Chapter 3
My alarm goes off bright and early on Friday morning. It’s day one of the convention, and I’m filled with butterflies and excitement and a strong need for coffee. I do my hair and makeup and put on my black pinstripe slacks. I pair them with a teal blouse and some black beaded jewelry. I look pretty damn professional. It’s miles away from the sundresses and flour-covered apron that I usually wear to work. With this look, I could be a lawyer or something.
I head down to the lobby and get a large cup of coffee from the continental breakfast bar. I don’t want anything too messy to eat, because ruining one of my three business outfits this early in the convention would be a nightmare, so I grab a banana and a granola bar. I eat quickly and then take my coffee to the hotel’s massive conference room. Right at the front of the room is a short line of people waiting to sign in.
I try to smile and look polite, but no one really notices me. I do notice that most people seem to be in groups, or at least pairs. It’s like everyone came here with a friend. Maybe they’re all business partners or something. I’m a one-woman show so I didn’t even think about bringing anyone else. This would have been way more fun with Livi by my side.
When it’s my turn to sign in, I give the woman my name and she digs through a plastic bin, retrieving a laminated nametag in the shape of Texas.
“How cute,” I say as she hands me the nametag, which is on a blue lanyard. I hang it around my neck. It says ALEXA SHARP and then Sweets Bakery underneath it. I’m totally in love.
The lady nods. “Texas is the coolest shaped state, I think. The people from Colorado thought their nametag was just a poorly cut out square,” she says with a chuckle.
I have to agree with her. As I glance around, I see people wearing state-shaped lanyards. Some of them look silly, but my Texas looks cool. Maybe I’m just biased because I was born and raised here.
The keynote speech begins in five minutes, so I’m about to take a seat in one of the hundreds of chairs that are lined up in front of the stage, but then I realize my coffee is empty.
I make my way through the throngs of people to the coffee table that’s been set up at the back of the room. Since my first coffee cup has gotten kind of soggy on the lid from my lipstick, I toss it in a nearby trashcan and get a fresh one.
Livi makes fun of me for my creamer-to-coffee ratio, but I always pour the creamer first. That way you can pour the coffee over it and it mixes itself and you don’t have to waste a spoon. She tells me I’m neurotic, but it’s how I like to do things.
I take the stainless-steel container marked CREAMER and tip it over my new paper coffee cup. Nothing happens.
But the thing is heavy, so I know it’s not empty. I tip it again, but it still doesn’t work. I find a nearly invisible button on the handle and press it, then try again. Only this time, it’s like the floodgates have been opened. A huge splash of creamer falls into my cup—way more than I’ll ever need.
“Shit,” I mutter, setting the stupid pitcher of creamer back on the table. I look into my cup, and it has like two inches of French Vanilla in there. Gross.
“Howdy,” I voice says beside me. It’s deep and raspy, and possibly the most cliché-sounding southern twang I’ve ever heard.
I look over at the man who said it, and he tips an imaginary cowboy hat at me. “It’s nice to meet a fellow Texan,” he says, but in a normal voice this time.
His normal voice is very attractive. Or maybe, that’s just what my brain processes because his face is so attractive that I’m suddenly not thinking straight. He has dark hair that’s short on the sides, long and slightly wavy on top, and swooped back in a way that makes me want to run my hands through it. His chiseled jaw has just a hint of stubble, and even though he’s wearing black slacks and a button up light blue shirt, I can tell he’s absolutely ripped underneath those fancy clothes.
He’s smiling right at me, and I am suddenly very aware that he just talked to me and I have no idea what he said. Apparently my brain doesn’t function well when I’m looking at a gorgeous guy.
“Um… what?” I say.
He grins, and gestures to my boobs.
Oh wait, no. Not my boobs. It’s my nametag. I let out a breath.
“I said it’s nice to meet a fellow Texan.”
“Ah,” I say, noticing his own nametag for the first time. It’s also in the shape of Texas. His nametag read GABRIEL BARR, Barr Real Estate.
“I’m Gabe,” he says, holding out his hand.
“Alexa,” I squeak, because I’m both embarrassed and a little turned on. This guy is so freaking hot. I do manage to shake his hand though, so hopefully he doesn’t think I’m a total lunatic.
He leans forward a bit. “Not to sound weird, but I noticed the trouble you were having,” he says, nodding toward my coffee cup which is all creamer and no coffee yet. “The same thing happened to me when I was here last year, and I’m glad I’m not the only one who can’t figure out that damn thing.”
He smiles and I smile, too. In the back of my mind, I feel like I should be a little embarrassed. He just witnessed me looking like an idiot, after all. Instead, all I can do is smile. It’s like Gabe’s lips are infectious, and if they tip up then mine do, too.
“Do you mind?” he asks, then he takes my coffee cup and pours half of it into an empty one. Then he hands it back to me. “Perfect.”
I watch him take the coffee pot and fill up his cup, then he tips it toward me. I make sure my hand is steady and not shaking nervously, and I hold out my cup. He fills it up.
“I love how you don’t need to stir it when you pour the creamer in first,” he says.
Oh my, I think I’m in love.
“Me too,” I say.
We each put a plastic lid on our coffee, and I figure the moment is over. The keynote speech will begin any second now, but I don’t want the moment to be over. To my great relief, Gabe looks at me. “Want to sit together?”
“We are both Texans,” I say as casually as I can muster. No need to let him know how much I’m swooning right now. “Seems like the right thing to do.”
He flashes me a grin that is all white teeth and then motions for me to lead the way. I find a spot near the front that has two empty seats, and when he sits next to me, I get a rush of his cologne. He smells woodsy, and clean, and oddly enough, very Texan. It’s comforting since I’m here in another state where I don’t know anything, or anyone.
I am totally over the moon that this year’s celebrated keynote speaker is a woman. It’s the first time the small business convention has invited a woman business owner to do the main speech. She’s vibrant and beautiful, and probably in her fifties. I am totally caught up in her words, and the forty-five minute speech goes by entirely too quickly. I even forget about Gabe and his muscular stature that’s sitting right next to me. This woman’s words feel so empowering. She talks about being the only woman in her engineering field, and how she got the courage to branch off and start her own firm. Her whole career took off after that brave move, and now she’s so much more successful than she ever would have been if she stayed working for a company that wasn’t her own.
I’ve never felt so inspired in my life. Even if I don’t get a single other thing from this convention, it was all worth it for this keynote speech. I feel good about myself for the first time in a long time. I’m not just some silly girl with a dream to bake cupcakes. I’m a business owner. I’m an employer. I totally rock.
I’m still high on inspiration when her speech wraps up and is suddenly over. Thunderous applause fills the room, mine included.
The announcer steps up to the podium and tells us that we can now go to the nearby conference rooms and enjoy panels on various business topics, or that we can check out the vendor room. I take out the schedule I was given during check-in and look for the panels I wanted to attend.
“That was a great speech,” Gabe says. “That woman totally kicks ass.”
“I know! I loved her,” I say.
People start getting up and heading off to do other things, but we’re still seated. This is awkward because I really don’t want to leave him, but I also need to check out the panels I came here to attend.
“So where are you headed next?” he asks, as if sensing my thoughts. Or, maybe, he feels the same way I do.
I glance at my schedule. “Health insurance for small business,” I say. Right now I only have two employees and I pay them hourly. I’d love to be able to offer benefits because Livi needs health insurance and I don’t want her to leave me for another company.
“Cool,” he says, but there’s a little disappointment in his eyes. “I’m headed to a real estate panel. I imagine it’s going to be very, very boring,” he says with an eye roll.
I’m about to ask him why he’s going if he doesn’t think he’ll like it, but two guys walk up wearing Texas nametags as well. They look about our age, or maybe younger. They’re both pale with dark skin and look like brothers.
“There you are,” one of them says to Gabe. “You ready?”
“Yeah,” he says, then stands up. I stand up too just so it looks like I’m not some loser who is desperate to hang out with him.
Right as he turns to me, I decide to prove that I’m definitely not a loser. “See ya,” I say, giving a little wave as I turn and walk off in the other direction.
I feel bold and confident, but I’d be lying if I said a part of me was hoping he’d call after me. Ask me to stop, and give him my number or something. Or ask me to meet up later for dinner. Anything.
But he doesn’t. When I’m across the room, I glance back and see him walking with his two friends, their focus on their schedules. Ugh. Why did I get my hopes up?
It’s just a hot guy. He’s here for the convention, just like I am. He’s not here to meet girls, he’s here to learn about real estate.
I take in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Who cares about Gabe Barr? I’m a business woman. I’m here for business.
Still, I glance back one last time before I leave the room, and I see him, standing across the hallway.
Looking right at me.