Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 115833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
I sat and gave him a grateful smile. “Thank you so much.”
He walked to the opposite side of the table and sat down, resting his back against the chair and spreading his legs. “So, you don’t drink. Not to be all up in your business, but why choose a place with a bar if you don’t bother with alcohol?”
“You want the truth?” I asked with a nervous smile.
His mouth twitched. “Yeah. Give me the truth.”
“Well, the truth is I’ve never been here before. Tish told me about it, and it was the first thing to come to mind when you asked about a favorite restaurant.”
Deke chuckled, nodding. “I see.”
“To be fair, I would’ve been fine going to Outback or even Olive Garden, but I didn’t think that would impress you as much.” We both laughed. “And just so you don’t think I’m recovering from a drinking addiction or anything, I do have a drink from time to time. It’s just not as often as it used to be a year ago.” He nodded like he wholeheartedly understood, which made me want to further explain. “I toned it down last spring when I decided it was time to develop a new lifestyle. Now that I’m thirty-two and busier than ever, I’m sure my liver thanks me for it.” I laughed, and he smiled. “But if I’m celebrating or if there’s a major event happening, I’ll have a drink or two. There just hasn’t been much to celebrate lately, so . . .”
“This night isn’t cause for celebration?” He gestured to the space around us with a hand.
“Not unless we’re closing this deal right now.” I pursed my lips and looked into his eyes, challenging him. Deke fought a grin, embracing the challenge. Then he leaned forward in his chair to dig his phone out of his back pocket.
“It’s an e-signature, right?”
“Yes,” I said as more of a question than a statement.
He was quiet for a moment, tapping and scrolling away at the screen of his phone. Then he placed the phone flat on the table and used his index finger to sign in a box.
“There,” he said, tapping the Submit button. “Signed. All you have to do is complete it with your signature, and this partnership is official.”
“Wow.” I blinked rapidly. “You didn’t even read it.”
“Didn’t need to. Arnold took care of that for me. He said it was legit, and I trust him.”
I swallowed. “Um . . . okay. I guess you gave those drinks away for nothing.” I bubbled out a laugh as I glanced at the girls in shimmery dresses, now taking pictures of each other posing with the drinks. They were definitely enjoying the free cocktails.
“Nah.” Deke glanced over his shoulder to where the waiter was preparing our H2O at the bar. “We can stick with the basics tonight. I don’t wanna throw off the lifestyle thing you have going on. And, like you said, this is business. But next time we’ll be celebrating with proper drinks. You feel me?”
“Oh, there’s a next time, is there?”
He lowered his eyes to my chest, then brought them back up again. “Absolutely.”
I crossed my legs, feeling a tingle between them that I hadn’t felt in a long time. Thankfully, the waiter appeared with our waters and took our orders.
I wasn’t sure what we were going to do or talk about now that he’d signed the contract. I’d had some things in my mind that I’d wanted to mention, like sales figures and what we used in our products. Fortunately, I didn’t have to lead many of the conversations, because Deke took the floor.
Before he started, though, I noticed him glance at my wedding ring as I collected my water. His face had warped a bit, and when he noticed me noticing him, he cleared his throat and forced a smile.
I could tell he had questions—or that maybe he was regretting his wine and dine initiative with a woman he didn’t realize was (or had been) married—but if he felt any sort of way about it, he didn’t show it. He still acted himself . . . and still stared at me like I was naked.
I should’ve told him about Lew—about why I still wore the rings—but I wasn’t sure I’d be able to hold back the tears. It was better to let it be and let it go. After all, I doubted Deke and I would be having any more one-on-one “business” dinners after this.
“What made you get into skin care, anyway?” Deke asked after chatting about how packed his summer schedule was going to be.
“Well, believe it or not, I used to make my own body scrubs and creams when I was younger. All in my mom’s kitchen. I went to a community college and got my bachelor’s in business and figured I’d put that degree to use doing something else I loved.”