Page 34 of Players Like Us (Reunion Gap #7)

T ate Alexander called Rachel the morning after her disastrous encounter with Neal. For a few seconds, she thought he was calling about Neal. Had something happened to him? Had—

“Hi, Rachel. This is Tate Alexander. Am I catching you at a bad time?”

The man’s confidence filled the phone line, made it easy to understand why his brother would find it difficult to compete. “No. Is everything okay?” She wanted to add Did Neal tell you what happened between us , but she didn’t.

“Everything’s fine here. Charlotte apologized for not spending more time with you and she’d like to invite you back.” His voice gentled, followed by a laugh. “My wife takes her work responsibilities very seriously and apparently when overtime is required at work, she’s not going to let them down.”

Rachel had heard Tate’s wife worked in a manufacturing plant that required steel-toed boots, jeans, a lunchbox, and a buzzer.

Who would have ever thought she and Tate would make the perfect couple?

“I’d like to spend time with her as well, but I have no idea how that would happen.

” Especially with your brother in the middle .

“My partner and I have run into a bit of a complication with the restaurant we’re building.” Big sigh. “The designer pulled out two days ago due to a ‘personal’ situation and now we’ve got bolts of fabric on order, leathers, and who knows what else and no idea what to do with it.”

“I see.” Was he asking for help?

“So, here’s the thing. We don’t have the time or expertise to sort through it all and make it work.

Sure, I know about different types of fabric and lighting fixtures, and I can distinguish between antique white and ivory, but figuring out what to do with it?

Not so much. Of course, I’d like to be involved with final approval, but not the day-to-day or coordination.

I heard you have quite the eye and we’d like to meet with you to discuss you taking over. ”

“I’d love to meet with you.” Rachel hadn’t said anything to her family or anyone in Reunion Gap about Matilda’s and Daniel insisted the interior design business was tough and near impossible to break into, so he wouldn’t have said anything.

Had he felt sorry for her and asked Tate to do him a favor?

“Did my brother talk to you? Did he ask you to call me?” If Daniel were behind this, they were going to have a long talk about minding one’s own business and setting boundaries. And if he thought—

“Daniel? No, he’s never even mentioned you do design work.” Pause and a quiet “Neal called me yesterday. Told me you’re working with his friend Dominic and sent me a sample of your work. Very impressive. You’ve got a lot of talent.”

“Neal called you?” Why would he do that? He’d made it very clear she was not his favorite person and he didn’t want to have anything to do with her.

“Why wouldn’t he? We had a long talk while he was here and when he told me about his businesses and what he’s been doing these past few years? I underestimated him.” His voice shifted, dipped. “I think we all did.”

“Businesses? You mean he has more than just part ownership in Matilda’s?” No, no. If that were true, then he really had been toying with her, playing games to test her and see if she could be trusted.

“I think that’s a conversation you need to have with my brother. This call is to inquire as to your level of interest and availability to do work for our new restaurant. We could set up a time for you to meet Jameson, check out the place, and hear our ideas.”

“Goodness, thank you. Yes, I’m very interested.”

“Great. I can’t guarantee you’ll get the job, but if Neal recommended you, that says a lot. I’m learning my brother has a very keen business sense.”

“Yes, it seems he does.” She could not resist her next comment. “Too bad he knows nothing about relationships.”

When Rachel finished speaking with Tate, she took a long walk and went over every detail of their conversation.

The most confusing part was Neal’s recommendation.

Why would he do that? He’d treated her like a stranger yesterday, as though he didn’t want to see or hear from her again.

Maybe guilt was the reason behind it all.

..because she’d spent so much time on the restaurant designs and now that was all gone.

Sure, he told her she’d be paid for her designs, but what did that even mean?

She hadn’t wanted to sell her ideas; she’d wanted to be involved in the entire project.

At least he hadn’t pretended they could still work together.

Reunion Gap looked pretty welcoming right now, a place where she could hide out and think about life, opportunity, and the many ways a person wasn’t always who he seemed to be.

And Neal Alexander was the biggest surprise of all.

Tate mentioned that his brother owned businesses, not a single business, and yet he’d acted as though he didn’t know the difference between a dollar and a thousand dollars.

Apparently, he did. Her walk turned into a run as she tried to clear her brain and make sense of life since Neal Alexander walked into it. No luck.

By the time she returned home, she was more confused, more unsettled and agitated than when she left her house.

She couldn’t just wait for her life to change, for the disappointment and hurt to go away.

How long would it take? A few weeks, a month?

A year? Never? The idea that her feelings for the man who’d broken her heart would never completely disappear made her desperate.

She should have asked him if he were the one responsible for setting up the initial meeting with Dominic, but she’d been so shocked when he revealed his affiliation with Matilda’s that she hadn’t thought about it.

Rachel had assumed Simon Bainbridge was behind everything related to the restaurant introduction, but now she wanted 100% confirmation and the only way to do that was to gather information.

Dominic would never tell her and she was not confronting Neal Alexander, so that left only one person…

the one who’d implied he’d been the reason behind the introduction.

She grabbed her phone, punched out his number and waited.

“Hello?”

Rachel forced a lighthearted tone and pushed out the words that could lead to the truth. “Hi, Simon. This is Rachel Reese. How’ve you been?”

A short pause, and then “Great! And you?”

She didn’t miss the hesitancy or the curiosity. “I was wondering if we might get together for dinner. It’s been a while.”

“Sure. But...you’re not with anyone?”

“No, why do you ask?”

Another pause, followed by a laugh. “No reason, it’s just hard to think somebody like you is still unattached.”

There was something buried in that comment that said he knew something she didn’t. A vision of dark curls and blue eyes flitted through her brain, squeezed her soul. “Nope. Not attached.”

His voice dipped, filled the line with a low rumble. “Then I’d like to take you to dinner. Are you free tonight?”

“Tonight would be lovely. I’ve been thinking about Matilda’s. Any chance you could get reservations?” With a man like Simon Bainbridge, doubting his abilities would make him find a way.

“If that’s where you want to go, then I’ll make it happen. Pick you up at seven.”

After, Rachel almost called Simon back and asked him to choose a different restaurant.

Why had she selected that restaurant? It had been a reckless, foolish choice, one she regretted the second she hung up.

But to change the location now might make Simon suspicious and she couldn’t afford that, not when she needed answers.

“You look beautiful tonight.” Simon reached across the table, clasped her hand, his expression covered in admiration. “Did anyone ever tell you that you should be on the cover of a magazine?”

Really? That was the best line the guy had? Rachel eased her hand away, worked up a smile. “No, no one’s ever told me that.”

“It’s true. The high cheekbones, the almond-shaped eyes, the full lips.” His gaze settled on her lips as though he were imagining a kiss. “And your hair? I’ll bet it’s silky and…” His voice thrummed with heat. “Incredible.”

Neal had been right. The man was superficial and annoying and she regretted asking him here, but she needed information and he had it. “I know you never straight-out admitted that you provided the introduction with Dominic Lombardi for me, but now that I’ve got the job, there’s no need to pretend.”

Simon hesitated, cleared his throat. “Whatever I did or didn’t do to help you gain an introduction, you earned it.”

How would he know? He’d never inquired about her work or asked to see her portfolio. The man had never even asked if she designed office space, restaurants, museums.…because he didn’t care. Simon Bainbridge wasn’t the one to gain the introduction with Dominic and he was going to admit it.

“Simon we both know you didn’t broker the meeting with Dominic.”

The man’s cheeks turned red beneath his tan, and he stumbled for his next words. “Why would you say that?”

She placed her hands on the table, leaned forward.

“Because you didn’t? Because you don’t personally know the man?

” He was so arrogant, so self-centered. Rachel smiled, raised a brow.

“I won’t hold it against you. I get it, you were trying to impress me.

It worked.” Hardly, but the man was too in love with himself to realize how inappropriate it was to take credit for something he didn’t do.

“You wanted to get my attention, and when I asked if you were behind Dominic’s phone call, it was the perfect opportunity to take credit.

Why not, especially since the real person behind the introduction wasn’t coming forward? You saw an opening and you took it.”

Simon blew out a long sigh, offered a wide smile. “You got me. That’s exactly what I did, but I wanted to spend time with you. Is it so wrong to want to catch and keep your attention?”

Before he could say more, Dominic appeared with menus. Thank you, Dominic! His gaze held hers for the briefest second, and she didn’t miss the disappointment before he smiled.

“It’s wonderful to see you again, Rachel.”

He turned to Simon, held out a hand. “Dominic Lombardi.”

“Dominic owns Matilda’s.” Not exactly true since Neal owned half of the place, but Rachel wasn’t divulging that information.

Simon perked up, shook Dominic’s hand. “I love this place. The veal medallions are my favorite. I was telling Rachel I’ve eaten all over the world and this is on my top five.”

Would the man please just be quiet? But no, he had to go on and on about how many places he’d been and the food he enjoyed and how he met celebrity chefs.

As if it mattered. Dominic remained a gentleman, smiled, nodded, inserted appropriate answers and when Rachel thought the conversation would never end, he turned to her, his voice gentle.

“Give me a call tomorrow. We have a lot to talk about.”

They did? “Sure. I look forward to it.” One more look and then he pointed to the drink menus and shifted from Dominic ‘the friend’ to Dominic the ‘restaurant owner’.

When he left to get their drinks, Simon blew out a long sigh.

“Wow, that guy’s impressive. Talk about style and class.

I wonder if he’d be interested in talking to me about potential menu items?

He seemed to appreciate my comments about the food selection and how certain ones compare with those I’ve sampled in restaurants all over the world. ”

“I think he has a close-knit group of friends he relies on.” A party of one—Neal Alexander.

Disappointment flashed across his face. “Oh. Well, you can never have enough friends, can you?”

“It depends on the type of friends. Are they true friends? Fair weather friends? For now friends?”

The laugh said he thought she was joking.

“You’re something else. Beautiful and sassy.

You’re different from most of the women I know.

Straightforward, confident, not trying to be someone you aren’t.

That’s refreshing for a guy like me who’s tossed into a sea of women all trying to snag me.

” He rubbed his jaw, his voice firm. “Even if they don’t get a ring, they want something and that’s why I turned to Claudia’s.

It was the perfect way to avoid unwanted entanglements. ”

“My understanding is that’s what Claudia’s is supposed to do. Provide companionship and a protection of sorts for men looking to avoid the unwanted entanglements.”

“That’s exactly what the place does, and it’s proven very useful. But when I met you, I realized I might have to break the rules and get booted from Claudia’s for good.” He reached across the table, trailed a finger along her thumb. “You would definitely be worth it.”

“What stopped you from doing it?” As if she would ever agree.

The man might be interesting for a night, but he was a user.

Rachel wished she could follow Dominic to the bar, ease onto a stool and enjoy a glass of wine and the chef’s special of the day—minus Simon Bainbridge’s overbearing presence.

But she’d come for answers and she planned to get all of them before the night was over. “Simon, what happened?”

“Somebody beat me to it and booked up all of your time.” He snatched up the drink the waiter had placed in front of him, took a healthy swallow.

“I know we have a post-contract no dating clause, but I figured you wanted to talk about breaking it.” He leaned toward her, his voice soft and gooey.

“I miss you, Rachel. We could discuss what it would look like, but it’s going to cost me a hefty chunk of money, so. ..”

“So?”

A wide smile that brought out the dimples in his cheeks. “So, I’ve got to make sure it’s worth my while.” The smile reached his eyes, turned them three shades darker. “What are you offering?”

“Offering?” She gripped her wine glass to keep from tossing her wine at him. “You misunderstood the reason for my call. I just wanted to catch up, not discuss breaking the post-contract clause.”

Confusion sifted through his words, landed in a thud on the table. “This isn’t about trying to get the best deal?”

“What are you talking about?” Rachel was ready to leave and they hadn’t even ordered yet.

Simon rubbed his jaw, frowned. “Neal Alexander didn’t offer you some sort of side deal or whatever and you’re playing us against each other? I mean, I know he doesn’t go in for places like Claudia’s, but the guy sure had a thing for you.”