Page 134 of The Business of Love Box Set 1: Books 1 - 4

KATIE

“ H old it still, Roman,” Ginny scolded.

Roman sat tucked up in the opposite corner of the back seat of the cab from me.

He rolled his eyes dramatically as he held up a compact mirror for Ginny, who was applying her lipstick.

It was a bright ruby-red shade and it looked hot as hell on her with her red hair, fair skin, and face full of freckles.

She rubbed her lips together, nodded in satisfaction, and snatched the mirror out of his hand.

“You’re welcome,” Roman said.

She squeezed his thigh. “Thanks, boo.”

“Ow.” Roman massaged his leg where she’d vise-gripped him. “You don’t know your own strength, woman. Good lord. I’d hate to be the man who you went down and—”

I cleared my throat and nodded pointedly at the cab driver in the front seat.

Roman gave me a sheepish smile but kept his mouth shut, sparing me the humiliation of him talking about blowjobs and handjobs in the back seat while we rode into town.

I needed a night out. I’d all but lost track of how many consecutive days I’d worked. Ginny estimated it was somewhere between sixteen and twenty, while Roman steadfastly insisted it was nineteen.

Either way, it was too many.

I had a late start tomorrow, not the day off, but then two more days after that, I’d be hopping on a plane and flying to New York City for Jackson and Hailey’s baby shower.

I doubted that would feel like much of a vacation.

Visits home amongst friends and family were always packed full of commitments rather than restful relaxation time.

I’d have to find room for that when I got back to the island somehow.

That was a problem for another night.

Tonight, I had one goal. To dance.

There was no better way to unwind and let loose than with good music and a couple of drinks.

I needed this more than ever, and my friends had rallied together this evening to make it happen.

We started with a full meal of room service in my suite to make sure we had full and happy bellies, and immediately afterward, we broke into bottles of champagne because apparently that was the kind of suffering I was signing up for tonight.

I already had a pleasant buzz that we kept going by passing Roman’s small flask full of vodka back and forth amongst each other in the back seat.

It wasn’t classy by any means, but it got us where we needed to be by the time the cab driver pulled over and dropped us off.

Ginny covered the ride, and the three of us linked arms as we stood in front of the most popular bar in town, Skip’s.

In the beginning, it hadn’t been a place for nightlife. Rather, it was a low key, simple place run by a local man and his daughter. When he passed away in his early eighties, the daughter turned it into a livelier place with loud music, better drink specials, and live entertainment.

Skip’s was now a destination for plenty of travelers and locals alike. There was always something going on, something to see, something to drink, and something to do.

It was exactly what the doctor ordered.

My best friends and I strode up the walkway to the restaurant, where we flashed our IDs to the bouncer, who didn’t even bother to look. He knew us all fairly well, and Ginny had been crushing on him for ages—probably close to a year now.

He was a local on the island and had been a professional surfer in his youth. He still surfed during the day and worked at Skip’s in the evening. His name was Ken. He had rich skin, a bald head, thick shoulders, and hands the size of dinner plates.

“Hi, Ken,” Ginny purred as we brushed past him and made for the doors.

He tipped his head to her. “Gin.”

I nudged Ginny in the ribs as we stepped inside and the roar of the music swept over us. “You should just ask him out one of these times!”

“I don’t make first moves,” she said. “You know that.”

Roman joined in, leaning close so we could hear him over the music. “He’s not going to ask you while he’s at work, Ginny. He’s a professional.”

Ginny shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. Tonight is about the three of us, remember?” She draped her arms over our shoulders and scanned the bar. “Where to first? Drinks or dance floor?”

Roman and I shared a look and at the same time said, “Drinks.”

Ginny made for the bar, pulling us with her.

We sidled up to the bar run by three bartenders. The place was too busy to manage with just one. All three of us ordered the cocktail special, which was a bubbly mix of soda water, cranberry juice, lime, and a dash of peach Bellini mix.

It tasted like summertime in a glass.

I twirled the pink umbrella sticking out of the top of my drink as we scanned the bar for a place to sit with our drinks.

We found a booth, slid into it, and spent the next hour complaining about our least favorite hotel guests while we pounded back a few more drinks.

When we had the courage to take to the dance floor, Roman took both mine and Ginny’s hand and led us out there, right under the turning disco ball and ever-changing lights.

It was exactly what I needed.

“I think I need a shot!” Roman said.

Ginny nodded enthusiastically and I told them this round was on me before I made my way through the bodies on the dance floor to the bar.

I squeezed in between two bar stools and leaned over the bar top to peer down to the opposite end, where all three bartenders had congregated.

I threw one hand in the air to flag them down.

One of them spotted me and came over. He met me with a grin and I asked for six tequila shots.

Go big or go home, right?

As I waited, my mind wandered to my upcoming trip to see Jackson and Hailey. I was excited for them but there was this nagging feeling in the back of my mind that it was going to be harder for me to slap on a smile and pretend like I wasn’t incredibly envious that they were pregnant.

Don’t be selfish, I told myself as I watched the bartender grab a shallow dish and fill it with six lime wedges. Just because you can’t have it doesn’t mean Jackson can’t.

There was a foul taste in the back of my throat when I paid for the shots and left with the tray balanced on one arm. I wove back through the crowd toward the dance floor.

Someone stepped in front of me.

He was tall and wearing a light blue collared shirt. The top couple buttons were popped open, exposing some of his chest.

I blinked up at him. “Peter?”

Peter grinned. “Hey! What are you doing here, Katie?”

I nodded over his shoulder. “I’m here with my friends from work. What are you doing here?”

He shrugged and ran a hand through his hair. It wasn’t slicked back tonight, not like he’d done it for our date. It hung loose and slightly wavy. It was thick and textured, like he’d been out at the beach all day, and I was overcome with the sudden impulse to run my fingers through it myself.

Down, girl.

“I thought I’d check this place out,” Peter said.

“Every local I’ve run into says this is the best place to come on the weekends for a drink and to meet some people.

And I thought it might be in my best interest to make some friends so I don’t always come running to you like a lost puppy looking for entertainment or company. ”

I giggled. “I don’t mind if I’m the person you always come to, Peter. I don’t mind at all.”

His cheeks turned a little pink and I wanted to kiss him.

So I did.

I grabbed the front of his shirt, pulled him down to me, and planted a big one right on his lips. He stood stone still in my grasp for a minute before relaxing, stepping in close, and cupping my chin with one hand. He kept a safe distance from the tray of shots, for which I was thankful.

Knowing his track record, the shots were in immediate danger.

When we broke apart, he touched two fingers to his lips and chuckled almost bashfully. “Wow.”

I flashed him a smile and lifted the tray. “Shot?”

“Who are they for?”

“My friends,” I said. “They’re waiting for me over there. See those two? The guy with the white hair and the red-haired girl?”

Peter looked over his shoulder and nodded.

“That’s Ginny and Roman,” I said. “They’re my assistants slash best friends. The dynamic duo, I like to say.”

He waved at them. Ginny wiggled her fingers in a shy hello while Roman blew Peter a kiss.

Peter laughed. “They look like a good time.”

“They are,” I said. “Care to join us?”

Peter didn’t answer right away, but when he did, it surprised me. “No, thank you though. You came out to be with your friends tonight. I don’t want to crash your party. You guys have fun. I can wait for my next chance to spend time with you.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. Go on. Have fun. I’ll see you around, okay?”

He slipped away through the crowd, leaving me with a spinning mind and racing heart.

He wants me to have a good night with my friends?

Who was this man? His confidence and self-assuredness were unlike anything I’d ever seen. Either that or the men I’d dated years before were all sorry excuses for dating material.

I joined Roman and Ginny back at the dance floor.

We moved to a standing table and I set the tray of shots down while scanning the crowd for Peter.

I spotted him standing with two men, both of whom looked to be tourists.

The three of them were laughing amongst themselves and drinking beers in chilled glasses.

“He’s super sexy,” Roman said.

Ginny nodded her agreement as she picked up one of the shots. “Like, super sexy. You said he was hot, Katie, but you never said he was sexiest-man-alive-magazine-cover material.”

I couldn’t take my eyes off Peter. “He is dreamy, isn’t he?”

“Dreamy?” Roman scoffed. “Girl, Peter Pan is dreamy. This man of yours? He’s hot as sin. Like Captain Hook.”

Ginny arched an eyebrow at Roman. “There’s something wrong with you.”

He peered down the length of his nose at her with an air of superior disinterest. “Don’t pretend you didn’t have your sexual awakening to a cartoon, Gin. We all did. We’re eighties babies.”

Ginny rolled her eyes.

I sniffed my shot and regretted it. “It was Aladdin for me.”

Roman giggled. “Oh, yes. Rugged, charismatic, rebellious, fuck the patriarchy.”

“Can we just do our shots?” Ginny sighed.

We shuffled in closer to the table and lifted our shots with one hand while we clutched our life lines, the lime wedges, in the other.

“Cheers to the best friends a girl could ask for,” I said.

“And the best boss we could ever have,” Ginny added.

“And Peter’s body,” Roman said.

There was an excited tingle beneath my belly as we tossed our shots back and closed in on taking the second.

I groaned and buried my face in my hands.

“Why did I drink so much?” I mumbled.

Ginny was sitting cross-legged in front of me on a stranger’s sweater on the gritty bathroom tile floors.

She put her hand on my back and rubbed in slow circles.

“We were having fun, babe. It’s okay to get a little carried away every once in a while.

Besides, you’re under a lot of pressure at work.

Roman and I should have reined you in a little bit and not let it get to this point. ”

I hiccupped. “I’m a big girl. I don’t need babysitters.”

“Right,” Ginny said slowly.

I lifted my face from my hands and peered blurrily up at her. “Are you being sarcastic?”

“No,” she said innocently.

If I was sober, I would have been able to tell she was lying.

I wasn’t sure how long I’d been in the bathroom before Ginny eventually found me.

Apparently, Roman was waiting outside the bathroom making small talk with all the women in line while he waited for us.

I heard several of them coming in giggling about how they all needed a friend like him.

He was their hype man, telling them how good they looked, how bomb their outfits were, and how cute the stud was he saw them dancing with.

Roman was one of those people who made friends everywhere he went.

“Do you think you can walk out of here?” Ginny asked, her hand tracing small circles over my back.

The last time I’d tried to stand up, I pitched forward into the stall door and my nose was still hurting. I shook my head. “I’d fall on my ass.”

“I can help you.”

“In those shoes?” I looked pointedly at her sky-high heels.

Ginny frowned. “Maybe I can warn the girls in here that a boy is coming in and Roman can help?”

I nodded. That would do.

“This is what I have two assistants for,” I muttered.

Ginny smiled and got to her feet. “Sit tight. I’ll be right back, okay?”

“Do I look like I’m capable of going anywhere?”

Ginny left the stall.

She was only gone for a minute or so, far shorter than I expected. I heard Roman come in with her, announcing to the women in the bathroom that they were here to get me out. Nobody protested. This kind of thing happened at Skip’s all the time. It had just never happened to me.

When the stall door opened, I looked up.

When I saw Peter looking down at me, my ego shriveled into a little prune in my chest and my dignity vanished in a puff of invisible smoke.

Roman stood behind Peter, and he stretched to the tip of his toes to peer over Peter’s shoulder. “Hey, boss,” he chimed. “Look who I brought with me. It’s your knight in shining armor.”

I could feel the color draining from my face as I stared up at Peter in horror. “Oh God.”

Peter smiled. Bless him.

He crouched down in front of me. “How’s that tequila treating you?”

“Like a bitchy girl from high school who won’t stop kicking me when I’m down.”

He snorted. “I haven’t heard that one before.”

“It’s an apt description,” I said.

“Can I get you out of here?”

I nodded. “Please.”

Peter moved into the stall, wrapped me up in his arms, and got to his feet.

He carried me out and I buried my face in his chest, appalled at how many women were watching.

I heard them whisper about how they wished a guy like Peter could be there for them.

All the while, Roman was making his dramatic exit behind us, still complimenting strangers while Ginny pushed him out of the bathroom.

“Shut up, Roman,” she muttered. “Thank you, ladies! Back to your business. Nothing to see here.”

Peter held me a little closer as we emerged in the bar. I kept my face hidden and pretended we weren’t making our way through a bar packed with over a hundred and fifty people. Peter’s shirt smelled like beer and pine-scented cologne.