Iprobably looked like any one of the wealthy socialites who sat around me in this bar; however, I was far from that. I couldn’t even afford to eat from a value menu at a fast-food restaurant thanks to the pricks who’d been stealing from my company.
Because of my bullheaded determination to keep my dad’s business afloat, I’d sacrificed my paychecks to pay the bills at Stone Company instead of my own. Every last dime I had saved was gone, and I’d been a complete fool to allow things to go on in this way for so long. I’d been running with some blind mentality that if I didn’t cut myself a paycheck, we would lock in a promising deal to get Stone back in the game.
Sphere was that deal and thank God that we landed it because my bank account desperately needed to see some money again. Now, all I had to do was pay off all the debt I’d accrued since I went flat-ass broke. Hopefully, I’d be back on track in a month or ten—I was in a pretty shitty, delinquent situation.
I wanted to stay home and wallow in my pity after surrendering my leased car to the dealership, but I’d made a promise to Cass that we’d celebrate her thirtieth birthday as if we were all turning twenty-one again, and goddammit, that’s what we were going to do.
Turning a new corner and having the wind in my sails was what I was working with tonight. I had to remind myself of the positive thoughts I’d left Theo with last night, and even if I’d gotten a brutal slap in the face from the dealership wanting their car back, I had to remind myself that shit happens. Life fucking happens—to the best of us.
I should’ve never allowed myself to get sucked into the personal side of the company and sacrifice my paychecks, but I did. Why? Because I couldn’t bear to see any of my hard-working employees do what I did today—turn in their car and pray to God they could scrounge up enough cash to get their utility bills paid to current.
It was so damn hard not to bring my anger with me tonight. All I could think about was that after all the monetary sacrifices I’d made for my employees, they’d been stealing from me. I’d been worried sick about their welfare, and they were the reason we could never pull off a profitable job. So, from here on out, lesson learned. Time to adopt the saying that I’d always felt was so cold: It’s not personal, it’s business. It was business. It had to be only that.
“Bree,” Natalia, one of my three very close girlfriends, said. I looked to my right, where the beautiful blonde raised her cosmopolitan toward me. “I know you had a couple of shitty days,” she smiled as she used her usual sultry voice on me, “but tonight is Cass’s night. Smile, babe.”
I raised my martini glass to her and grinned. “Sorry. I was mentally working on that before you interrupted me.” I took a sip and then spooned a bit of caviar on a cracker and took a bite.
“We’ll talk it out later. We gals are all here for you, and you know that. I’m just pissed you never told us this shit was happening too.”
I softly laughed and rolled my eyes. “The one day my best friend shows up to buy a Mercedes, and I’m there turning mine in.”
She gave me a fun, challenging expression. “Well, thank God you’ve merged with Brooks, cleaned out the garbage who tried to bankrupt you, and have that fucking hot,” she leaned over and purred those last words in my ear, “Alexander Grayson as your new partner.”
I smiled at the patrons who were starting to filter into the place. The entire area was set up beautifully. Pink roses placed in beautiful glass vases were the centerpieces and theme for each table at Tobias tonight. Cass worked with the owners and somehow enforced that anyone who went to the lavish hot spot tonight would enjoy the splendid décor of Cass’s choosing. The candlelit table was a great finishing touch, and our table—positioned next to the large window overlooking the ocean below—couldn’t have been more perfect if I helped design the layout myself.
This was the restaurant portion of Tobias, and the next building over was where their club was—a club that everyone stood outside in line for hours with the hope that they’d be lucky enough to get inside. I’d never visited the nightclub here before, mainly because the nightlife seemed to be a thing of the past for me once I noticed Stone Company was going under.
Tonight, I would have to put on a brave face when we migrated to that section for the second part of Cass’s birthday celebration. God only knew how that would work out. I was rusty and in no frame of mind to mingle with the single elites of Southern California. I was thirty-one years old, for Christ’s sake. You’d think my friends and me would’ve been over this lifestyle by now, but alas, we were diving into it while we celebrated the last of our group turning thirty.
The night was for Cass, and I wasn’t going to argue with how she wanted to spend her birthday, even if it meant acting like we were twenty-one again while screwing off in a club. So, I wore my best smile and my best strapless dress to match. A new chapter might as well start with a bang.
“Ladies,” Sammy, a best friend I hadn’t seen in too long, announced. “Well, well,” she looked at me with her radiant smile as she sat, “look at you finally out of leggings and hoodies and joining us with a smile. I’ve missed the hell out of you, Bree.”
“I’ve missed you all more. Let’s just say this last month took its toll on me in more ways than one.”
“Well, you’ve heard it from Theo, Stanton, and all three of us a million times,” Cass said, joining us as she sat across from Nat and me with a cheeky grin, “the merge was a good thing, and from what we’re all aware, thank God it happened.”
Cass arched her eyebrow at me at the same time as Sammy, and Nat peered at me knowingly as she sipped her cosmopolitan, making it evident that my friends had learned that not only was Stone going under, but they knew I was in financial trouble for the time being as well.
“Yes, thank God.” I tried to ignore all the expressions.
“You are dead meat for not telling me that you’re completely broke,” Cass said, ordering another round of drinks for the table. She sat perfectly erect in her chair and folded her arms. “Spill it.”
“Spill what? How about this? Happy birthday, Cass.” I smiled at her authoritative look. “We’re all here to celebrate your big day, and I’m feeling more like myself again and hoping to add some cheer to the festivities.”
“More like yourself, eh?” Sammy sipped her cocktail. “Were you feeling more like yourself when you handed that dealership the keys to your car today?”
I sighed. “Thanks, Nat.” I looked at my no-nonsense friend. “What would I do without you helping to get that out in the open for me?”
“No, no, no, babe,” she said as she took a bite of her caviar cracker. “That’s not how this shit works between all of us, and you know it. We’re all as close as sisters here.” She gave me her warning look with a smile. “You also know we confide in each other when things go wrong. No one here is ever on her own.”
When I exhaled and looked at Cass, she looked at me with a guilty frown. “We could have done pajama night like when we were in college instead of doing all this. You know, staying in and hanging out. That would’ve been fun too.”
I laughed. “Pajama night in college was like a lingerie show for Nat to bring frat boys back to our place.” I glanced over at Nat’s glossy and proud lips as she nodded shamelessly. “And so—”
“And so, what?” Natalia covered her full cleavage. “We were in college, and there were gorgeous men on campus. How else were we supposed to survive USC?”
I shook my head and instinctively fixed a loose curl on her shoulder-length blonde hair. “Natalia, you got us in trouble more times than we could count. We’re lucky we didn’t get thrown out of college.”
“I say I did all of us a favor—all those raging hormones needed to be released somehow. I was just doing my part to keep everyone balanced,” Nat said with a devilish grin and a laugh. “And as much fun as lingerie and men in a dorm room sound, we’re all finally out together after Bree has come up for air from that suffocating company. So yes, we’re celebrating Cass, good friends, and great conversation tonight.” She gracefully lifted her chin and then raised her glass to Cass.
“Cheers to that!” I held my glass up for Cass. “Shall we kick off the celebration with the fact that you’re the last of us four to leave the roaring twenties behind?”
“We shall.” Cass raised the martini she’d just ordered. “All of us together, and Bree finally dolled up for a great night out too.” She eyed me. “After learning about what happened with that fucker, Daniel Kyle, and that big heart of yours bankrupting you, I’d like to thank you for coming out. But know this: we’ll all be here to help you get through.”
“I know. It’s why I love you three.” I tipped my glass. “To new days ahead as we pull Cass across the line into her dirty thirties!”
Toasts went up, and we enjoyed laughter, silly talk, and a few drinks to loosen up. Being out with my friends felt renewing to my soul. Even if I was in a pitiful place in my life at the moment, I knew it would pass.
“That one there,” Natalia started sizing up someone behind me. “That man is a good prize for Bree.” She sipped her drink as if she were tasting the dark-haired man herself.
My girlfriends were daring and full of nonsense once the booze kicked their brains into another gear. Nat undoubtedly trailblazed into flirty and frivolous behavior, which always led to a good laugh. She seemed to oddly balance out the four of us—in her own crazy, horny way, of course.
“No, not him,” Cass laughed along with the rest of us at the table. “He’s too proper with that polo shirt tucked into his khakis.” She winked at me. “Our Bree is looking for someone a little more put together, maybe someone in a nice button-down shirt and black slacks.”
“True,” I teased. “I’m officially a gold-digger tonight, so sniff that one out with your constant wondering eyes, will you, Nat? I’m sure he’ll join us when we head over to the club after dinner.”
“Ask and it shall be given,” Sammy teased, knowing Nat would take this as an open invite to find the man for me. “Probably shouldn’t take the leash off Nat while we’re still in the restaurant, though, Bree,” she played along. Then her eyes widened, and she gulped down a sip of her cocktail. “Dear God in heaven.”
Sammy paused like a deer caught in headlights, and then it felt like the entire room paused with her—the whole area except for the six men who’d just moved through it like they were the owners. It was James Mitchell and company, so they probably did own this place in one way or another.
All six men grabbed the attention of the room like A-list celebrities, and Mother of God, they were all agonizingly gorgeous. Smiles were flashed around from a blond man and a dark-haired man—the dark-haired man being Dr. Jake Mitchell. We all knew his face and story too well after the paparazzi had taken an interest in the hot, chief heart surgeon at Saint John’s Hospital. The others, aside from Alexander Grayson and James Mitchell, were unknown to me.
“Well, Jesus, Mary, and Joseph,” Natalia said. “Your new partner is hotter in person than in those business magazines.” She leaned into me. “And you’re telling me that you despised him being your partner?”
“It was personal.” I smiled, enjoying that Alex was oblivious to the fact that I was sitting a few tables away from him.
“Yeah, we all officially now know what personal gets you, don’t we?” Cass raised that damn eyebrow at me. “Thank God for those men at the table. They’re saving your dad’s company,” she reached for my shoulder, “and your adorable, perfectly plump ass.”
“Cheers to that,” Sammy nodded as she sipped her martini.
“Now, who’s going over there to thank them?” Nat asked.
“No one,” I interrupted with a smile, holding onto Nat’s arm with a death grip. “And if you so much as move a muscle to get up and go over there, I will break both of your kneecaps. Shattered bone, do you hear me?”
“Relax,” Nat countered with an eye-roll. “As a matter of fact, excuse me?” she called for the server. “We need to kick this off with a round of shots.” She slid her arm out from my grip and placed it on my shoulder. “Make them all blow jobs.” She winked at the young man and then carefully sipped her drink.
“Oh, Christ. You’re going to get us all in trouble,” I answered.
“You’ll all thank me in the morning.”
“While nursing hangovers?” Sammy laughed.
“Or maybe waking up in some stranger’s bed?” Cass chuckled.
“That will never happen again,” Nat said, referencing the worst experience she’d ever had during a weekend in Vegas. “I still have nightmares about that pitiful situation.”
“We all broke our promise of never going to another club again after that happened to you, and here we all are.” I chuckled.
“Well, we did mature, I think,” Sammy said with a laugh. “So, we’re safe tonight.”
“Yes, and how are we supposed to accept our maturity while we have blow jobs for shots in a fine restaurant?” I couldn’t help but look at Nat and laugh.
“Just like this,” Nat answered me when she took her shot glass, knocked it back, then slowly used her tongue to lick her upper lip seductively.
We all laughed while I raised my shot toward Sammy and Cass. “To maturity and Nat insisting we’re still the girls gone wild in college.”
“Cheers,” Cass and Sammy said in unison while we downed our shots.
I couldn’t help but smile when Alex Grayson’s eyes met mine at the very moment I set my shot glass on the table. He raised his bourbon, winked, and then flashed a smile that made my insides warm before he brought his attention back to his group.
I noticed how strangely beautiful the man suddenly became to me at the current moment. It wasn’t the booze, either. I’d already encountered the strikingly good-looking man with enough alcohol in my system to understand this was different from that.
“Breanne,” I heard the girls laughing, their voices ringing through my head while my brain misfired because of that charming smile of Alex’s.
“What?” I asked, our delicious dinner plates being placed in front of us.
Sammy’s lips were tight with humor, Nat had her head down to prevent bursting into laughter, and Cass wore a sympathetic grin while she raised her cloth napkin to her upper lip.
“You have whipped cream all over your lip.” She covered her smile with her napkin.
“And if I were going to point out a fact, I’d say that Alexander Grayson was certainly appreciative of the white-lipped smile you just gave him,” Nat said with a soft laugh while pushing the tomatoes around in her salad with her fork. “Too bad you missed the opportune moment to lick that off your lip for him.”
I shook my head with embarrassment. “I seriously can’t win with that guy. Swear to God,” I said while briskly wiping the cream off my face. “Now, not only did the man find my employees stealing from the company, but he’s also watching his business partner act like she’s a—”
“Hot piece of ass who most likely gave him a stiffy that he has to hide under that table,” Sammy chuckled.
“I saw that smile on that devilish face of his,” Nat nudged me. “Nice work, Bree.”
“Change of subject.” I handed Cass a tiny jewelry box. “I had this made for you,” I said as I pushed my dinner plate to the side, folded my arms, and leaned on the table.
“Bree!” She grinned. “You know I love gifts, but I was serious when I said that coming out and being with you girls was all I wanted.”
“Open it.” I smiled.
She did and gently pulled out the delicate charm of the sun I’d designed and had a jeweler create. The engraved lines were meant to reflect light as if the charm itself were shining. It was simple yet unique in how the jeweler had fashioned it. I was quite blown away when he held it up, and rays shone as if I were looking into the splendor of a diamond under bright lighting. I always referred to Cass as our beam of light, and I couldn’t help but design and have the jeweler create something symbolic that represented our Cass.
“That’s positively stunning,” Nat said, she and I being on the receiving ends of the light hitting the charm.
“I love this,” Cass said, holding it out, all of us impressed by the prisms beaming from the dainty charm. “How in the world…” she stopped and looked at me. “You are amazing, Breanne Stone. You designed this yourself, didn’t you?”
“Bree, how do you come up with this stuff?” Sammy asked, touching her fingertip to it.
“Well, it was your thirtieth, and I got a little sentimental with ideas this year. Better than a gift card, eh?”
“It’s the most beautiful gift ever, sweet Bree.” She blew me an air kiss, and then we all returned to our meals before moving the party to the club in the next building.
While we went straight to dancing, laughing, and forgetting the world around us, I found my spirit again. I was sparked with energy and filled with revitalization. I loved it, and I’d missed this.
The girls and I must’ve spent an hour on the dance floor between drinks and laughs before I needed a break to catch my breath.
“Damn, I’m out of shape,” I laughed when Cass joined me at the bar.
“What do you say we go back to my place, do pajama night, and…hang on,” Cass stopped and took a sip of the cosmopolitan she’d ordered. “We can do pajama night and use that brand new lingerie to do The Catwalk as we did in college.”
Cass danced where she stood while I ordered water, seriously in need of hydration and catching my breath. “Why don’t you take your tipsy-self back out to the dancefloor? The Catwalk will have to wait for another time.”
“We’re doing it, Stone,” she arched an eyebrow at me. “Even if we have to take a few cuties home with us tonight to be our judges.”
“You’re drunk,” I laughed.
“You’re proposing a damn good idea,” the low, scratchy voice of Alex said from behind me.
“Right?” drunk-Cass answered Alex. “You can be Bree’s judge.” She laughed then chewed her lip after my eyes widened to what she’d said and the fact that Alex was actually in this club. “Off to dance…”
I turned on my stool to face Alex as he sat next to me with his drink.
“You and I are not having this conversation,” I said. “I’m drinking, have been drinking for a while. We’re not doing this again.”
“I figured I’d use this opportunity to get my kiss from you finally.” He sipped his drink, then looked back at the dance floor. “I was also quite tempted to steal you away from a few men out there.”
“Right,” I nodded. “So, what brings Mr. Suit into a club?”
His expression succeeded in reviving all of the once dead sexual parts of my body. “Well, after you teased me with that shot at dinner tonight, I figured I’d stalk you like a crazy man into the club.”
My body wanted to believe he was serious—and the liquor in my system would have helped my brain believe it if I hadn’t been cautious about not getting wasted tonight—but the man was enjoying teasing me, so why not play back?
“I don’t do one-night stands, sorry.” I shrugged and drank my water. “Might have to keep a wandering eye on that dance floor, though.”
“That’s good to know,” he said. “Now I won’t have to worry about taking you back to my place, you know, because it wouldn’t be for just one night.”
“Ah,” I answered. “Sounds like you want to cross some serious ethical work boundaries, eh?”
“Nah,” he shrugged that sentiment off. “You’re my partner—life-long, as I recall—and therefore, ethics go out of the fucking window when you own the company with me and don’t work for me.”
“Goddamn,” I said. “You’ve done a little research. It seems you have it all figured out with our life-long partnership, don’t you?”
“Well, there was no way I wasn’t going into a relationship for life with a beautiful woman and not having sex with her.”
“You’re insane,” I finally laughed. “Seriously, what brings you in here?”
“Just finishing up dinner and thought I’d congratulate you on a job well done again. Also, it appears you’re doing well with the news of Theo moving?”
I nodded and smiled at him. “What you did for him was a very kind thing. He’s a great man and deserves nothing less than the offer you gave him.”
“So, you’re handling the move well?”
Suddenly, Alex and I transitioned into a more casual and friendly conversation, and I sensed his concern about my mental state more than anything else. I couldn’t blame the guy. He’d seen me stupid drunk, crying, and insecure, and he’d also seen the bitch side of me. He was probably wondering if Theo leaving was going to be what made me finally break.
“I’m looking forward to better days for all of us,” I admitted. “And for you and me as partners. Tonight is my best friend’s birthday, and what better way to turn the page in one’s life than to celebrate the happiness of another?”
He licked his lips, his eyes seemed to swirl in their emerald color, and he let out a breath that made me believe he wasn’t expecting to hear that from me.
“You’re a unique woman, Breanne Stone,” he said, before he finished the last of his drink. “I believe my car is awaiting me, and I’m glad you’re doing well.”
“Turning the page.” I smiled at him.
“That’s an ideal way to look at it. Enjoy the rest of your evening, and you have my number if some douche wants to try anything stupid with my girl.”
“Your girl, huh?”
“Lady? Life-long partner? It’s all the same.” He arched a friendly eyebrow at me. “And in all of those things, you’re most certainly mine.”
“For life,” I softly said, my brain trying to process his expression, tone, and gentle nod.
“Absolutely,” he affirmed.
As quickly as Alex Grayson appeared from out of nowhere, he disappeared in the same manner, walking through the crowd in the massive club area, and I was left to wonder what the hell had just happened.
