—she winced, thankful she hadn’t said that out loud—if he wanted more.
She’d be able to tell if he liked her liked her. He gave you a birthday present that was thoughtful and sweet. He’d called her Ms. Dean for the last ten months. He worried about your hand like you’d stuck it in a fire. He’d only recently started to make eye contact. His voice goes soft when he says Everly. He’d hardly spoken to her since he’d started there. He came up with a plan to save your job. He was actively helping her find other men to date. He came the moment you called, no questions asked.
Everly slumped back in the chair. Life after thirty was supposed to be easier. Clearer. She was supposed to feel better in her own skin or some Cosmo-esque phrase like that. She was supposed to know exactly what she wanted and have a surefire plan for how to achieve it.
Stacey watched her closely, amusement simmering in her gaze.
Everly sighed. “Go ahead and laugh. This is thirty. I’m screwing it up, but you’re next, my friend. You’re next.”
[26]
Chris pushed away from his desk and went to his mini-fridge for a soda. He didn’t mind hanging around the office late. It was quieter, easier to focus. Easier not to think about Everly out on a date. Supposedly. He stopped by the window, opened his soda, and took a sip before staring out at the parking lot. It was mostly empty. Other than the janitor, no one else was in the building. On Saturday nights, they had their remote deejay take over.
Walking over to his desk, he loosened his tie and pulled it over his head, tossing it on the couch. He sat down, putting his soda away from the files, and looked at the information in front of him. The station was doing well. They’d tripled their ad revenue with this promotion alone. He was pissed his dad had cut the publishing company out before Chris had a chance to see what he could do, but that left more money for the other subsidiaries. Harco Media Entertainment, which still housed the station, the digital software firm, an ad agency, and a cybersecurity company, could be one of his father’s key players.
He’d recently compiled a list of all his father’s companies so he could start thinking about what came next for him—bringing it all together.
His father had always held a varied portfolio, wanting a little piece of all the pies the world had to offer. Chris had several ideas of how an increase in communication between those companies would improve profit. He wanted to stop letting go of underperforming corporations. If his father would just take a damn breath between buying and selling, Chris had a strong feeling they could launch his father’s name into the Fortune 500 sphere.
Before he returned to New York, his immediate goal was to shore up the three remaining subsidiaries connected to the station. He’d just finished drafting an email to each of their management teams requesting a meeting. They needed to work together, combine their efforts, and utilize the current success of the station. Chris wanted to touch base with Wesley, his tech-obsessed brother, about the idea of merging the cybersecurity firm with the digital software. If he could successfully amalgamate these, he hoped he could do something similar with his father’s other holdings.
Chris was just about to open up his laptop when a familiar voice spoke from the doorway.
“Is your job always this boring?”
Chris’s head snapped up. His brother Noah leaned against the doorjamb, a goofy grin—one that probably matched Chris’s—on his face. Chris shoved back from the desk, and they met in the middle of the room and embraced, patting each other on the back, laughing through their Hey, mans and hellos.
When he pulled back, Chris looked Noah over. God, he’d missed his brother. They talked and texted constantly, but it wasn’t the same. Unlike Chris, Noah enjoyed the whole millionaire playboy gig. Wearing designer jeans and a button-up, his hair was expertly styled—something he’d perfected by hogging the bathroom starting at age fifteen—and though there were creases around his dark eyes, he was aging well. Noah was the carefree one. Wesley was the introverted genius. Chris wasn’t sure what he was in the group. Maybe he’d figure it out when he was finally where he was supposed to be.
Noah clapped him on the back. “You look like shit. Like you’ve been here way too many hours staring at a bunch of boring papers. You ever leave this place?” Noah wandered over to the desk to finger through said papers.
Chris rolled his shoulders, loosening the knots in his neck. Between the kickboxing class and being hunched over the desk, he was stiffer than he’d been in a long time. Maybe it’s time to get out of the office, then. Stop avoiding life so you don’t have to think about Everly with other men. He grabbed another soda and tossed it to Noah, who stood there grinning.
“I missed you,” Noah said, popping the tab on the drink and tipping it back.
“Missed you, too. What happened to phoning when you were coming?”
Noah shrugged. “Thought I’d surprise you, see if I could catch you up to no good.”
Chris laughed, and it felt good. He’d made friends in California, but it wasn’t the same. Noah was his best friend. He was closer to him than to Wes, though all three of them got along and had a hell of a time when they were together. He sat down on his sofa while Noah kicked back in the chair behind Chris’s desk.
“So, this is where the magic happens, huh?”
“I don’t know if it’s magic, but the contest has brought in a shit ton of revenue, and Dad’s happy. I’m in the middle of putting together some recommendations for moving forward.”
Noah tipped his head to one side. “You going to promote from within to take your job?”
He hadn’t thought of that yet. The idea of leaving had started coming with a painful stitch in his side that he couldn’t explain. The intention was always to leave. “Why are we talking business? What the hell are you doing here, dude?”
Noah laughed, opened the top drawer of Chris’s desk, and rooted through. He found Chris’s stash of Starburst and unwrapped one. “Same old, same old. I’m here to see my brother.” He popped a strawberry square into his mouth, crumpling the wrapper, shooting it toward the garbage can and missing.
Chris got up and grabbed the wrapper from the floor, shooting his brother a sideways glance. “Uh-huh. Sure. What else?” Noah had a restless streak. It’d gotten him into trouble more than once.
“Thought I’d check out some properties. See that one mansion for myself even though they took it off the market. Sucks, but I figure there’s got to be more. Ever feel like you were looking for something to settle everything down insid
e of you?” He leaned forward, unwrapped another strawberry.
Yup. Found it, too. She’s about five foot six, with brown hair and a kick-in-the-solar-plexus smile. Chris grabbed a Starburst from the stack that spilled once he’d ripped the wrapper. Noah would eat every last pink one if Chris didn’t grab one now. He unwrapped it and popped it in his mouth, evading the answer.
Noah didn’t notice. “I just needed a change of scenery.”
“So, you’re staying with me indefinitely?” Chris didn’t mind, but he wouldn’t purposely miss out on a chance to razz his brother.
“If that’s okay. First, I worried about cramping your style, but I remembered you have none and probably haven’t been laid since you got here. If anything, having me around can only improve your life.” Noah stood up and walked over to Chris.
Chris punched him in the shoulder, and Noah twisted, grabbed Chris, and tried to pull him into a headlock. It didn’t matter that they were thirty-one and thirty-two, they went at it the same way they had since they could crawl.
Noah had Chris bent at the waist and was reaching for his boxers when he taunted, “Say, ‘I missed my big brother,’ or you get a wedgie.”
“What the hell, dude? No wedgies. Not cool.” Chris grabbed one of Noah’s legs. “Don’t make me.”
“None of that sounds like what I told you to say,” Noah said, adjusting his grip.
That one slip gave Chris the wiggle room he needed. He grabbed a handful of Noah’s thigh and pinched.
Noah shoved him back, hopping on one foot. “Motherfu—”
“You left yourself open for that one,” Benny, the night janitor, said from the doorway as he lifted the garbage can and dumped it into the bigger one on his cart.
Chris’s face went hot as he straightened his clothes and glared at his brother and held back his laughter.
“Sorry, Benny. This is my brother Noah. He decided to come for a visit. He doesn’t get out much, so he forgets how to act around humans.”
Benny and Noah both laughed. Benny replaced the garbage bag and looked at Noah. “You coming to work here, too? You need to tone down your polish, boy.”
The staff estimated Benny was somewhere between ninety and one hundred and twenty. No one knew for sure. He’d been there long before any of them, including the radio station. The running joke was he’d come with the building.
Noah looked down at himself. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” He pointed at Chris. “He’s wearing suit pants. Isn’t he too polished?”
Benny looked over at Chris, one side of his mouth tipping up in a crooked, toothy grin. “Nope. Not with his underwear sticking out like that.”
Noah gave another bark of laughter and shook Benny’s hand as Chris righted the waistband of his boxers and his pants. Jesus. Five minutes with his brother and they were teenagers again. It feels great.
Still smiling after Benny moved down the hall, Noah rubbed his stomach. “That guy is awesome. All your staff like that?”
Chris let out a breath. “Yeah, actually. They are, in their own ways.” He pulled out his phone and sent a reminder to himself to book a place he’d been looking at for their first annual staff appreciation celebration. Damn, they all deserved it.
Noah pushed Chris’s shoulder. “I’m starving. Anything to eat around California that isn’t made of kale or raw fish?”
Chris grabbed his keys, wallet, and pocketed his phone. “Yeah. There’s a burger shack you’ll love.”
Noah rubbed his hands together. “Now you’re talking. You wanna show me around this place on the way out?”
The tour wouldn’t take long. Chris walked Noah down to the two meeting rooms past his office before they turned in the other direction. They stopped in the meeting room, where the whiteboard still held Everly’s dating bracket. The sight of it turned Chris’s stomach. But they were all keeping track, and the visual made it easy.
Noah jutted his chin toward the board. “This is where the magic happens, then?”
“You’re not at Hogwarts, dude. There’s no magic. Just hard work.”
Noah bumped his shoulder. “How many people you have here?”
Chris gave him a rundown and explained a bit about their meetings. “You want to try out broadcasting?”
Noah laughed. “I don’t think I could do it. Who’s on the air now?”
Chris led the way out of the room and down the hall. “Remote deejay. It’s pretty cool, actually. She has a four-hour Saturday-night segment. Keeps costs down because she produces for herself from home, and it gives listeners something different. She’s from Australia, so the accent really pulls people in. I’m actually thinking of upping her hours.”
“No producer? Then is that a deejay?”
Chris turned around to see his brother looking through the side window of the office they’d just passed. He hadn’t even noticed the light on. Walking over, he peered in and saw Everly. His heart did a strange jump. Like it was trying to get up the next step but couldn’t quite reach.
He frowned. “Give me a second?” Pushing his brother aside and back, he knocked as he opened the door.
Everly looked up from the binders she was poring through. Her hair was pulled back at the front, highlighting the makeup she’d put around her eyes, making them look smoky and sexy. She blinked in surprise, and he noticed her lashes were thick and long. A tremor rumbled through him. She wore a pale pink blouse, and the color was soft and striking at the same time. She tended to go for shades of black and gray, and seeing her in another color did something to the wires in his brain, making him stare a little too long.
“Hey,” he said in a sandpapery voice.
Everly rested one hand on top of the other and smiled at him. She looked tired. Beautiful. Always so freaking beautiful it stole the air from his lungs and made him feel winded. But tired.
“Hi. What are you doing here?”
He leaned on the doorjamb, nudging Noah, hoping he’d take a hint. “Same as you, from the look of things. I was finishing up some work. What do you have there? Why aren’t you on your date?”
He hoped the last question came out evenly. Nonchalantly like, Oh, what’d you have for dinner? How was it? Did you want to marry him?
Her brows furrowed, and a little line appeared on her forehead. “I made Stacey ICE me.”
Noah snorted with laughter behind him. Chris leaned back and glared.
Everly leaned forward. “Is someone with you?” She tried to peer around him.
“Just my idiot brother. Noah, this is Everly Dean. Ev, this is one of my older brothers, Noah.”
Noah leaned in and shook Everly’s hand. When he stepped back, he looked at Chris and arched his brows in a way Chris chose to ignore.
Chris focused on Everly. “What do you mean she iced you?” Jesus, if that didn’t conjure up images …
Note to self: Do not think of Everly and icing in the same sentence. His mouth watered.
“In case of emergency. I made her call and say she needed me about fifteen minutes into the date. In that fifteen minutes, he joked a total of seven times about the fact that I’d have to do something pretty nice to make up for bailing last time. The restaurant was loud, he didn’t seem to mind. He just yelled over the music and the talking. I’m pretty sure that he would have used the same decibel in a library or hospital.”
Chris cringed, hating that her evening had gone like that.
Noah leaned against the table like they were old friends shooting the breeze. “Not cool. Only two dates left, though, right?”
Chris’s surprise must have shown.
Noah laughed. “What? You didn’t think I was Team Everly? I’m keeping up with the action. I love your Facebook posts.”
Everly smiled, her real smile. Not the one that didn’t reach her eyes. “Thank you. It was two until tonight. Now it’s one. I’ve dated more in the last few weeks than my entire life.”
Chris chuckled despite the surprise he felt at Everly opening up to his brothe
r. Though, why wouldn’t she? Every other woman did.
“What are you working on?” Chris asked, glancing at the promotions binder she was looking through. He stepped closer, leaned over her shoulder to see.
Her breath hitched, so low he hoped he was the only one who’d noticed. One hand rubbed over the other. Did he make her nervous? A good nervous? Was there such a thing? Did she have any idea how much he enjoyed being with her? What would it be like if she felt the same?
“I had an idea for the podcast thing. I wanted to look back over some of the things we’ve tried in the past. I need to talk to Mari. I feel like she’s feeling on the outskirts of things. There’s no reason. I want to put together a proposal that’ll mean us joining forces with a real talk segment. We’d invite successful professionals to share their truths. I’m not making sense.” She turned, enthusiasm making her more animated. Their knees brushed. “Someone thanked me the other night for sharing my story. We see so much of the polish online. ‘I ran a marathon.’ ‘I baked eight dozen cookies and iced them like Martha Stewart.’ But what if we showed the tears halfway through the run or the eight dozen cookies that ended up in the garbage before the perfect ones were ready?”
The idea pulled him in immediately, and when he caught her gaze, he felt the flicker that shimmered there all the way through him. Everly Dean was beautiful, but when she was excited about something … she was indescribable.
Noah whistled, putting his hands in his pockets. “I love that idea. We were just going to grab some food. You should come with us. Tell me about this little town my brother’s been stuck in for so many months now.”
Everly’s face blanched for just a second at Noah’s wording, and Chris was back to wanting to punch him. She licked her lips, making Chris’s stomach tighten. She locked her hands together and nodded before she spoke. To his utter surprise and delight, she turned her shy smile and sparkling eyes Chris’s way and said, “Sure. I could eat.”
Chris wasn’t sure if he could eat with her there looking like she’d walked out of one of his dreams, but who needed food when he could fill up on the sight of her?
Ten Rules for Faking It Page 23