by Alice Ward
I dressed in my Crumbs uniform of black pants and a dark blue button up and forced myself out of the apartment and down the stairs. Last night was still with me, except now in the form of a headache. It wouldn’t be an easy day. After my shift at Crumbs, I had to be at my cocktail waitressing job at three. The bar didn’t open till four that day, but since I opened, I needed to get there early.
At least that meant I’d be home before midnight. Some days, it really was the little things.
To keep myself awake, I jammed out to Beyoncé on the train ride. The bakery was already hopping by the time I got there, the line stretching all the way to the door. I clocked in and joined the rest of the front counter staff. Orders flew at me as I bagged rolls and croissants and tried to remember to keep my eyes open. As the hours passed, an aching in my feet joined the one in my head. I watched the clock, eager for my lunch break. At eleven forty-five, I darted into the back room and grabbed my purse. There was just enough time to run to the deli across the street and wolf down a sandwich. After that, it was back to the counter with a bad case of heartburn.
“Riley.”
The voice came from Dan, who hovered in the doorway to the bakery. Behind him, our pastry chef, Dominique, gave instructions to one of the bakers rolling out the dough.
I plastered a smile on my face. Dan, the front house manager, wasn’t one of the staff’s favorites, but I tried to be nice around him. I wasn’t here for minimum wage and the day’s leftover French rolls. I wanted to climb the rungs and hopefully be promoted to working in the back. Since I technically didn’t have any education or official experience in baking, that meant I had to wait until someone deemed me worthy enough to take under their wing.
I was pretty sure Dominique still didn’t know I was alive, so for the time being, getting ahead meant pleasing Dan. A lot of the hiring in the bakery happened in-house. People were getting promoted and switched to the other departments all the time. If I was nice and worked hard, I knew I’d get my chance sooner or later.
Dan scratched his chin. “Kelsey called out late. Can you work till Blake comes in?”
“What time is that?”
“Four.”
My heart sank. “I have to be at my other job at three. I’m sorry.”
“You can’t get off?”
I hesitated. I probably could get the night off. It was Saturday, which meant it was the real money making night. Most of the other waitresses would be more than happy to take my shift.
But I also needed it. Crumbs didn’t pay my bills. Wearing a tight dress and serving cocktails to businessmen did. On the other hand, I needed to make some real progress in my chosen career. The month before, Dan recommended one of the cashiers to help Dominique out in the kitchen. That could have been me. It could still be me.
“I can do it,” I blurted out. “I’ll find someone to cover my shift. I’m sure it won’t be that hard.”
“Good girl,” he said like he wasn’t at all surprised I was bending over backwards for him.
He left for the front, and I rushed out to order my meatball sub. While it was being made, I dialed Kim, one of the waitresses who worked a couple days a week. I got lucky with the call. She was available and eager to work. As I hung up my phone, I couldn’t help but feel a little sad. I could easily be giving up two hundred dollars by letting my shift go. That was money I could use to put toward my family’s vacation to Ireland next summer. Or money I could use to buy myself a new pair of nice work sneakers.
I reminded myself what I was doing it all for and got back to the bakery. The afternoon proved to be just as busy as the morning. While I worked, I visualized the long-term goal. I saw my own bakery, a beautiful corner one in Greenwich Village. Or maybe Williamsburg. I wasn’t too picky. By the time four o’clock rolled around, the imagined place seemed real to me. I could see the yellow and blue pansies in the windowsill and smell the cinnamon rolls rising. I was aching, tired, and broke, but I no longer regretted my decision to stay at Crumbs.
Blake was late, and I ended up staying till five. Unfortunately, Dan wasn’t there to see it since he left a little after his own lunch break. I reminded myself that he’d see I put in extra time when he came in the next morning and checked the computer’s log. Untying my apron, I stepped away from the cash register so Blake could take my place.
“Excuse me, what’s your specialty?” a male voice asked from behind me.
As of thirty seconds before, I was off the clock. I almost let one of my coworkers answer, but something about the voice drew me in. It was eerily familiar. Turning around, I came face-to-face with none other than Xavier.
His deep gray eyes drew all the air out of my lungs. For a second I couldn’t breathe or think. Standing in front of me was a man I thought I would never see again, whether I liked it or not.
When I did speak, the answer wasn’t the witty comeback he was probably looking for. “Our chocolate croissants. They’re really big, and they have a ton of, uh, chocolate...”
Heat flooded my cheeks. I sounded like such an idiot.
“Chocolate is good,” Xavier agreed from across the counter. He looked at the apron in my hands. “Are you taking a break?”
I swallowed hard, wringing the poor fabric between my fingers. “I’m actually getting off right now.”
The pleasure that flooded his face made my heart swell with joy. Or lust. It was probably lust. “Care to go for a drink?”
“Um...”
He grinned. “Just a drink. No kissing.”
I felt my coworkers, Mira and Ame, watching me, probably wondering why this hot guy was giving me attention, but I kept my eyes on Xavier. “How about coffee?”
Not only could I use a jolt of caffeine, I was also not in the drinking mood. I was a lightweight, and I had a suspicion that even the small amount of alcohol the night before impaired my judgment. It was best if I stuck to staying completely sober around this incredibly sexy man.
“Coffee sounds great,” he answered.
“Great,” I repeated. “Great.”
I made my feet move before I embarrassed myself by saying “great” a third time. Going into the staff room, I grabbed my purse and met Xavier on the other side of the counter.
“Shall we?” he asked.
I nodded, and he held the door open for me, his hand on the small of my back to guide me through. He possessed all the manners of a gentleman, but I had to wonder how respectful a playboy could truly be. If he was sleeping with a different girl each weekend, wouldn’t it mean that he held no real respect for womankind?
“There’s a good coffee shop right up here,” I said, pointing the direction but not looking at him. His presence felt so intense, his heat so strong, that walking next to him was like being pulled into a strange, magnetic force field. Looking at him was hard. Running away impossible.
“How was your day?” he asked.
I bit down on my lip. I needed to say what was on my mind before I lost my courage. “How did you find me? Did you hire a private detective or something? Or did you have someone follow me home and then to work? Because I have to say, it’s pretty creepy.”
I glanced over at Xavier. He just looked back at me with humor in his eyes. “That’s a pretty long answer for ‘How was your day?’”
A sharp exhale left me. This guy, who I possessed very conflicted feelings about, had very suddenly shown up at my place of work. There was absolutely no reason he should have known that I was at Crumbs. Put simply, I was not in the mood for playing games.
“Facebook,” Xavier finally admitted. “I looked you up on Facebook.”
“Oh.” I took a second to absorb that. “Did you add me?”
I didn’t know why I asked the question. I guess it just seemed like the next logical thing to say.
“I don’t have an account, but your profile is public. I saw you post a picture of cupcakes this morning and write that you were working all day. There was a link to Crumbs’ page. It was all pretty simple. No rea
l detective work involved.”
“Oh,” I said again. If I ever once looked like an idiot in my whole life, it was right then. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to accuse you of stalking me or anything. I mean, I know I said that you were being creepy, but that was harsh. I wasn’t thinking.” I bit down on my bottom lip to stop myself from talking.
“It’s all right. It’s funny, actually. You have a lot of information up. For instance, I also know that you work at a bar called Joe’s Tavern and that you have a penchant for cat memes.”
“Great,” I answered, my cheeks burning like fire. I decided that the minute I arrived home, I was getting on all my social media accounts and deleting anything and everything that could be even remotely embarrassing.
“Don’t worry, I mean that in an endearing way. Is this the place?”
We’d arrived at the coffee shop without my noticing. There was no line, and we went right up and ordered plain coffees. Xavier pulled out his wallet before I could protest.
“Let’s call this the start of an official date,” he suggested.
My heart thumped loudly. An official date? Could it be that Ann-Marie and I had it wrong about him? Or was that just wishful thinking? One date didn’t make a committed man. Players took girls out on dates all the time.
And then they screw them and never call them back.
We took our coffees and settled into two armchairs in the corner of the place. We’d hit the shop at a good time. Usually, the place was so busy there was a slim to none chance of nabbing a seat.
“It’s nice here,” Xavier said.
I sipped my coffee and winced when it burned my tongue. “Yeah,” I agreed, taking off the paper cup’s top to blow on the drink. “I come here a lot in between shifts.”
“You work doubles at the bakery?”
“Not usually. But I go right from the bakery to my second job quite often.” I wrapped my fingers tighter around my coffee and took a more careful sip. The liquid was still dangerously hot, but at least drinking it gave me something to do. It made me feel a little less awkward about this whole situation.
“And where is Joe’s Tavern?”
“Williamsburg. It’s a lot closer to my apartment than the bakery, which is nice.” I looked away. Just the mention of my apartment, in which waited my bed, made me self-conscious. It was like I couldn’t say one single thing around Xavier without becoming flustered.
“You’re a busy woman.”
I shrugged. “I guess. Look, about last night...”
“I apologize.”
I peered at him. “You don’t know what I was about to say.”
Xavier extended his palm. “Sorry. I stole the floor. I assumed you were going to tell me that I was out of line for kissing you.”
“No. Not at all.” I paused. Knowing his mind went directly to him being in the wrong made me warm up to him somewhat. “I was going to say I’m sorry for leaving all of a sudden. I just… it’s hard to explain, but you took me by surprise. And it’s not that I didn’t like it… I just...” I shook my head, giving up.
“My kiss came out of nowhere. I understand. Again, I’m sorry if I was too forward.”
It was just what I needed to hear. With my next exhale, half of the tension in my body dissipated. “Thank you.”
Xavier set his coffee down on the table between us. He leaned forward, hands clasped between his knees. His eyes locked onto mine and held my gaze. “That being said, I couldn’t stop thinking about you last night. When I woke up this morning, I knew I had to find you.” One corner of his mouth lifted in a grin. “Luckily, you’re pretty easy to track down.”
I snorted and broke our eye contact. This man was doing something to me. It felt good, but I knew it was probably bad. If I gave in, who knew how things would end. I’d dated a couple guys who played the game I was fairly certain Xavier was a pro at. So had Ann-Marie. Between the two of us, we weren’t easily fooled anymore.
“Go out with me,” Xavier whispered. “Tomorrow night.”
Every emotion possible rose in me. Do it, a little voice in my head whispered. Just do it.
And I could. One date wouldn’t hurt. The real danger was in sleeping with him. A lot of women would go for it, simply for the sake of breaking a dry spell. But it wasn’t that cut-and-dried for me. If I slept with a man, I ran the risk of getting attached and not being able to move on when he tired of me. If I did go out with Xavier, I’d have to make sure to not let things get physical.
Fat chance. I’d been celibate for what felt like forever, and the hottest man I’d ever spoken to was asking me out on a date. There was no way I’d be able to control myself around him.
“You’re worried,” Xavier said.
I looked at him but didn’t answer. I wanted to speak, but my throat felt swollen shut. I’d never been good at being an open book. I felt safer when people didn’t know what was going on in my head and heart.
Xavier went on. “I understand. You don’t know me. You probably have assumptions about me.” He watched my face, trying to gauge how correct he was.
I summoned my courage and cleared my throat. “You own a club.”
“Yes. I also work in real estate.”
“What else should I know about you?”
A dimple appeared on his right cheek. “Go out with me, and I’ll give you any and all the information you’re looking for.”
“I want some now,” I volleyed back.
Xavier’s eyes danced, and I smiled. Talking to him was quickly becoming easier than I thought it would be.
“Like what?” he asked. “You want to know what I do with my free time?” He leaned back into his chair and took a deep breath. His dress shirt stretched tight across his chest, creating a distraction. “I work, and I go to Enigma. Sometimes I go to the gym, but it’s in my office building, so that’s not really leaving work, now is it? Those three activities basically sum it up. I have a multibillion-dollar corporation. I’m not gloating, I’m just sharing the fact to give you an idea of what my life is like. I work all the time. The club is an escape for me.”
I let his words sink in. He gave me the facts, but I still felt like I didn’t know anything about Xavier, the man. I wanted to know his likes and dislikes, his passions. I wanted to know who he was closest to and what made him the angriest. And I wanted to show him more of myself and see what he thought about it.
“Tomorrow night?” I asked.
He gave a single nod. “I wish it could be tonight, but I have a meeting to be at in thirty minutes. It will most likely eat up the whole evening.”
“I can do tomorrow,” I found myself saying.
Not a muscle moved on Xavier’s face, but his eyes seemed to light up. “Wonderful.” He reached into his breast pocket and took out a card and pen. “What’s your number and address?”
I gave them to him and watched as he wrote them down. His handwriting was beautiful, his fingers moving with such surety and control. Did he perform every task that way?
“Seven o’clock?” he asked.
I nodded, excitement rushing through me. I was doing this. For real. I could still turn back, but I no longer wanted to. I wanted to take a chance, to live life. I wanted to prove myself wrong about Xavier Fields.
Xavier checked his wristwatch. “Perfect timing. I need to be going. Can I get you a cab?”
“No, thanks. I think I’ll hang out for a while.”
Xavier stood, and I followed suit. He lifted my hand and gave it a kiss. If any other guy had done the same thing, it would have seemed cheesy, but Xavier was a natural. He had an old-time gentleman quality about him, and it didn’t feel forced at all.
“See you tomorrow, Riley,” he softly said.
“Bye,” I rasped.
I watched him turn and leave the coffee shop. My legs were jelly as I sat back down. A long exhale left my chest, and I sat in silence, contemplating all that just happened. I could be making a big mistake. I was trying to protect myself by keeping my distance from
Xavier, but it looked like my attempts were all in vain.
The man wanted me, and he came for me. He didn’t know where to find me, but he’d figured it out.
And that was enough to make the idea of saying no to him ever again feel absolutely impossible.
TO BE CONTINUED...
I hope you enjoyed your sneak peek of The List. The full standalone novel is now LIVE and available at Amazon HERE.
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In SEAL’d Heart, you got the tiniest of peeks at a couple of characters from my series The Beasts of Baseball. Want more? Then enjoy the entire five book Beasts of Baseball series HERE.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alice Ward is the bestselling author of dozens of hot and steamy contemporary romances. She’s an amazingly prolific writer, releasing a new book almost every single month. Her books are widely read, especially by women and any other lovers of the romance genre. My Stepbrother, My Lover, was her first smash hit.
Alice has been in love with love since she was a little girl. She had quite the collection of Barbie dolls growing up and spent much of her playtime crafting the perfect Barbie wedding day (and when she wasn’t doing that, she was working on attempting the perfect cartwheel).
When Alice outgrew Barbie dolls, she began to write her thoughts down in her diary. This was how she discovered that she had a knack for telling romantic stories. Her first fans were her close girlfriends, and her stories were a hit among them. They, along with her family, enthusiastically encouraged her love for writing.