Page 7

There’s a bored-looking girl sitting on a stool next to the freight elevator, and I greet her with a grin.

“Jenny, do you have room for two?”

Her expression morphs with recognition.

“Cullen! I didn’t know you were back in town.”

“Just for a few days.”

“Seon-jae will be happy to see you.” She grabs the tablet resting on her knees and scrolls through it. “We’re preeeetty packed tonight, but I’ll pop you to the top of the waitlist because, duh. Means it shouldn’t be too—” the elevator doors open and a couple steps out “—long. Well, look at that. You can head on down.”

“Thanks.”

I keep my hand on Verity’s back, guiding us into the elevator. The doors shut, and she lifts her head to peek up at me. In the fluorescent lights, I can finally see how ocean blue her eyes are. They’re just as arresting as the first time I saw her, across the restaurant.

I’d noticed her the moment I sat down at the bar. She is stunning in that girl-next-door type of way that I am completely hopeless for, with a sweetheart face, large doe-eyes, and a cute button nose. She stood out like an angel with that creamy satin dress and shiny blonde hair. It would have been hard to miss her, a beautiful woman in a sea of couples.

Whoever her date was, I can’t help but feel a little grateful that he was such a dickhead and ghosted her. It gave me the perfect opportunity to sweep her up.

I don’t have a habit of picking up random chicks at bars, let alone restaurants. I gave up on finding love years ago, my hopeless-romantic soul shattered to pieces thanks to a vindictive woman. But I’ve been taking risks lately, making changes in my life, and something about Verity has me curious.

The elevator doors open into a dimly lit underground speakeasy with exposed brick walls and rustic leather seats. One of the servers crosses over and leads us to the only available table before handing us leather-bound menus. The seats are angled next to each other, leaving only a few inches between our knees as we sit.

“Okay, this place is cool.” Verity flips through the pages with unbridled excitement. Her energy is infectious and draws me to her even more. “God, everything looks so good.”

“What’re you most drawn to?”

“Hmm, either the hot honey or the yang…the yang…I have no idea how to pronounce that.” She looks up at me with an innocent smile.

“The yangnyeom. Let’s get both.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, of course. What about drinks?”

I remove my suit jacket and fold it over the back of my seat. I’d forgotten how warm it gets down here. I reach up and undo the first few buttons of my shirt, letting the day wash away from me. The process of moving back to the city, trying to broker these new apartment complex deals, and dealing with updates from my lawyer has been more stressful than I care to admit.

Verity’s gaze is still stuck on me, and I find myself addicted to the way her eyes darken a few shades as they trace my body. I can’t help but want to tease her.

“See something you like?”

That blush returns, and she quickly throws her attention back to her menu.

“The chili mango cocktail seems yummy.”

I smirk at her quick deflection.

The server returns, and I place our order, including a drink for myself.

“So, you come to this place often?” She crosses her legs, and it causes her silky dress to ride up a few inches.

“Whenever I’m in town. A buddy I went to school with owns it.”

“Oh, wow.” She swivels her head around, taking in the whole place. “How long has it been since you’ve lived in the city?”

“Almost ten years.”

Her head snaps back.