“Don’t you get sassy with me, young lady,” Eddie replied as he shooed her toward the door. “We’ll see you later. Sleep tight.”
“Goodnight, Eddie Boo.” She shouted back down the hall to Gabe, “Goodnight, Gabriella,” and took off to her duplex.
Chapter4
Saturday
Alex slept surprisingly well.She woke early and went for a run. Running was her least favorite mode of exercise, but living in The Heights made it more palatable. The neighborhood, dating back to when Houston was first founded, contained splendid historic houses and majestic oak trees too wide to put her arms around. The scenery seeped into her bones and her energy soared, making her morning jog enjoyable and invigorating. With her favorite podcast playing in her earbuds, getting in a quick workout was no problem.
This morning’s podcast of choice focused on major current events. Reporters followed a particular news event from inception to the current state and gave in-depth information behind the story. After joining an international company and working with an international team, she’d observed how her foreign coworkers were incredibly knowledgeable about world events. To her chagrin, they often knew more about her nation’s politics than she did. This realization prompted her to educate herself, and she found listening to this podcast helped get her up to speed on current events while multitasking.
After thirty minutes around the neighboring blocks and an education on how the Middle East came to be, she arrived back home. She jogged up the driveway to the back of the duplex and bent over with her hands on her knees. Her phone rang, and she frowned at the unknown number.
“This is Alex,” she answered as she tried to control her breathing.
After a pause, he spoke. She would know his voice anywhere, she realized. It slid through the airways like butter on a hot roll. “Hello, Alexis. It’s Fin.” He dropped an octave as he asked, “Am I interrupting something? Ye’re breathing awfully hard.”
She stood so fast her head spun. Good lord, had her name ever sounded so sexy? She could feel her insides go all melty. As his words registered and his implied meaning sunk in, her face heated with more than just exertion from her run. “Um, hi. You caught me at the end of a jog, and I haven’t fully caught my breath yet.”
Fin chuckled in her ear as Eddie came around the corner dragging a water hose, with Dixie trotting happily behind him. Eddie scanned her face and stopped, blatantly listening to her end of the call while the dog ran to Alex for belly rubs.
“Aye, the weather’s quite lovely here, isn’t it?” Fin continued without waiting for a reply, “I thought I would follow up on our agreement to get together. I’m booked today, but free afterward. What works for you?”
“Um…” Alex was thrown off balance by this phone call. She’d never expected him to call. “Tuesday is volleyball night,” she blurted.
“Okay. Would you like to have dinner before then? How about we do something tomorrow night?”
Eddie, the busybody, wandered closer and she shooed him away, rolling her eyes when he ignored her.
“Um…” She inhaled deeply to clear her head. “I usually stay in Sunday night, getting ready for the upcoming work week.”
His silky-smooth voice flowed over the line again. “That sounds wonderful. Why don’t we order something in?”
“Seriously?” Alex squeaked, her voice rising two octaves as the question escaped. She cleared her throat and asked, “You want to come hang out at my place and eat in?” She couldn’t imagine this A-list movie star wanting to spend time with the common folk like her.
“Why, I’d be delighted. Thank ye for asking. When and where should I show up and what kind of food do you like?”
Oh my god, she thought,I did not just invite him over. What is happening? How did he turn this all around on me?She didn’t normally get flustered so easily, but she honestly had not expected to hear from him again.
By now, Eddie stood right beside her with his eyes so wide she imagined them popping out of his head.
“Alex,” Fin inquired, “are you still there?”
“Yes. Um, I’ll text you the address. I have to go.”
He chuckled again, as if he knew the effect he had on her. “Don’t forget to send me the time and your food preferences.”
She stammered, “Yeah, okay. Gotta go,” as she ended the call and swung around to look at Eddie.
“What just happened?” they both exclaimed together.
After a fit of laughter at the coincidence, she answered, “Somehow, I got swindled into inviting Mr. Hot and Dreamy over for dinner tomorrow night. Whatdidjust happen? And why the hell did I sound like a stammering schoolgirl when I talked to him?”
Eddie squealed like a little girl himself and shouted for Gabe to come around the side. As the big man came strolling around the corner, Eddie scooped up Dixie and looped his arm through Alex’s, pulling her toward her door.
“Gabe, darling, Alex has a date with her movie star. He’s coming here tomorrow night. Wemusthelp with this. C’mon, girl… let’s go peruse your wardrobe.” Before she could object, he cut her off and continued, “I know you look fabulous when dressing for work, but your casual outfits are a bit too butch. Sweats, tank tops, and t-shirts will not work for this kind of casual date. Gabe, what are you waiting for, darling? You need to put together a menu while I work on the girl. We are cooking for this man. No takeout for us!” And with that, he handed the dog off to Gabe and whisked Alex inside.
Fin hungup the phone and smiled. It had been a long time since he had interacted with anyone so unpredictable. No, that wasn’t right. Unpredictable described the situation, not the woman. Alex was natural and true to herself, unlike the people he usually dealt with. He sighed as he noticed his assigned guide for the press junket walking towards him. He tucked away his feel-good moment and put on his professional face. Time to work.
