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I chuckled. “You really should start a podcast. This used to be my mother’s salon. She left it to me, and I turned it into this. I always had plans to start my own little pastry shop. I already had all the money saved, then Greg came into the picture and made it clear he wanted a trophy wife.”
“Each day, I find a new reason to be glad you walked out of that church.” He took a few steps further and looked around. “This is beautiful, Liv.”
I smiled, the way I did each time my nickname rolled off his tongue so easily. “You might want to keep your head down. People can see you from outside.”
“Oh.” He ducked back to the shadowed corner where I stood.
“Do you have a cent?”
“Do I—what is this, the Stone Ages?”
I rolled my eyes. “Stay here.” I walked behind the counter and keyed open the cash register, then grabbed some coins. Moving past the counter, I headed to a corner where a jukebox sat. Sliding in a coin, I selected a song.
Turning back to him, I smiled as he continued looking around in awe. I could see the pride in the way his cheeks swelled and his eyes lit up. Sneaking my way back to him, I said, “Follow me. This isn’t even the best part.”
“There’s more?” he asked.
I grabbed his hand, and we ducked as we crawled up the stairs. I opened another door that led to the rooftop. Then I closed it and found another lever. I pulled it down and watched the magic happen.
It was much calmer than the space downstairs, but the highlights were the sky full of stars, and a short distance forward sat the moon in its full glory. Alex stood in awe.
“It’s pretty nice, isn’t it?”
“Pretty nice?This is wonderful!” he exclaimed, walking around and doing a slow 360 to survey the place.
I followed him and said, “I was hoping to host a launch party after the charity event. I thought maybe I could use that PR of yours for something more than proving a point on social media.” I shrugged.
“Liv, you’re going to do more than that. We’re moving the charity event here—to this very rooftop.”
I looked at him, shocked. “What? You’ve been planning this for almost a week, and the fliers have already been sent.”
“I don’t care,” he said simply, his eyes charmed by the moon as he stood still. “Is there a way that the guests can access the rooftop without all that ducking.”
“Yes, there is a garden round the back. I’ll just open it up so they can access the garden and climb the stairs to the rooftop,”
“Nice, let’s do this,” I smiled as I watched him. He was mesmerized by the moon, but I couldn’t get enough of how beautiful he looked standing there. He was my moon.
“Come,” I invited, reaching out to grasp his hand. As our palms connected, I relished the warmth that spread through my body. Leading him to the edge of the rooftop, I looked at him one more time, and he held my gaze.
For a long moment, we just stood there, searching each other’s souls through the gateways that were our eyes. I wasn’t afraid tolet him in, and in that moment, I wished what we had was real. I wanted to kiss him.
“You get the best view of the moon from here.” I sat on the edge and watched him as he struggled in his suit to get beside me. I chuckled, and he rolled his eyes.
“You could have asked me to change, at least.”
“No, I actually love this. Me, sitting here in tees and jeans, next to you, straddled in an expensive suit—it’s poetic. It’s the theme I want for this place. A place where everyone belongs.” I nodded in the silence.
He turned to me. “Do you have any friends that you’d like to invite to the event?”
I turned to him, my eyes wide and my lips parted as I tried to feign hurt. “Are you suggesting, Mr. Steele, that all my friends are poor?”
He burst into a delightful fit of laughter, and I felt a strong urge to place my lips on his and savor that beautiful sound. When his laughter died down, I pulled out my burger and two sodas from my bag.
“I lost contact with all my friends after the whole incident. They were actually borrowed friends,” I said.
“Let me guess, partners of Greg’s friends?”
I nodded quietly. “I don’t know how I was so dumb to let him cage me in like that.”