Page 101 of The Ice Queen in the Corner Office

CHAPTER NINETEEN

Jill

I sat silent, watching the lights of downtown, as Alex drove into the city. The sun had set, and the city glowed with a warmth I found comforting. I might have grown up in the country, in a house in the woods, but I had no great love for the darkness of night there. I preferred the light and the energy of a city that was alive even at the bleakest, darkest part of the night.

And I loved the man next to me, taking us into the city I adored. Now that I knew the truth, I understood why he hadn’t told me about himself, but I wasn’t sure I trusted he’d be open and honest with me in the future. I’d love to be the kind of person who could take a leap of faith, enjoy the moment, trust Alex and let the future happen as it may, but I wasn’t built that way. I hated uncertainty, hated gray areas. I hated this feeling, like I was back on that ropes course, balancing on a cable, but without the harness and no nets below to catch me if I fell. I wasn’t a fan of pain outside the bedroom, the kind of pain that went beyond the surface, that cut deep.

I laced my fingers together, squeezing them tight as though I could muscle the right answer out of myself. Because either way, my options sucked. I could decide not to take the risk and walk away, breaking my own heart again, or I could stay and live on this tightrope for as long as Alex and I were a couple. Maybe that was what love was?

“Jill?” Alex asked. “You still want to have dinner with me?”

Only then did I realize the car had stopped. Alex had parked on the street. A familiar street. I looked through his window and saw that ramshackle hotel, the one he wanted to fix up, the one he’d taken me to just a couple weeks before, weeks that felt like years.

I spun and scanned the rest of the street, but there were no restaurants to be seen. “Um, where are we eating?”

He grinned, but his expression was wary, unsure, careful. I wanted so badly to reassure him, but I couldn’t even reassure myself. “We’re eating here.” He got out of the car, walked around the front and opened my door. He held out a hand to me. “Trust me? Just one more time.”

“You better not have brought me here to kill me.” I was joking. Mostly. That building gave me the creeps.

He pulled me to my feet and hurried us both around to the sidewalk and out of traffic. He wrapped his arms tight around me. “There are many, many things I’d like to do to you, but killing you isn’t on my list.”

My brain might have been unsure, but my body was certain it wanted Alex. His scent and his warmth were all around me and I couldn’t help popping up onto my tiptoes and pressing my lips to his. He kissed me back immediately, like he’d been waiting a lifetime for me to make that move.

The kiss went from very nice to molten in about six seconds, and I was practically climbing his body when he released me and took a step back. “We should probably take this inside.”

I followed him up the grand staircase and into the building. The front room was lit with fairy lights wrapped around the ceiling and there was a single, small table in the center of the room. It was covered in a white tablecloth, a vase of roses in the center, plates already set. Spicy and warm smells drifted from somewhere and my stomach rumbled.

“There wasn’t a kitchen here before.”

He led me to the table and we both sat. “I had a kitchen put in first. I want the food we offer here to be a main selling point. I wanted to have the kitchen set up before I met with investors, so I could wine and dine them right here.”

A woman walked into the room and smiled. “The appetizers will be right out. Alex asked that everything be done tapas style, is that alright, ma’am?”

“That sounds great,” I said.

She left, and I stared at Alex. “How did you set this up? You didn’t even know I’d been in the office today and you said you’d planned to keep things professional.”

“I’d already had a dinner meeting planned with Alice to try her food and to see how she likes the set-up here. All it took was a quick call to make it a dinner for two.”

“That’s accommodating of her.”

He smiled. “I have a feeling she’s a romantic.”

“How nice for her,” I said. “Where’s she working now?”

“She’s got a vegan food truck. Her food is amazing, exactly what I want for this hotel. Real, unique food and options for every palette and every budget. I haven’t sold her on the hotel gig, yet, but I’m hopeful.”

“Turning your business meeting into a romantic dinner might not do much to convince her.”

His cheeks pinked a bit and he fiddled with his napkin. “It will still be a business meeting. After we eat, she’s going to join us to talk about the opportunities here. I know it’s not the most romantic—”

I put my hand over his to stop his fidgeting. “It’s romantic to me.”

Alice delivered six plates filled with mouthwatering food to the table and left quietly. I took a bite of mini black bean patties drizzled with a pink sauce. They absolutely melted in my mouth, a mix of spicy, sweet, and savory in one bite. “Wow. She could bring people here all by herself. How many chefs would you plan to have?”

“Six. Each with their own specialty. Ultimately, I’d like them to have the freedom to plan the menu and experiment, to be creative. If a family came here every year, they could have an entirely different food experience every time.”

“A foodie dream come true.” I grabbed what looked like a tiny burrito from another plate and moaned as the flavors, beans and peppers and the sweetness of corn, exploded in my mouth.

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