Lead Player - Alex Grayson Page 0,20
is his brief pause before he asks, “What genre?”
“Dark romance.”
“No shit?”
Nikki grins. “No shit.”
“I’ll admit, I’m not a romance reader, but I’ll have to pick up one of your books.”
James clears his throat while the girls and I laugh. Enzo looks to each of us, perplexed.
“What? What am I missing?”
“Nothing,” I say before anyone else can warn him. “I actually have a copy of one of her books at home you can borrow,” I offer helpfully, barely refraining from snickering. He’s certainly in for a treat.
“Sure.” His eyes twinkle. “I’ll stop by your house this week and grab it.”
“Great.” I give him a tight-lipped smile, my mirth dying away. I figured I’d give it to him the next time I saw him. The last thing I need is for him to be in my house again. I just got rid of his lingering scent.
“Is that how you three met? The book industry?”
“We actually met at UCLA. Nikki and I were roommates,” Juliet explains. “Alaina was in the room across the hall from us.”
“UCLA? How did you end up here in Park Crest?”
“It was kismet.” I share a smile with Juliet and Nikki. “Nikki submitted her first book to Roxfield Publishing our senior year. Within three months she had her first deal with them—which is unheard of because it usually takes six months to a year to even hear back from a publishing house. The timing was perfect because they just so happened to also be looking for a graphics designer and an editor. Juliet and I applied a few weeks before graduation and were hired as interns. The three of us have been with the same company ever since.”
“That’s pretty amazing,” Enzo says, a smile playing on his lips.
The waitress walks up with our check. Enzo snatches it before anyone else can grab it. He and James bicker like two little girls for a moment until James relents. After Enzo hands over a black matte credit card, the waitress walks off.
I feel eyes on me as I finish my water. Enzo, with his arm still stretched over the back of the chair next to him, has his gaze fixed on me once again. A little shiver races down my spine at the look in his eyes. It’s as though he’s mentally undressing me. It’s not an altogether unpleasant feeling. It’s just not a wanted feeling. I un-cross and re-cross my legs.
You keep telling yourself that, Alaina. We all know you want him as much as a starving man wants a steak.
I jerk my eyes away from him and mentally berate Nova. She doesn’t know shit.
Once the waitress drops off Enzo’s card, and he leaves a generous cash tip, we all get up from the table. I avoid looking at him as Juliet and James say goodbye, but I still feel the intensity of his heated gaze on me like he’s burning holes in the side of my head.
It’s not until he and James are walking off toward Enzo’s car that I breathe easy again.
“Come on,” Juliet says, looping her arm through mine and Nikki’s. “Our wax appointment is in twenty minutes and you know how bitchy Renee gets if we’re late.”
As I climb into the back seat of Juliet’s car, Enzo and James drive by with a tap to the horn. Unconsciously, I look through the back windshield and meet Enzo’s eyes in the rearview mirror.
You’re in so much trouble, Nova giggles.
Chapter Six
ENZO
Settling my hand on Megan’s lower back, I escort her into the restaurant. The hostess greets us with a smile.
“Hi. Welcome to Hyde’s. Will it just be the two of you?”
“Yes.”
“Follow me, please.”
“This is nice,” Megan comments, looking around, as the hostess leads the way to a corner booth. “I’ve heard good things about Hyde’s, but haven’t had the chance to try it out before now.”
Hyde’s opened while I was on tour and is the newest upscale restaurant in Park Crest. We don’t have many, since the town isn’t very big, so it’s a nice addition.
“This is my first time, too. James recommended it.”
Immediately after we’re seated, the waitress approaches for our drink order. When she walks away, Megan reaches across the table and traces the dip between my fingers.
“I’m glad you called. It was a surprise, but a pleasant one.”
Megan’s a friend I’ve had since high school, but I haven’t seen her in over two years. We’ve had a fuck buddy type of relationship since we were teenagers. She’s known from the beginning that sex was the