Page 50 of The Bet
Chapter 15
He had to wait until the following evening to see Luke because his friend had been busy.
“Busy doing what?” he asked.
“Busy being busy,” Luke drawled. They sat across one of the tables on the rooftop terrace, in a far secluded corner. The tinkle of glasses and bottles rippled in the background.
Xavier waited for his friend to elaborate, and prompted him when he got nothing. “Busy being busy with what, orwhom?”
“Nothing exciting. Just looking at more premises.”
“Where?” Xavier asked, directing the conversation back to his friend while he worked out how he was going to say what he needed to.
“I’m looking at some sites in Tribeca. I’m thinking it’s about time I opened another bar.”
“We’ll be practically neighbors.”
“Yeah.”
“Dude, do you ever think of slowing down?” Xavier asked.
“What for? Have to keep busy.”
“For what?” He didn’t understand. The guy was rolling in money and didn’t need to work another day for as long as he lived. But buying real estate and turning it into cash cows seemed to be Luke’s specialty, and, more than that, he seemed to have a real passion for it. There were times when Xavier wished he’d had the same kind of luck. Maybe luck had nothing to do with it, and it came down to good old-fashioned persistence and hard work. At times he felt like a fluke, but nobody needed to know that. It didn’t matter. The gloss on the outside was what everyone saw and loved.
“So that I don’t become a lazy old man floating around on my yacht like my old man.”
“And instead you’ll be hanging around your bars and clubs?”
Luke dismissed his comment with a nod. “When I hold the launch party, I might need you to get some of your actress and super model friends to come and create some buzz for me.”
“Just say the word.”
“Thanks, I will. How’s thatprojectof yours going?” Luke asked. “I’m assuming you’re still batshit crazy and pursuing it?”
Xavier made a noise in his throat then reached for his beer bottle. “The project’s going … fine.”
“Yeah?” Luke swept his hands through his hair again, his signature move. “You getting anywhere?”
“Of course.” Why the fuck couldn’t he tell Luke the truth? That he wasn’t even on the field yet, let alone first base.
“I don’t need proof or anything. Your word’s good with me.”
“That’s good to know.” He weighed it up in his head.I want out.But instead he found himself saying. “I might need more time.”
Luke grunted. “More time?” He sat forward, his cornflower blue eyes glinting under the soft light. “I always got the impression these things were a done deal with you, from the pick-up line to getting them home.”
“She’s complicated.” And that was putting it mildly.
“Yeah?” Luke folded his arms and sat back, seemingly taking pleasure in his pained confession.
Xavier nodded. It didn’t sit well with him, his manhood being challenged so blatantly. His pursuit of this woman, this girl, this college student, was turning out to be not as simple as he had once thought. Physical attraction aside—he liked the look of her, could see himself with her, and, well, what was there not to like about him?
She probably did fancy him, but was in denial about it, or she would come to, if she gave him half a chance, but, moving all the physical attraction aside, he wasn’t sure they had much in common.
He hadn’t dated a college student in years. He liked his women to be more experienced, and even though Savannah had said she was a couple of years older, he still wasn’t sure. When it came down to it, it was now a couple of weeks since he’d met her and he still didn’t know much about her. Hell, he didn’t even know what she was studying. All he knew was that she was a teetotaler and a vegetarian. It hardly made for a scintillating twosome.
He just hoped that sex wasn’t off her menu, either.
