by Kay Harris
“Hmmm.” Alice popped up on her tiptoes. Her lips were just a breath away from his. “But you like me enough for us both.”
“I do.”
“Show me,” she whispered.
Darius hesitated, so Alice reached up, placing her hand behind his neck and pulling his lips to hers. Their mouths pressed together hard, desperate. It was brief and electric.
Then Alice pulled away, turned on her heel and practically ran to her car. Behind her, Darius was silent.
Chapter 8
“I swear, I acted so surprised. When Maya said you and she were a thing, I dropped my jaw and gasped and the whole bit. She never suspected that I already knew you two were a couple.” Alice crossed her heart just as she had when she made a promise in third grade.
Everett chuckled. “I’m going to tell her I told you, anyway. We’re supposed to be building our relationship on honesty.”
Alice shrugged. “I guess you’re right. But anyway, I made it look so good. I should get an Emmy for that shit.”
Everett laughed harder and threw his arm around Alice. He bent over and kissed the top of her head before releasing her and turning back to the stove. “I should have told Maya about you and me before.”
“Was she mad that you kept our relationship a secret?”
Everett stirred the stew he and Alice had put together. “No. Not at all.” A massive grin spread across his face.
Alice tapped his arm with her elbow. “Everett. You bad boy. Did you get laid?”
Everett shook his head. “I am so not telling you that. And.” He raised the spoon and brandished it at her. “I don’t want to hear about you and any future spouses either. Gross.”
Alice laughed and bounced across Everett’s massive kitchen to slice the garlic bread. She knew Everett thought hearing details about her love life was like hearing about his little sister getting down and dirty. But she was overwhelmed with the need to tell Everett about what was happening between her and Darius.
She placed the knife on the cutting board and whirled around, leaning against the island. “I kissed Darius.”
Everett placed the top back on the pot and turned to look at her. He folded his arms over his chest. “How did that happen?”
Alice shrugged and bit her lip.
“Okay. Let me ask it a different way. Whose idea was it?”
“Mine. Definitely mine.”
Everett raised one eyebrow. “I thought he was not on the list.”
Alice turned back to the bread. “He’s not. It was a moment of weakness is all.”
“He’s a good guy.”
Alice nodded.
They cooked in silence for a while until Everett’s phone beeped and he moved to the table to look at it. He rubbed his hands with a towel and looked up at Alice. “So…earlier today I saw Darius. Actually, I had a meeting with him and Julia.”
“I know. I was supposed to be at that meeting, but I had a call with a very important client.”
“So…afterward I kind of invited him to dinner tonight.”
“What?”
Everett gestured to his phone. “And it looks like he just accepted.”
“Oh crap!” Alice abandoned the salad she’d been assembling. She put her hands on either side of her face. That, of course, made Everett smile. He thought she looked like a cute little kid when she did that. She wasn’t amused because it was usually a sign of severe stress. “This isn’t funny. I haven’t seen him since I sucked his face.”
Everett’s lips curled down. “Ew. Why do you have to put it like that?”
“Everett! Why are you just now telling me this?”
“I didn’t think he could make it. Also, I didn’t know you kissed him. I thought you two were cool these days.”
“We are cool. We’re a little too cool. We’re heading toward hot, actually.”
Everett moved toward Alice. “And that’s a bad thing because?”
Alice took five deep breaths. “It’s fine.”
“There’s my Zen master.” Everett clapped a hand on her shoulder.
Ten minutes later, Alice was still practicing her breathing as Everett was pulling Darius through his front door and into the kitchen. The grand dining table sat unused, as usual, while the three of them sat down to eat at the small round in the corner of Everett’s spacious kitchen.
“So the new ad is awesome,” Everett said after too many minutes of silence.
“It turned out well,” Darius said. “What do you think, Alice?”
She stalled by blowing on her spoonful of stew then slipping it into her mouth. When she was free again, she lifted her gaze and looked at Everett rather than Darius. “I watched it at my desk after my phone call. I think it turned out really good. It had all the elements we discussed.”
“Your input was invaluable, Alice,” Darius said.
Alice turned to Darius this time and smiled. She couldn’t seem to help herself. He was impossibly sweet. And for once, in the presence of only her brother, she felt like it didn’t hurt to show how she really felt about him.
The two of them stared and smiled like idiots until Everett cleared his throat. They both focused their attention on him. “Wow. This is…you should maybe be alone.”
“Not right now,” Alice said quickly, holding up her hand.
Everett laughed. “I wasn’t suggesting that. I want to finish my dinner.”
There was an old school phone ring. Darius looked around while Alice slapped her forehead.
“That’s an interesting cell phone ring,” Darius commented.
Everett stood and moved into the living room quickly.
“It’s not a cell phone,” Alice groaned.
The ringing stopped, and after a moment Everett returned to the kitchen with an actual phone in his hands.
“He insists on having this thing,” Alice whispered to Darius as she pointed to the phone.
“Mom wants to talk to you,” Everett told Alice, holding the ancient thing in front of her.
“Now?”
Everett shrugged. “What did you want me to do, tell her no?”
The question was facetious. Of course he wasn’t going to tell Trudy no. No one ever did. Alice took the phone. “Hi, Mom. What’s up?”
“Wait? Whose mom is on the phone?” Darius asked Everett.
As Trudy started talking, Alice heard Everett tell Darius it was his mother, but offered no other explanation.
“So, Sweetheart, I have a new person to add to your list,” Trudy said.
Trudy had dived right into helping Alice make her potential spouse list, despite Everett’s objections that she shouldn’t encourage Alice in what he considered a foolish quest.
“Great. What have you got?”
“The hottest man I’ve laid eyes on since my dear Rett passed. I mean this guy is smoking, you know what I mean?”
Alice giggled. “Yeah. I know what you mean. Where did you meet him?”
“Well, I haven’t yet. But you probably have. At least Everett has, I’m sure.”
“I’m not following.”
“It’s that new spokesman for the candle company, Darius something. Ex-football player, built like a Greek god, the man is scrumptious. And I want to add him to your list.”
Alice stared at the confused look on the face of the man across the dinner table from her as she listened to Trudy through the handset. “Um…okay.”
As she lost herself in those ocean eyes she thought maybe Trudy was right.
****
To Darius’ surprise, Everett had delivered on his promise to give he and Alice alone time. After dinner, Everett had taken off completely.
“Is it weird to be hanging out in Everett’s house without him?” he asked as he followed Alice into the living room.
“Not to me.” Alice plopped down on the couch and picked up the remote. “Thanks for helping with the dishes.”
Her smile made his heart gallop in his chest. He took a deep breath and sat beside her. “You
’re welcome.”
Alice picked up the remote control. “I’m addicted to the British show about baking. Will you watch an episode with me?”
“Sure.” Darius examined the relaxed set of her jaw and the straight line of her shoulders as she started the show and pulled an ottoman over to rest her stocking feet on. “Do you spend a lot of time here?”
Alice shrugged. “Some. Everett and I are like brother and sister.”
She said it so casually, like there was nothing odd about her being so very close to her boss. Darius felt the need to tease more out of her. “Is that why you call his mom, Mom?”
Alice paused the television and turned to focus on him. “Yes. I realize it seems strange, but I’m not very close to my parents. In fact, our relationship is strained. And when I came to California I had no one. Everett and Trudy are my family the way your parents and your brother are yours. Only I chose them. And they chose me for some reason.”
“I can think of lots of reasons.”
“You think too highly of me.” Her brow furrowed and her lips turned down in a frown. “You put me on a pedestal I don’t deserve.”
Darius cocked his head at her. “I don’t think that’s true.”
“I know what it looks like. I’ve seen it before.” She turned away and put her hand on the remote.
Darius placed his hand over hers, stopping her from creating a distraction. “What do you mean?”
Alice shrugged.
“Are we talking about Kyle?”
Alice looked back at him. “Yeah.”
“What happened with him, Alice?”
There was a long pause while she took several deep breaths. “He was my lifeline when we were kids. He helped me through so much, from my parents to your brother. He was there for me, always. And he wanted me. So, out of a sense of obligation, I dated him. It was stupid. I just ended up hurting us both. I don’t feel that way about him. I never will. And I can’t force myself to. But, by dating him I gave him false hope. Breaking up was hard. So hard.”
Alice closed her eyes. When she opened them again her lashes were damp. “Like I told you and Julia, the compromise we made when we broke up was that if neither of us were married by my twenty-fourth birthday, we’d get married to each other.”
Darius’ chest felt heavy. He’d thought the marriage pact was silly. But now he understood how inextricably it was tied not only to Alice’s sense of guilt, but also to her self-esteem, something his own brother helped to destroy once upon a time.
“I’ll fix it,” he told her.
Alice stared at him.
He nodded his head toward the television. “Let’s watch some Brits bake.”
****
“You sure you want to commit to another three ad campaigns with me?” Darius teased as he signed the document in front of him. “My knee could give out, you know.”
Making light of the words that had been thrown at him when he hadn’t been offered another football contract didn’t seem as wrong as it once would have. There was a lightness Darius felt lately that he hadn’t experienced in years.
Everett smiled. “I’m pretty sure you’ll still look good shirtless and surrounded by candles even if you have to be sitting down.”
“Touché.” Darius finished signing the contract and sat back in his chair.
Across the large desk, Everett copied him. “I know this probably isn’t where you imagined your career going.”
“To be honest, when I was forced out of football I didn’t have a clue what I’d do.”
“But you have a college degree,” Everett pointed out.
“Yeah. And I plan to get into social justice work, maybe start a foundation or a non-profit. But right after football…I mean, I’m young and I wasn’t ready for it to be over yet. A solid future was too hard to think about. So when my agent brought up the modeling offers, it was easy to say yes without thinking. After my ass was all over those billboards, I swore I was done.”
“And then along came our candles.”
“Yes. Along came your candles. How could anyone say no to Julia?”
Everett laughed. “It is damn hard.”
“Well, I’m glad I found my way here.” Darius stood, and Everett rose as well. “You have a great vibe here. It’s been good for me.”
Everett followed Darius to the door. “And it probably doesn’t hurt that we have the prettiest, sweetest salespeople in the biz either.” Everett winked.
Darius laughed. “You have my number, dude.”
“You want me to walk you out?”
“No. I’m good. I know my way around.”
“Alice sent me a text and asked me to tell you to go by her desk on your way out.”
Darius turned in the doorway and scrutinized Everett. “Really?”
“Yeah, really. I’m not making this up.”
“Okay. I’ll head over there.”
He spent the walk from Everett’s office down to Alice’s contemplating the Everett/Alice relationship and wondering what, exactly, it was all about. He knew it wasn’t sexual. That much was obvious. They truly did treat each other like siblings, except they got along a little better than the average brother and sister.
“Hey.” Alice had popped out of her cubicle and approached Darius as he entered the sales department. She put her small hand on his upper arm and steered him toward a conference room. “How did it go with Everett?”
“Great. I have a job for a bit longer.”
Alice ushered Darius into the room and shut the door behind her. “That’s great. Your agent didn’t come with you?”
“Nah. He read the contract over already and gave me his blessing. How are you?”
Alice looked up at him, her darker skin glowing, her brown eyes sparkling. She looked perfect in a tight orange top and a long black skirt. “Good.”
“You look like Halloween.”
She smiled. “That’s kind of what I was going for. Halloween in spring. Like Christmas in July.”
He lifted a hand and placed it carefully on her shoulder. “You look amazing. You always do.”
Alice didn’t shy away from his touch, so he left his hand there and rubbed his thumb across her collar bone.
“Thanks. I have something I want to ask you.”
“Anything.”
“Are you aware of Everett’s birthday party in two weeks?”
“Yeah. He invited me.”
“Well, everyone in the company is invited. And since you work here now…” Alice stopped herself. “Sorry. That was rude. Look, do you want to go with me?”
His brain was like a waterwheel just starting up, its spokes turning heavily as it attempted to function. “Really?”
“I think it would be easy, you know? Rather than either of us having to take a stranger or a person we’ve only been out with once. It’s all coworkers and—”
“Absolutely, I will. I’d love to.”
“Okay.” Alice stepped back. Darius’ hand dropped off her shoulder. “Sounds good.”
“Alice. This is…”
“Darius.” She held her hand up between them. “Don’t read too much into this, okay. I just thought it would be more comfortable is all.”
He nodded. “Sure. I’ll be there.”
APRIL
Chapter 9
Darius knocked on the door and held his breath. It swung open to reveal a tiny, angry-looking woman who had to be at least eighty.
“Um. Hi. Is Kyle here?”
The woman scrunched up her eyes and stared at Darius as if she were examining a very large insect. “Are you that football player?”
“Yes, ma’am. I was wondering—”
“Kyle!” Her impossibly loud voice exploded through the house. “That football player is here to see you!”
Darius resisted the urge to poke at his now aching ears. Instead, he smiled down at her. “You must be his mother.”
“Huh,” she grunted. “Nice try, sweet talker. I’m his grandmother and you alr
eady damn knew that.”
“Nana, I got it.” Kyle gently moved the woman to the side and held out a hand. “Darius Fleck. What brings you here?”
Darius shook Kyle’s hand and was pleased to feel the firm grip that went along with his confident demeanor. Becoming a famous author had done wonders for Kyle’s self-esteem. The man before Darius was nothing like the quiet, skinny, introvert Darius had tried to protect from bullies in high school.
“Come on in.” Kyle ushered Darius into a quaint living room with new, oversized furniture. “Have a seat. Would you like a drink?”
Darius sat on the huge leather sofa. “Is it too early for a beer?”
Kyle looked at his watch. “Ah, it’s after three. I think we’re good. I’ll be right back.”
Darius waited for him to return while being closely watched by Kyle’s grandmother. She did not at all seem satisfied that he wouldn’t steal the family television. When Kyle returned, he shooed his grandmother into another room and set a beer in front of Darius while taking a gulp of his own.
“What brings you to Walker Springs?”
“It’s my mom’s birthday. So I flew in for the weekend. It’s just a quick trip.”
Kyle nodded. “And why did you come to see me?”
Darius took a long swig of beer. He set the bottle on the coffee table and leaned back. The leather settled beneath him, and he took a deep breath. “I was hoping we could talk about Alice.”
To his great surprise, Kyle laughed. “I suppose we probably should. You getting the cold shoulder from her, too? Or are you having better luck?”
“Um. What?...I mean…How do you know?”
“I know you saw her at Christmas quite a bit. I know you both live in the same city. And I know Alice. There are only two reasons I can think of that you’d come here to talk to me. One, you and Alice are dating, and she’s too chicken to tell me so she sent you. Or two—and honestly I think this is the more likely scenario—she’s turning down your advances left and right, and you wanted to get some insight from the best friend.”
Darius smiled. This conversation was already so much easier than he’d envisioned. “To tell you the truth, Kyle. I’m not sure which of those I fit into. Maybe it’s both.”
Kyle laughed again. “Yeah. I get that. Alice is complicated.”