Chapter 6

LACEY

There was a special kind of freedom riding on a bike. The road was so close beneath my feet. The wind against my face kept me cool despite the warm weather. The seat vibrated underneath me. With how open the streets in Old Town were, it was as if Ezra and I had this entire part of Ivory all to ourselves.

I squeezed my arms tight around him as we headed toward our destination. I didn’t bother questioning him because I figured I would get my answer soon enough.

The ride was shorter than I wanted it to be. Ezra pulled up to the curb and parked before I had a chance to take everything in.

“This should be a good spot,” he said.

I stepped off the bike and looked at my surroundings. There was an empty building right in front of us between two other abandoned buildings. The place was dusty and broken down. The large windows allowed me to see that there was absolutely nothing inside outside of dust and a few rats probably scurrying around.

“Where is a good spot?” I asked.

“Here.”

He took step toward the abandoned building and peeked into the window. I kept waiting for him to tell me that he was joking but he just kept peering into the window.

“Yeah,” he said. “This should do it. A nice, good spot. What’s your specialty, Lacey?”

“My specialty?”

“What do you cook? I know you make a mean BLT but there must be something else you do.”

“I don’t really have a specialty. I like to cook everything really…”

“You can’t cook everything. There’s gotta be something you prefer. Chinese… Italian… Mexican… Thai…”

“That’d be nice. I’m more used to the simple stuff. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Bacon and eggs. Steak and vegetables. BLTs…”

“Right… That’ll work.”

Ezra put his face to the glass while I stood and watched him. When he turned around, he gave me a confused look even though I was the one that was more confused than anybody else.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“You said that you’re opening a business. A restaurant.”

“That’s right. I’m glad you’ve been listening.”

He gave me a satisfied smirk. I was too confused to laugh at him.

“You know, I meant what I said before,” I said.

“About what?”

“That you didn’t have to put on this whole charade. Maybe you are as rich as you seem, but you don’t have to pretend like you’re opening a restaurant to try and impress me.”

“I see…”

He took a step toward me, shifting his eyes around like he was thinking hard about what to say.

“How do I put this, Lacey?”

“Just tell me the truth.”

“All right. The truth. I came to Ivory because I wanted to start a business. I figured a restaurant would do well. Especially in a place like this.”

“Why would a restaurant do so well here?”

“Ivory is a small town. You don’t get many tourists here. You’re dependent on the locals. Because there aren’t many people here, you get to know everybody. They start to become regulars. That’s how you stay in business.”

“Staying in business. That’s not something you usually hear when you’re starting one.”

“You’re right. Staying in business is one thing. A booming business is another.”

“And I suppose you have a plan for that?”

“I do…”

He pointed an index finger at me.

“You.”

“Me?”

I raised an eyebrow at him. He still had that smug grin on his face that I wasn’t sure what to make of. Even without the suit, Ezra had the demeanor of a man so confident and sure of himself. I might not have believed everything he was telling me but I was definitely listening.

“Food is universal,” he said. “You can’t say that about books or movies or TV or music. But with food, if it’s good enough, they’ll do what they can to try it. Even if it means coming all the way to a place like Ivory.”

“I see…”

I slowly nodded in understanding.

“Makes sense,” I said. “It’s a crazy idea but it makes sense.”

“Is it crazy now?”

“Opening a restaurant because you’re looking to make some money. No, that’s not crazy. Thinking I’m the reason that anybody is going to want to come to Ivory and eat there. That’s crazy.”

“That’s disappointing.”

The smirk left his face as he looked away from me. It was hard to tell if his sudden frown was sincere.

“What’s wrong?” I said.

“You’re a chef,” he replied. “To think that you don’t even believe in yourself.”

“I’m not a chef, I’m a cook at a diner,” I said with a laugh. “There’s a big difference. It’s a big leap to go from making BLTs to something that everybody from miles away will want to try—”

“Why did you come to Ivory?”

I was caught off guard by his sudden question. I blinked and shook my head, unsure that I’d heard him correctly.

“W-what?”

“Why did you come to Ivory?” he repeated.

“I… I came to Ivory because—”

“I’ll tell you why. You came here because it’s an opportunity. An opportunity that you wouldn’t find anywhere else. An opportunity in Ivory that only Ivory could give you.”

He stared at me. No frown. No smirk. Just an intense gaze that made me forget about how ludicrous his whole idea was.

I was so distracted that I jerked when he took his hands in mine. He looked down at me, those blue eyes of his as intense as they always were.

“I meant what I said, Lacey. I’m new in town. I’m here to start a business. It’s a strange coincidence that you happen to be new, too. But is it really that unbelievable, what I’m trying to do?”

“I…”

I had trouble speaking. I managed to break the spell his hypnotized stare put me under and shook my head. I sighed then laughed as I looked away from him. My hands dropped from his as I turned my back to him completely.

“I had a friend in the city,” I said. “Madeline… I had a good job. I had good company. I had all the freedom I wanted. But there was still something missing. She tried to talk me out of it but I told her that I was coming to Ivory anyway.”

“And what did you tell her when she tried to convince you otherwise?”

I looked back and Ezra. He stared at me like he actually gave a shit about what I was about to tell him. Maybe it was because he saw how willing I was to sleep with him already. But there was something else I saw. Something sincere even though he was still mostly a stranger to me.

“I told her that I needed to do this. I told her that I wouldn’t want to live the rest of my life wondering if I’d regret it.”

I nodded to him, unable to stop the smile from coming to my lips.

“Then you understand exactly where I’m coming from,” he said. “I might dress a certain way or act a certain way. I drive a bike unlike most people you know… But I understand, Lacey.”

“I still don’t know who you are,” I said. “For all I know, this is all some scheme to try to get to know me better until you find someone else more interesting. I’ve met a lot of men in my life. Maybe this is all about the sex.”

“And so what if it is?”

He raised an eyebrow. I swallowed and shook my head, biting my tongue to stop from smirking even though my cheeks were undoubtedly red.

“It could be something more,” he said. “You don’t know who I am. Maybe something better will come along for you. Aren’t you curious to find out maybe if there’s something here?”

Damn…

I sighed, knowing that there was only one response I could give him and it was the one he wanted. There were plenty of reasons not to give him the time of day but I was throwing them all out the window. Something inside of me compelled me to keep going.

I stared at him, giving myself one last chance to walk away. When I looked into his eyes, it suddenly hit me.

It wasn’t the opportunity he was giving me. It wasn’t the chance meeting that two people new to Ivory just happened to run into each other. No… It was something that would’ve driven any woman to do the same thing I was about to do.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Ezra Grant.”

“Ezra Grant… I don’t want anything you’re offering me.”

“You don’t—”

“I want to know who Ezra Grant is. If you can’t do that for me, then there’s no chance this opportunity you’re giving me will ever work.”

He turned and looked into the abandoned storefront next to us. That cocky smile slowly returned to his lips.

“This is the spot,” he said. “This is the spot where it’ll be. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to convince you to come work for me.”

“All I see is an empty building with nothing but rats and mice for tenants.”

“We all have to start somewhere. All that matters is where you finish.”

I sighed a deep breath and gathered myself. The conversation with Ezra had gotten so heavy suddenly that I didn’t notice how tense I’d become.

I took a step back from him and put my hands up.

“Listen,” I said. “I’ve got a shift at the diner today. Let me give you my number. Call me later and we’ll meet up.”

I couldn’t deny that there was a warm sense of anticipation building in my stomach.

“Take me out for a drink,” I said.

“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea.”

“It looks like there’s a place right there.”

I looked just down the street at the only building that seemed to have living people inside of it.

“Hades Pub,” I said. “That sounds like a fun time.”

“Hades…”

Ezra stared at the bar in the distance. His eyes narrowed slightly. His mouth half-open like there was something lingering on his tongue. I wouldn’t have thought much of it if he weren’t so silent all of a sudden.

“Ezra?”

He slowly turned back toward me and smiled.

“Ivory seems like a nice town,” he said. “I’m sure I can find a better place to get to know you than a bar called Hades.”

“You know I haven’t been here for very long. Your guess is as good as mine.”

He walked back over to his bike and got onto it. I watched as he revved his engine and raised his eyebrows at me.

“You need a ride?” he asked.

“Sure… I could use a ride…”

I got onto the bike and squeezed my arms around him.

As we sped down the streets, all I could think about was tonight. My shift at the diner couldn’t be over soon enough. I couldn’t wait to figure out exactly who Ezra Grant was.