Simon

Although I’d remembered Peyton being funny as hell and pretty yesterday, she’d been something else entirely when she’d opened the door tonight in her sexy black dress, her makeup done, and her hair down and soft. I’d stared dumbstruck at the beautiful creature in front of me. If it hadn’t been for Cooper coming up, I would’ve had to fight for verbal ability.

“So, tell me, what type of business brings you to Coppell, Texas, of all places?” she asked after we were seated in the restaurant and our drinks had arrived.

“I evaluate companies for investment opportunities.” Most women I’d been out with would have changed the subject here. But unsurprisingly, she wasn’t like them. As if the soft, Southern lilt to her voice wasn’t enough to differentiate herself.

“In other words, you buy them?”

“Sometimes. It depends on if it fits with what my boss wants and, more importantly, if it’ll be profitable.”

“And there’s one in this small town worth investing in?”

“No. My dinner engagement was local, though.” It occurred to me she might know George if I mentioned his name, and since the possible purchase was confidential, I couldn’t give her that kind of detail. Thankfully, she was astute enough to realize why I was being vague.

“And I’m assuming you can’t tell me who you had dinner with because which company you might be purchasing is not public knowledge yet?”

“Exactly. Matter of fact, it’s about fifty-fifty it’ll happen at this point. We have to do the evaluation and audit in order to decide.”

“I take it you’re not staying at the Stagecoach Inn or Holiday Inn Express in town?”

I found her question funny considering my threat to my assistant. To be honest, I could care less where I stayed so long as the Wi-Fi was solid, and the coffee was hot, but Emma did not share the sentiment. And Tom, my boss’s accountant, would throw a tantrum. In fact, he could spin anything up into a tizzy. Nothing but the best hotels for that tosser. I considered having to work with the owner’s nephew the only drawback to my job.

“No. I’m at the Four Seasons in Irving. If I stay past the initial audit, I’ll move into temporary housing. It’s nicer to have a kitchen when on location more than a couple of weeks.”

“That’s a nice hotel. Great shopping, although something tells me you work too much to care about what there is to do downtown.”

“What gave me away?”

She shrugged. “Business travel normally requires a lot of work hours. Which is why I was surprised to hear from you.”

I was somewhat taken aback, but then I realized I actually had cancelled on plenty of people over the years due to my work. “I figured it’s the least I could do after you rescued my bottle of champagne from Laverne.”

A mischievous smile touched her lips. “Ah, well, it’s my signature move for getting dates. Laverne is actually my wingman.”

I chuckled. “I can see that, given all of her charisma. So, I’m curious. Why is it that you’re quite single? By choice?”

Her brow arched, annoyance flickering in her amber colored eyes. “As opposed to maybe I just can’t seem to hold a man?”

I knew my face was heating and quickly amended. “That was rude.” It was, but the one thing I’d learned in dealing with people over the years was that everyone had a story. I suddenly wanted to know Peyton’s. Albeit perhaps in a more delicate fashion.

Thankfully, I was saved from shoving more of my foot into my mouth when the waitress returned and took our orders. Once she left, I tried to smooth things over.

“I didn’t mean to cause offense.”

Peyton waved me off. “It’s okay. Believe me when I say I’m too laid back to take offense. I really think taking my meds for angry mood swings and promising not to go off in a rage because my date orders murdered cow for dinner may be a new tactic I employ for hanging onto a man more long-term.”

I almost spit out the beer I’d been sipping only to see the amusement dancing in her eyes. “Jesus. I deserved that.”

She laughed. “You totally did.”

Her humor was completely contagious, and my laughter joined in hers. “I was simply sitting here thinking how is it possible a woman as beautiful and funny as you are isn’t in a relationship. But I realize that sounds like a horrible snap judgment which assumes that’s what you’d want.”

“I won’t disagree. I think it’s ironic that when a man is single at thirty it’s assumed he’s not ready to settle down yet. But if a woman is single, then clearly it’s not from lack of trying to change that status.”

I’d never thought about it quite that way, but she made a good point. “Stereotypes which men like me are perpetuating with questions such as the one I asked you.”

Again, her brilliant smile confirmed she was sincere when she’d said my question hadn’t bothered her. “I think when people get wrapped up in timing dictating their life, there’s a risk of settling. Two days before calling someone, three dates before sleeping with someone, two years before an expected engagement, married before thirty, two-point five kids before thirty-two, and so on.”

“Very true.” I didn’t subscribe to the pressure of doing things simply because others thought I should. Never had.

“I say if you want to call someone right away or sleep with someone on the first date, who cares?” Her eyes got big, and she turned a delightful shade of pink. “I didn’t—I was talking generally, not putting it out there that I was planning to, um—”

I couldn’t help it; I started laughing. She was adorable. “You have made your point. I don’t think I’ve ever met someone like you.” I wasn’t kidding. She seemed carefree and uninhibited about what she wanted from life or, more specifically, what she didn’t.

“Maybe you need to get out of the city more often.”

“I obviously do. You’re correct in that I put a lot of time into the job, which doesn’t allow meeting a lot of new people.”

“So you don’t date a woman in every new town you travel to?”

Although she was teasing me, I wanted to ensure she knew I didn’t. “Not at all. Matter of fact, if it wasn’t for meeting you yesterday, I’d most likely be in my hotel room ordering room service or at the gym right now.”

“Would people call you a workaholic?”

“Absolutely.”

She studied me for a moment, smoothing over her initial frown. “Do you love your job?”

“I don’t think love is the word. But I’m good at it, and I enjoy certain aspects, such as travel. I have a bit of wanderlust. How about you?”

She sipped her beer. “I’m the opposite. Very content to stay in my comfort zone and home state. But I do work long hours. I don’t love my job, but I love the people I work with, so I keep doing it.”

“What happens with Cooper while you’re at work?”

“Dog walker comes in around midday. If I’m too late, my brother-in-law will go by to feed him, but those nights are rare. I try to maintain a healthy work/life balance.”

“And if work is your life? Asking for a friend.”

She laughed, obviously knowing I wasn’t. “Then I’d say your friend needs to find that thing outside of work he can’t wait to get home to.”

“And what’s yours?” I truly was curious, never having looked forward to anything but my job.

 “My family. My dog. Friends. Gardening. Cooking, eating, and running in that order because then repeat.”

“What is it you do for work?”

“Hold onto your seat. I work in—” She made a show of looking to her right and left as if she was about to reveal she was a spy. Then she whispered across the table, “Accounting.”

I laughed out loud. “And it’s a secret because?”

“Because if people heard, they’d realize how truly boring I am. I wish I was more adventurous, but most days I crunch numbers, and usually I like it.”

I didn’t believe she was boring in the slightest. “And you indicated you enjoy the people you work with?”

“For the most part, but there’s always one asshole.”

Didn’t I know it. “Yes, there is. Tell me about yours, and I’ll share mine.” I was curious what constituted an arsehole in her mind.

“Okay. He’s a colleague but treats me as though I work for him. He’s never in the office and belittles his people if it suits him. Wasted space, really. If he gets the promotion we’re both applying for, I’d be reporting to him, which means I’d have to quit.”

“Are you more qualified for the position?”

“Definitely.”

I appreciated her confidence. “Then you should get the job. But if you don’t, it’s normally a sign they don’t value you, and you should move on.”

“That’s a good way of putting it. Now, how about your asshole?”

“Ah. The owner’s nephew. Lazy arse who sometimes likes to fancy himself in charge. I enjoy reminding him he’s not.”

She laughed. “Gotta love nepotism in the workplace. So, enough about work. Tell me, how long have you lived in the States?”

“Over ten years now. I went to university in New York, then stayed.”

We continued to trade questions and stories throughout the meal.

As I studied her over the rim of my glass, I realized she couldn’t be more my opposite, nor was she like anyone in my world. It was nice, for a change, to meet someone who wasn’t obsessed with their career or its trajectory. She seemed to be more interested in life questions and actually getting to know me.

I took my last swallow of beer and realized I didn’t want this evening to end. Normally, I found the more I got to know a woman, the less I was interested. Call it the thrill of the chase or the realization that expectations were greater than reality. But with Peyton, this wasn’t turning out to be the case. So far, the fascination from yesterday was growing stronger. She was anything but boring and, even more surprising, made me forget about my job. I hadn’t checked my phone once during the date.

Perhaps I was already addressing my lack of work/life balance simply by being in her company. Although this week would be crazy, I hoped she might be available this next weekend, so I put it out there.

“The next few days will be quite busy for me with work, and depending how it goes, there could be late nights.”

She looked amused. “Either you’re making an excuse as to why I won’t ever hear from you after tonight, or you’re telling me not to take it personally if we can’t get together until next weekend.”

 “Definitely the latter, as I’d love to see you again. I should be free by Friday, at the latest. I only wish my team wasn’t coming in tomorrow.” As it was, I’d be up to my eyeballs in paperwork.

Her face lit up, and I realized the chemistry was mutual.

“Are you asking me out on a second date?”

“I am, but in all fairness, there’s a chance that in a few days I could be on a flight back to New York. On the other hand, I could be here another few weeks. In case you’d rather not invest your time with someone who won’t be staying.”

She laughed. “Oh, I don’t know. The longer you’re here, the higher the likelihood you’ll uncover all of my flaws. So perhaps this is the best strategy for keeping you from finding out all of the crazy.”

I found myself wanting to get to know her well enough to find some flaws. “I somehow doubt that, but since it sounds like a yes to another date, I’ll take it.”

After we finished dinner, I drove her home, parked in front of her house and went around to open her door. Taking her hand, I assisted her out of the car. Not that she needed the help, but I used the excuse to touch her, keeping her hand in mine as we walked up to her porch.

“Thank you for dinner. I can’t remember having such an enjoyable night in a very long time.”

Her sincerity caught me off guard. Stepping into her once we’d reached her front door, I cupped my hand around the side of her face. “Tell me, Peyton. Are you the type who likes a man to ask permission to kiss her, or do you prefer when he simply goes for it?”

“What do you think?”

Not needing any more encouragement, I ducked my head down, meeting her lips. Warm, soft, with the hint of chocolate from our shared dessert, it wasn’t long before what started out a gentle kiss good night morphed into something more powerful. My tongue swept into her mouth and when hers met mine, everything ignited, threatening to undo me. From a simple kiss that had nothing simple about it.

My free hand wound in her hair while her arms came up around my neck, and she pressed her body into mine. I moved my hands down her back, skimming her curves with my fingers, down to her ass, gripping there and pulling her tighter against me even as I deepened the kiss. I lost all sense that we were standing on her front porch and visible to anyone watching.

Suddenly, we both jumped back when a loud woof came with a bang on the other side of the front door.

She was the first to speak as I hadn’t quite recovered the ability. “I forgot to mention Cooper is armed with an uncanny ability to be a cock block.”

I couldn’t help it; I started laughing. Her humor was so unrehearsed and unfiltered. When she started giggling, we both went into hysterics. Finally recovering, I stepped forward and kissed her once more, this time only a peck to keep my equilibrium intact.

“I’ll talk to you this week. Maybe via text? Then we’ll plan on Friday, yes?”

“Yes. Good luck on your acquisition.”

“Good luck with the promotion.”