Page 5 of Bargain With The Boss (Crescent Cove: The Moguls #2)

Xavier

The line of food trucks with the spectacular view of Crescent Lake was the perfect blend of small town and forward thinking. The first one had arrived from Kensington Square, a nearby city, and had been such a success that a half dozen more had followed suit.

The mayor of our town was happy to lease spots and bring in more revenue especially since it showed off the jewel of the town—Crescent Lake. And brought people in from the nearby towns like Turnbull and Kensington Square on the regular.

Another reason I wanted to get our storefronts situated.

We were sitting on the perfect spot of land, and I was getting tired of watching all our plans die on the vine.

I pushed that down and drew in a deep breath. I could smell the sunshine on the air and distant laughter grounded me into the moment instead of all the things pissing me off.

The lunch rush was over and the trucks only had a handful of customers. Summer was teasing its way across the lake and I had a feeling people were playing hooky thanks to a warm breeze off the water.

The scent of cookies hit me first, followed directly by the spice of Mexican food—both making my stomach growl. Sydney was quietly assessing her surroundings. I could practically hear the gears in her brain whirring from where I stood.

“What?”

She hooked her thumb around the thick handles of her bag. “Nothing. Just admiring the view.”

I waggled my eyebrows at her and she sighed. “Oh, you mean the lake. Got it.”

“Do you actually believe your own hype?”

I snorted. “Just having a little fun. Pretty sure you need more of it in your life.”

“You don’t know anything about me, Mr. Hastings.”

“How do you do that?”

One slim eyebrow rose. “Do what?”

“Everything about you is warm on the outside. That red hair, those gold eyes, and yet you make the arctic come out of that mouth.”

“Don’t worry about my mouth. We are working together. I don’t need to be your friend.”

“See, there you go again.” I pounded my chest as if there were ice crystals inside. “Harsh. What’s wrong with us becoming friends?”

“I won’t be around long enough to be your friend.”

I frowned. “I thought you were helping out Jude for the duration?”

She pressed her lips together and I had the strange feeling she was holding something back.

“Syd?”

“I’m hungry.”

I nodded toward the trucks. “Okay, then let’s get some food.”

Captain Taco was a cross between superhero comic book aesthetic and a colorful Spanish vibe.

We filled a tray with soft and hard tacos to start, but both of us were hungry enough to make add-ons.

Chips and fresh salsa with a container of guacamole completed our transaction and still we spent less than twenty-five bucks, which was unheard of these days.

I made a mental note to keep that in mind for our marketing push.

Syd followed behind me with two bottles of the Mexican version of Coke.

We found a table along the half wall with an umbrella to protect her fair skin. She seemed a little overwhelmed before picking up one of the soft shells, carefully adding some guacamole then tucking the end in and folding it up.

“You know tacos are supposed to be messy, right?”

She narrowed her eyes at me through the honey color of her shades, then took a bite.

I laughed and went for a crunchy one for myself. I doused it in hot sauce then handed the bottle to Syd. She glanced down at the ridiculous line of tacos as if unsure.

“C’mon. There’re no calories in tacos.”

She took the hot sauce. “I’m not worried about that.”

“Then dig in.”

She did her little ritual, this time adding a generous amount of Comic Taco’s mole. When she bit into it, her eyes flashed up to me and she quickly went in for another bite.

“Good right?”

She daintily dabbed at the corner of her mouth with her pinkie and nodded. When the juices dripped down her hand I laughed and handed her a napkin.

She looked so helpless I pushed the chips toward her.

“What’s the point to street tacos without getting messy?”

Finally, she picked out the perfect chip before loading it with more of the guac and mole sauce until the chip was ready to break.

After the dam broke we demolished the whole tray with very little conversation.

The sound of the water lapping over the rocks below us unfurled the rest of my frustration.

She sat back with her soda and gestured she was done.I picked up the last messy pork taco and scooped up a healthy dollop of guacamole onto my plate to dip it in.

“Where do you put it?”

I laughed. “My sister used to say I had a hollow leg backup for my stomach.”

“Luna, right?”

I nodded as I tried to clean myself up with napkins. “Research me?”

She dipped into her Mary Poppins bag for a slim pack of wet wipes, offering me one. “Once Jude told me about your…company, I needed to know what he was getting into.”

I took one and cleaned up. “Don’t trust him?”

She dropped her used wipe onto the top of the tray. “It’s not about trust. He was blindsided by news of our mother’s previous marriage and family. He wasn’t thinking straight.”

“Seemed fine to me. Perhaps he found what he needed here like a lot of people.”

“Or he was being overly emotional.”

“And you aren’t emotional, are you Syd?”

She clutched her hands in her lap. “Not about business. You have to have a cool head and research every angle.”

“Or maybe you stumble on something amazing.”

She pursed her lips. “You would say that. But look at what you’ve been dealing with. Even if you’re working off the whim of the moment, wouldn’t this tell you that it’s not meant to be?”

“No.” The pleasure of the water and company slid out of me. “It tells me it’s worth it even more because Maitland wants it so badly. We’re onto something.”

“Or you’re stubborn and shortsighted. The rebuild and the insurance on this property alone is staggering. You’ll be taking a loss for at least a year or two. Probably three.”

“Look around. This is prime real estate. Even Max Chapel agrees. He’s agreed to invest with future expansions if it works out like we think it will.”

“Max?” Her eyes widened.

“He’s a friend of Jude’s.” The tech billionaire from Seattle was a good contact to have. He wanted to expand his real estate portfolio to the East Coast, and we liked using his money. It was a win-win.

“And one of mine,” she said quietly.

“So, you know we’ve done our research. Our property is right near the food trucks, and we have one of the best beaches on the lake. It’s perfect for foot traffic and families. I already have a line on two people interested in the storefronts.”

“And what will you be doing? Fighting against the food trucks?”

“No. Not directly. A small grocery on the corner where the gallery used to be. Which will be perfect for the people who live over it.”

“And would people who are paying prime apartment prices be excited to smell food all the time?”

“Have you ever lived alone?”

“I do.”

“How many times do you want to cook for yourself?”

She tapped one long finger against her clenched fingers. “I have a cook who makes my dinners.”

“Well, isn’t that nice for you. I don’t, and I can’t tell you how often I pick up prepared foods or do take-out orders. This isn’t going to be a sub shop. It’s more of a delicatessen like we used to have over here, only elevated.”

“And what about the families you want this way?”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “Is this a job interview or something?”

“No, I’m simply trying to understand what my brother has gotten into. He came out here on a lark, then he ends up with a child from a…” She shifted on her chair.

“One-night stand? A hot, inconvenient affair?” I leaned forward. “Ever had one of those, Duchess?”

She lifted her pointy little chin. “You know nothing about me.”

“Oh, so you have? Had that quick, hot moment when you can think of nothing else but stripping someone out of their clothes and see how they taste?”

Her chest lifted and fell with her quick breaths before she swallowed.

I sat back and took a long drink from my soda. “You should try it sometime.”

“As if I’d take advice from a man who’s wearing a Captain America shirt with Hugo Boss pants and a Bulgari watch.”

“Checking me out?” I grinned at her. “I like to call it eclectic.”

“Or that you haven’t grown up.” She stood and picked up the tray, then walked to the large trash bin.

Her walk was different without the heels, but no less alluring. More sporty and intense than the way heels changed a woman’s walk. I could imagine her in sneakers and athleisure wear with a sporty little popped collar as she did a specific five-mile brisk walk.

Unsure why that popped in my head, I made sure not to get caught staring at her ass when she turned back to me. Those big, honey toned sunglasses made her eyes flash gold. Damn, the whole package did something to me.

I shouldn’t be looking. Messing with her wasn’t the smartest idea when she was related to one of my best friends. Jude was nearly as hard to get to know as the fair Sydney, but where Jude was starved for friends, she was so contained. As if there was caution tape all around her.

And I was contrary enough to want to peel every bit of it off her.

Instead of stopping at the table, she kept walking back toward our property.

Shaking my head, I grabbed my laptop, finished my soda and tossed it in the recycler before jogging after her. “Where’s the fire?”

“I need to look over the blueprints you spoke of.”

“Which is in this.” I waggled my laptop.

“It’s too sunny to see the screen. I’d like to see your offices. I need to get set up there for the duration anyway.”

“You make it sound so short term. This place will grow on you.”

“Like a fungus?”

I snickered. “Sometimes it feels like it.” I saw her lips twitch. Not completely frozen over. Her lake was definitely thawing.

She climbed the rise and waited for me. I held out a hand to her to help her down the hill. She looked down at my car then to me before taking my hand.

Soft and nearly fragile.

But her grip was anything but.

“Sandstone steps would look good here,” she said quietly. “Some wildflowers to fill in the patchiness that wouldn’t need so much mowing.”

“Definitely agree on the steps. Didn’t think of the flowers.”

“Easier to use because it’s so sandy. Or long grasses—perhaps a mix.”

I could picture the long grass swaying in the breeze. “Like the kind you see at the Cape?”

When we got to the bottom of the hill she looked up at me. “I’ve never been.”

“Then I guess we gotta change that.”

She took her hand back. “I’m not vacationing with you, Mr. Hastings.”

“X or Xavier.” I opened the passenger door.

She lowered herself into the car without another word.

Amused rather than annoyed, I rounded the car and tucked my laptop in my bag, then got inside. “You cool with the top down?”

She reached into her bag of fun and pulled out a slim elastic. Her long fingers quickly twined her glossy red hair into a braid. “Top down is fine.”

I revved the engine.

This afternoon definitely was far more interesting than how it began.