Chasing You (Thirsty Hearts Book 4)

by Jayne, Kris

  Jonah tilted a grin at Alexa and her compatriots. “Not a problem. Aren’t we waiting on a friend of yours anyway, Graham? We have a big table right here. The more, the merrier. Are you expecting anyone else?”

  “No. Toby and Sarah aren’t going to be able to make it,” Alexa responded.

  “We’ve got six seats right here.” Jonah pointed at the table.

  Graham pulled out the stiff-backed stool at the bar-height table and slid into it. Resigned, Alexa went to the other side of the table and sat opposite him. Adam and Melissa took seats on either side of her, Melissa on her right. Jonah cast a dubious look at the crew and then sat next to Graham across from Melissa.

  “Who are you expecting?” Melissa asked.

  “Trista.”

  “The woman I just hired for my open instructor position?”

  “I didn’t know you’d hired her.”

  “I called her this morning and offered her the job. She starts on Monday.”

  Alexa darted a fierce look in his direction.

  “Good for her. And for you. She’ll be great. Anyway, she wanted to meet out and catch up. Since I was coming out with Jonah anyway, I thought she could join us.”

  The verbal backbend Graham did to explain why he was meeting up with Trista gave Alexa a small thrill. Then, she felt sick. The evening couldn’t get more awkward— especially once Graham turned his attention to Alexa’s overseas visitor.

  “Adam, Alexa tells me that you work in technology. You’re here for South by Southwest?”

  A deep frown formed on Adam’s face that he tried to sweep away with a forced smile. Alexa wiped her damp palms on her pants.

  “I’m working with a software company that’s opening an office here, so I’m actually going to be here for a few months.”

  Graham blinked rapidly as he took in the news that British Adam wasn’t going home anytime soon. Alexa swept her gaze between the two men and took a settling breath.

  Why should she be nervous? No doubt, Graham kept checking his phone to see when Trista would arrive. They both had impromptu meet-ups with an ex. Plus, she and Graham had a clear understanding.

  Socializing with all of them at the same time was a circus act, but they were all adults.

  “If you need someone to show you around, I’d be happy to. I know Alexa’s been quite busy with work,” Graham suggested.

  “Thanks for the offer, but I’ve been getting around just fine.”

  “Alexa said that you were consultant, so what are you doing at the tech conference?” Melissa drew Adam’s attention away from Graham.

  “I connected my client with an expert on the future of artificial intelligence in gaming. He’s presenting on a panel, and we’re meeting with him. I’m hoping to bring him into the project. His participation could help my customer garner extra money in their next call for investment.”

  Jonah broke in, excited. “What is it exactly that they do? I run a private equity firm that invests in tech companies. We always have our eye out for new opportunities.”

  Adam moved around the table to have a deeper discussion with Jonah about his projects, leaving Alexa and Melissa to chat with Graham. However, just as she opened her mouth to speak, Graham’s phone rang and he stepped away from the table.

  Melissa dipped her head toward Alexa’s ear. “This isn’t awkward at all.”

  A moment later, he stepped back to the table.

  “Something came up, and Trista’s not going to be able to make it.”

  “Oh, really? That’s too bad,” Alexa replied, infusing her voice with as much sincerity as she could muster.

  “It is. She knows Jonah from when we all lived in Dallas. It would have been nice for us all to catch up.”

  “How long have you known Trista?”

  “Oh, man. Eight or nine years? She still had her yoga studio.”

  “Is that how you met?”

  “Yes. I had an ex-girlfriend who is really into yoga, and she used to drag me to class. We broke up, but I kept going to yoga. Then, Trista and I got to be friends.”

  Graham might not want to admit it, but obviously, “friends” didn’t capture the full essence of their relationship. Trista had looked at Graham the way a starving junkyard dog looks at a bowl of kibble.

  Each of his relationships sure followed quickly on the heels of the last—one practically leading to the other. She hoped she hadn’t made a mistake hiring Trista, then decided it probably wouldn’t matter. Alexa figured he had better sense than to sleep with the boss and the employee.

  “She does seem friendly.”

  “She is. It’s part of what made her really good at her job. You’ll be glad you hired her.”

  “I hope so.”

  Adam broke away from his conversation with Jonah after exchanging business cards. “Sorry to spend so much time talking business. I feel like I’ve been neglecting you.”

  A knot formed between Alexa’s shoulder blades when Adam draped an arm on the back of her chair. She scooted forward. “We were talking about Trista, my new fitness instructor. She and Graham were friends in Dallas. And I guess you knew her too, Jonah.”

  “I did. I haven’t seen her since she and Graham broke up.”

  Graham grimaced, and Jonah snickered, seemingly delighted to bust his friend.

  “It was years ago. I’ll have to tell you the story some time.” His eyes bored into Alexa and then flicked to Adam.

  Jonah grinned broadly. “You and Trista can tell us together when she gets here.”

  “She can’t make it. We’re going to meet up tomorrow.”

  Alexa’s left eye twitched. She reminded herself that she didn’t own Graham. He could do whatever he wanted.

  “How about a game of pool?” Graham asked.

  Adam shook his head. “I’m not one for billiards. Do they have darts? Every proper pub in England has darts.”

  “Sorry to disappoint you. No darts. Alexa owes me a chance to redeem myself. I went easy on you last time, darlin’. I didn’t know I was dealing with a pool shark.”

  “If that’s what you need to tell yourself in order to feel better about my whooping your butt, then bless your heart, darlin’. What about you, Melissa? You up for a game?”

  “No. Kyle’s going to stop in for a little bit before his night shift. He’ll be here in a few minutes, and I don’t want to miss him.”

  Graham slid off his chair and headed toward the pool tables, stopping shoulder to shoulder with Alexa. His eyes slanted with mischief. “I guess it’s just you and me.”

  “I’ll join you,” Adam piped in before Alexa could respond to Graham’s unspoken challenge.

  * * *

  Graham hadn’t taken it easy on Alexa during their first turn at pool, but he knew he could play better. Something about having Alexa’s puppy dog, Adam, sniffing around sharpened his vision and his shots.

  “You’ve been practicing since the last time we played.”

  Alexa plucked the cube of blue chalk off the edge of the table and circled it around the tip of her pool cue. The slow and deliberate movements put alternate visions of her hands at work in Graham’s mind. He focused on her eyes to eliminate the distraction. Tonight, he would not get shamed at the table.

  “Nope. Just bringing my ‘A’ game. Your shot.”

  Alexa lined up a wicked bank shot and sank two more stripes one after the other. The cue ball rolled to a stop in perfect alignment three inches from her next target.

  Adam applauded and doubled over in rapturous laughter. At least I’m not afraid to play the game.

  Graham fantasized about spearing the Brit through the chest while Alexa easily dropped the only remaining striped ball in a corner pocket. Just like that, even with his best effort, the rout was on. He dropped his chin to his chest and shook his head.

  “You’re evil. I think you’ve been touched by the devil. It’s black magic.”

  “I do have an aunt in New Orleans who tells fortunes and sells voodoo dolls.” She wag
gled her fingers and cooed spooky noises at him before turning all business again. “Eight ball, side pocket.”

  Graham didn’t even have to look. He closed his eyes and heard the smack of the cue and the soft thump of a single ball dropping and rolling in the depths of the table. He cracked his left eye open. “Was it the side pocket?”

  Alexa met his eyes stone faced. “Of course it was. Want to play again?”

  Graham laid his pool cue on the table and smacked the felt.

  “Not before I have another drink. Do you want another vodka soda?”

  “Sure.”

  “I’ll get your drink. Two limes?” Adam raised an eyebrow at Alexa.

  “Yes, thank you.”

  “I’ll take a Macallan 18, neat.” Graham’s smooth smile achieved its desired result—a contemptuous pout from the Brit.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  Adam jogged up the two steps to the main bar area and disappeared around the corner. Graham couldn’t help but comment. “He likes you.”

  “I guess. I’ve told him that I’m not starting anything up with him again.”

  “So it is ‘again?’”

  Alexa paused and met Graham’s eyes directly. “It would be, except that it’s not. What about you and Trista? Is that ‘again?’”

  “Does ‘never again’ count? We had a pretty bad breakup. I’m not going down that road again.”

  “Then watch out. I think she has other ideas.”

  “How do you know?”

  “The way she threw herself at you the other day.”

  Graham shrugged. “No. We hadn’t seen each other in forever. That’s all.”

  “Good. Because sharing a man with one of my employees isn’t on my ‘to do’ list. It’s bad business.”

  Her jealousy had nothing to do with business, and it delighted Graham more than he wanted to admit.

  “Point taken. And while we’re issuing warnings, watch out for that one.”

  “Adam?” Alexa chuckled.

  “The looks he’s throwing me…I don’t like him.”

  “Whereas, you’re looking at him with peace in your heart?” She laughed again. “Both of you are just being macho. I’m not taking either one of you seriously.”

  Graham skirted around the table until he was close enough to reach out and draw his fingertips down her bicep. “That hurts. I take us quite seriously.”

  She stepped back and squared up to him. Her height matched his, and Graham realized how often he depended on his greater physicality to draw a reaction from a woman.

  Amusement brightened her eyes, and Graham leaned closer. A clean, floral scent filled the air between them. Perfume? Or maybe shampoo? Either way, Graham dipped his face behind her ear and inhaled. He reveled in her smell and her sudden intake of breath.

  She turned her head and whispered in his ear. “Enjoy it. This is what a winner smells like.”

  Graham fell back with laughter and sat on the edge of the pool table. The half-moon of her pearlescent smile warmed his insides. He’d never thought of a woman as cocky before, but that’s what she was.

  Alexa smacked his thigh with the back of her hand and stepped back, rolling her pool cue between her hands. “Rack ‘em up.”

  “There you go being bossy again. God, the money you’re leaving on the table. As a businessman, it so hard to watch.”

  “What, are you a pimp now? The way you talk and you with your crazy friends, maybe I better watch out for you.”

  “Hmm. Yes. Keep an eye on me.” Graham jumped up, grabbed the pool rack, and began pulling the balls out from the end of the table. Alexa squinted at him with faux suspicion, glaring and laughing.

  Graham slid his fingers into the bottom of the loaded rack and slid it along the table to get it in position. “Shall I break?”

  “Have at it.”

  Graham lined up the cue ball and leaned over. Right as he took a shot, Adam loudly announced his return. The cue ball skittered, tapping the lead ball in the wrong spot, and the balls moved no more than a few inches.

  Adam sat the three drinks he triangulated in his hands on the nearby table and glanced at the still-clustered balls in the center of the pool table. “Tough go there, mate. Maybe give the lady a try at it.”

  Alexa took her drink off the table and tossed Graham a sympathetic look. “Go ahead and re-rack. Your shot got interrupted.”

  Graham had no choice but to take the redo and ignore Adam’s baseless bravado. “Why don’t you play this round, Adam? Getting in the game is more fun than looking on from the sidelines.”

  Sizing up the Brit, Graham knew that if the asshole had any skills at all, he would take great delight in mopping the floor with either one of them. “Why don’t we play in teams? Alexa can see if Melissa wants to join us.”

  “Sounds good. You and Melissa versus me and Alexa.” Adam spoke as if his suggestion settled the case.

  “Or,” Alexa began, “we could go with a battle of the sexes.”

  Graham eyed Adam. Be on the same team with that jerk off? He wanted to argue, but Melissa stepped down into the side room with the pool table, clutching her cocktail.

  “Just in time. You and I are going to take it to these guys in the next game.” Alexa pulled a stick off the wall and handed it to Melissa, who froze. Her neck tensed, not moving, while her eyes flung back and forth between Graham and his rival.

  “O-kay. I hardly ever play, and when I do, I suck. So, I guess that makes sense.”

  Graham hid his smile. “Excellent idea. This way, the teams can be balanced. Adam doesn’t play much and neither does Melissa.”

  He pulled another stick from the wall and handed it to Adam, then slapped him heartily on the back. The bare teeth of the Brit’s taut grin stiffened Graham’s spine.

  Graham stepped toward him, unflinching. “I’ll break.”

  “Perfect.” Alexa bowed her head with Melissa’s, chuckling.

  Adam chalked his cue stick, still fixated darkly in Graham’s direction. Graham squeezed him out of his peripheral vision and snapped his break shot quickly, accurately. The balls scattered wildly across the felt.

  Graham would have to keep an eye on Alexa’s new suitor if she wouldn’t.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Alexa hated the term “Girls’ Night Out.” It always sounded to her like some housewife escaped her chain in the basement for the evening. Nevertheless, she and her friends enjoyed the happy hour specials, dubbed “GNO Saturday” at one of their favorite sushi restaurants downtown.

  She toasted with their half-price sake, grateful her long week was over. She reveled in the fact that she had taught the last of her Saturday classes. Bringing Trista on board would be a godsend. She crossed her fingers that it would work out.

  “To getting work off my plate.”

  “Here, here,” Melissa cheered.

  Holly lifted her small ceramic cup of hot sake. “I’ve got good vibes about Trista.”

  “Me too. I hope she likes it and sticks with Starlight. The worst thing about aerobics instructors is how flaky some of them are. The good ones are great, but the bad ones…” Alexa dropped her forehead to the table three times.

  “Same with massage therapists.”

  “Maybe it’s a universal human thing,” Holly proffered.

  “Maybe.” Alexa shrugged. “It’s crazy. All you want are good employees who show up when they’re supposed to and don’t suck.”

  “Remember that one girl you hired after Nina left?”

  “Luna.”

  Holly snorted. “Looney more like it.”

  “Yeah. That should have been a clue. I don’t know what she was on.”

  Melissa downed her sake and refilled her cup. “Or if she needed to be on something. Isn’t she the one you caught having a threesome in the hot tub overnight?”

  Alexa grimaced. “She used her key to get into the gym with her friends. I found them passed out the next morning tangled up like a sex pretzel.”

  �
��Thank God for bleach.” Holly shuddered. “But you know, we catch people screwing at the gym every once in a while. It’s gross. I don’t understand it.”

  Alexa did – sort of. “The blood gets pumping. A lot of them are really fit. Hormones get raging. People start screwing. Every gym I’ve worked in has had the same problem at some point.”

  Holly kept shaking her head. “No. Still disgusting.”

  “Gyms are pick-up joints,” Melissa explained. “That’s where I met Kyle. The gym in the student center when we were in college. He had the worst pick-up line. ‘I got stopped by the police on the way here. He told me it was illegal to carry these guns.’”

  “No!” Holly shouted.

  “He flexed and everything. It was so bad.”

  Alexa squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head. “I can’t believe he recovered from that.”

  “Somehow, he made it come across as cute. We started talking, and there you go.” Melissa flicked her hand in the air and then stared at Alexa. “It just goes to show that first impressions don’t have to last.”

  Alexa gulped her drink. Just because Melissa and Kyle were bounding toward a happily ever after, didn’t mean she had to be. She and Graham had a completely different deal.

  “How are things with Graham?” Holly asked.

  “There aren’t really ‘things’ with Graham. We’ve gone out a few times. It’s not serious.”

  Her face relaxed in relief. “Good.”

  “Why?”

  Holly caught her bottom lip in her teeth. “I—I’ve seen him chatting up a couple of other women at the gym, and I heard Shauna talking with Bridget. She said she thought she was making progress with him. Ever since he joined, half the single women started circling like there’s blood in the water.”

  Melissa jumped in. “She could be exaggerating. You know Shauna.”

  Alexa breathed through the instant tightening of her diaphragm. He was a good-looking guy, and like she said, gyms were a hot bed of hookups.

  “He’s a flirt. We’re not exclusive or anything. That said, I don’t want to get into a catfight with a client over him. I’ll ask him and see what he says.”

  “I almost didn’t say anything.”