Authors: Hilary Wynne
Luke:
you better come tonight or there will be conseq
uences
Alexa:
you don’t sc
are me
Luke:
pl
z come
I didn’t respond to his last text but did decide to go. We got to the bar at ten thirty, and when Luke saw me, he flashed me a huge smile. I immediately felt at ease and not at all awkward. He came out from behind the bar, kissed me on the lips, and gave me a huge hug. He looked me right in the eyes and asked me if I would be his best
friend
. Yes, it was odd, but I decided to go with it. The rest is history. Over the years, the question about why we’re not more than friends has come up many, many times. Luke just always makes a joke about it and says I’m too good for him. When that happens, I tell myself that one day I’m really going to talk to him about that night and ask why things didn’t go further. But honestly, I think I’m scared to hear the answer because it’s been six years and I still haven’t
asked.
Thanks to Cory’s Indy-style driving, we manage to get from Coconut Grove to South Beach in time to make our eight o’clock reservation. We park in a lot that’s between the restaurant and the club and head to dinner. Luke has been texting me for about fifteen minutes, so I know he’s already there and wa
iting.
Luke:
Where
r you?
Alexa:
On way.
Chill
Luke:
Hurry the hell up. I’m
hungry
Alexa:
Eat some peanuts at t
he bar
Luke:
allergic-remember? Trying to o
ff me?
Alexa:
Parking. And no offing tonight. It’s you
r bday
After I type the text and hit send, I realize how totally inappropriate those texts are. Have Luke and I come so far that we’re making jokes about
dying?
Luke has made arrangements to get to work a little late tonight, but he’s still rushing us. My anxiety level is still pretty high, and being rushed makes it worse. I’m trying to be calm, hence the two glasses of wine I’ve already downed, and these people are making me crazy. We find Luke at the bar, sitting next to a pretty, petite redhead. He immediately introduces all of us to his date, Krista, and I wonder where she came from because he hasn’t mentioned her b
efore.
“About time you guys got here,” he says to all of us while looking straight at me. I walk over and give him a big hug and kiss on the
cheek.
“Relax. It’s your birthday. You’re old now, and we can’t have you getting all worked up and stroking out o
n us.”
Luke swats me gently on the butt and whispers in my ear that I look sexy as hell. I see Krista is a little confused and uncomfortable with our interaction. Most new girls are. This won’t be the first time I’ve had to explain our relatio
nship.
I look directly at her and smile. “Luke’s my best friend; has been for almost seven years. We sometimes act like an old married couple, but we’re
just
fri
ends.”
Krista thanks me with a smile, but I can tell she isn’t totally conv
inced.
We only have to wait a few minutes before the hostess comes and leads us to our table. Luke sits down next to me, and Krista sits on the other side. I’m sure she would have rather been farther away from me, but I’m not surprised he chose to sit there. The food and drinks begin to arrive at the table, and we’re all talking and laughing and having a great time. I hate to admit it, but it feels good to be out. I’m really enjoying myself. Salsa music is playing in the background, and there’s definitely a festive atmosphere in the restaurant. I can’t keep from dancing in my seat, and I’m starting to look forward to getting to Stellar to dance. I order my second mojito and notice I’m definitely not anxious anymore. Actually, I’m pretty buzzed. I feel Luke grab my hand under the table, and I look over to find him staring at me. There’s tenderness in his eyes I know he doesn’t share with many p
eople.
He whispers in my ear. “You look so happy tonight. It’s the best birthday present
ever.”
I smile a real smile at him and squeeze his hand back. “I feel happy.” Wow. It’s been a long time since I’ve said that and actually mea
nt it.
We order dessert and a round of
café con leches
. We sing “Feliz Cumpleaños” to Luke and toast his twenty-se
venth.
It’s getting late, and Luke tells us he really needs to get to work. He told his manager he would be there by ten o’clock. The restaurant isn’t far from the hotel, but it will take him about fifteen minutes to walk there. Marissa asks him if his manager will get pissed if he’s a few minutes late, and Luke says he doesn’t think so, but that the owner of the club is going to be there tonight instead of the manager, and he doesn’t want to cause any issues by being late. At the mention of his boss, Marissa, Shannon, Krista, and I give each other knowing glances and start gossiping like high school girls. Julian Bauer is Luke’s boss and the owner of Hotel Del Marco, the boutique hotel where Stellar is located. He’s also the eldest son of the family that owns Bywater Properties. Bywater is a direct competitor of Wilson and Mitchell Investment Group, the company I work for, so I’ve also heard about him in work circles. Their properties are located all over South Florida, and they have a small property next to the one I’m working at on South Bayshore Drive in Coconut Grove. I’ve never seen Julian in person, but I’ve seen pictures of him on the Internet, usually with a model on his arm. Julian Bauer is young, rich, gorgeous, and single. Did I mention gorgeous? I’m sure women all over South Beach go to sleep at night dreaming of him. He’s
that
guy. Luke has mentioned him a few times since he started working at Stellar but generally seems reluctant to talk to me about him. I gather from what little Luke has said that Julian seems like a pretty cool guy, but that he’s a player and is always leaving the club with a different woman. When Luke described Julian to me that way, it made me
laugh.
“Oh, so you two have a lot in common,” I t
eased.
“If you exclude the filthy rich part, yeah, I guess w
e do.”
Luke certainly is not lacking in self-confidence and didn’t even try to deny the fact he “dates” his share of
women.
On paper, Luke and Julian do seem to have a few things in common. Luke is also very good looking, young, and single. The main difference is Julian owns the bar, and Luke works at the bar. I suspect that’s one of the reasons Luke might be a little jealous of Julian. Luke comes from a family with a lot of money. Both of his parents are big-shot attorneys in West Palm Beach. They had expected Luke to follow in their footsteps and go to an Ivy League school. He opted to stay in Florida and decided early on in college he wasn’t lawyer material. He has an entrepreneurial spirit and wants to own a bar someday. It hasn’t been a career choice that’s gone over well with his parents, and they aren’t very supportive of him. They think he’s all about the party and nightlife. I know for a fact Luke works his ass off and has been saving his money for years. I don’t doubt that someday in the not so distant future he’ll open a place of his own. Getting a gig at Stellar was a huge deal for him. It happens to be one of the hottest bars in South Beach right now, and the jobs are very coveted. He says the tips are great and the whole club/bar/hotel seems to be really well run. I know he hopes to move into a management position soon, so I understand why he wants to impress the
boss.
I won’t lie. I’m a little excited at the prospect of seeing Julian tonight. What a perfect distraction. I’m not the type of girl Julian Bauer goes for, but it might be fun to spend the night fantasizing about a man lik
e him.
We tell Luke it’s cool to take off and say we’ll take care of the check. He gets up, gives each of us girls a kiss, and shakes Cory’s hand. We invite Krista to stay and walk over with us, but she says she’s meeting some friends there and will see us later. I’m sure she really just wants some more alone time with Luke. She seems pretty cool, but it’s never easy being the new girl in a group of close fr
iends.
“Thank you all so much for dinner. I can’t think of a better group of people to celebrate myself with.” Luke is all about celebrating his wonderfulness. We finish our coffees and settle up the
bill.
It’s a beautiful night, and I’m stuffed from the huge meal I just ate, so I’m happy to walk to the hotel. My feet, clad in four-and-a-half-inch heels, are not in agreement and are protesting loudly along the way. It’s ten forty-five by the time we get to the door, and there’s already a long line to get inside. Stellar, the actual nightclub at Hotel Del Marco, isn’t the only reason people flock to the hotel. The whole property has undergone a major renovation in the last year, and the quality of the venues here draws large crowds. I haven’t been here since the place has been redone, and I’m anxious to get inside and check it out. The rooftop bar where Luke usually works, Orion, has a stunning ocean view, private cabanas, and a huge fire pit that attracts people even in the chillier months. According to Luke, it’s crowded all week long. There’s a tapas restaurant named Ursa’s on the property that has one of the hottest chefs in South Beach serving up great food well into the night. We would have eaten there, but we couldn’t get a reservation, and the wait on a Saturday night would have been ridiculous. The pool area outside the hotel houses two other smaller bar areas, and there’s usually live entertainment either at Orion or downstairs by the large pool that overlooks Ocean Drive. The whole place has a great vibe, and you can feel the energy as you wa
lk up.
Luke texted me while we were still at the restaurant to let me know he put our names on the VIP list and that we just need to walk to the front. We tell the bouncer our names, show our IDs, and head in with no wait. The bouncer waves off the cover charge too. Having connections definitely has its perks. I’m in a hurry to get inside because I need to pee, and I need to sit down for a few minutes because my feet are killi
ng me.
After a quick pit stop at the ladies’ room near the entrance, we head up to Orion to find Luke and get some drinks. Luke wasn’t exaggerating. It’s very crowded up here, and it’s not easy to get to the bar. We all make our way to the corner of the bar, and I try to get Luke’s attention. I immediately see Krista on a stool, front and center at the bar. She’s looking at Luke with puppy dog eyes, and I feel kind of sorry for her. She seems like a nice girl, and if she wants to stay around for more than a few days, she definitely needs to play a little hard to get. Luke never stays interested in girls who are clingy or needy. After a few minutes, Luke notices us and heads right over. It’s definitely an advantage to know the bartender. He knows what we all like to drink and gets our order turned around quickly. I’m going to stick to mojitos tonight. This is my fifth drink, and I probably should stop after this one. My nice buzz doesn’t need to turn into a bad han
gover.
Marissa and I hand everyone’s drinks over, and we all go our separate ways. Shannon and Cory want to spend some time alone, so they head off toward the fire pit in the middle of the bar and find some open seats on one of the white couches nearby. Marissa and I head off to
dance.
I follow Marissa as we walk down the stairs to Stellar. There are a few people in the stairwell, and I really should be paying attention to where I’m going. I’m walking slow, because I’m a little buzzed, and looking down, because my damn feet are killing me, when I literally run headlong into someone coming up the stairs. Seriously? This would only happen to me. I look up and find myself staring into the deep green, mesmerizing eyes of Julian Bauer. I quickly look away. He’s big, like big-beautiful-muscle big, and I sort of bounce off of him. Luckily I’m able to grab the stair railing before I fall on my ass. My face comes up to the middle of his well-defined chest, and I notice I’ve spilled half of my drink on him. I’m so mortified I can’t even look up at him again. I mumble a quick, “I’m so sorry,” under my breath and take a little step to the side to try to move past him. Marissa looks back at me and tries her best not to laugh at the horrified look on my face. The only thing that stops her is that she’s also mesmerized by Julian. I think I’m home free when I feel a hand reach out and lightly grab my elbow. The touch sends sparks throughout my body, and I grasp the railing tighter. This touch on my elbow just set me on fire. What the hell? I stand still for a few seconds and then spin slowly around to acknowledge this man holding on
to me.
I find myself staring at one of the most gorgeous men I’ve ever seen in my life. Julian’s hair is brown with natural golden highlights mixed throughout. It’s cut short on the sides and back, and the top is a little spiky and unruly. I can’t decide if this is a look that takes time to create or if this sexy “I don’t care” look is what he looks like when he wakes up in the morning. Either way, it totally works for him, and all I know is I want to run my fingers through it. His sun-kissed skin gives a nod to his Latino heritage. His eyebrows are full, and he has a small scar running through the left one. I can’t help but wonder how it got there, and I have to restrain myself from reaching over and touching it. His piercing green eyes are big and framed with thick, black lashes, and something I see in them speaks to me in an indescribable way. His sculpted cheekbones and upper lip are lightly covered with what looks like a few days’ worth of stubble. This adds a bit of an edge to a face that’s otherwise almost too pretty. He’s tall, about 6'1”, with strong, broad shoulders and the muscular arms of an athlete. I can see the definition of his chest through his fitted gray shirt, and I again have to restrain myself from reaching over and running my hands over it. Holy hell, do I want to touch this man.
Everywhere
. I imagine most women feel the same way when they see him, but I’m unnerved by my visceral reaction to him. He’s so close I can smell his cologne, and I take a deep breath and inhale the delicious scent. I’m so dazzled I don’t notice anyone else in the stai
rwell.
“Are you okay? You ran into me pretty hard.” Julian’s beautiful eyes sparkle with amusement, and I hear the teasing in his voice. He’s smiling in a flirtatious way that’s making me weak in the knees. His lips are full and look both soft and powerful at the same time. He gives me a full smile, and I get a glimpse of two rows of perfectly straight, white
teeth.
I can hardly look at him. I swear it’s like looking into the sun. When I hoped to run into Julian tonight, this is so not what I had in mind. I imagine Julian can see how uncomfortable I am, and he lets go of my
elbow.
“I’m fine, but I’m so sorry I just spilled my drink all over you.”
I swear the words come out garbled and know I sound like the teacher on the Peanuts cartoons. My mouth has become dry while staring a
t him.