Safe With You: Winter's Rose #1 Page 2

  I’d been afraid that she wouldn’t believe me.

  I’d felt I only had one chance with Charlotte, and I wasn’t going to fuck it up on a wanker like David. She’d found out the truth without me, and I was glad for it. She deserved more than to be cheated on.

  Watching her across the room with Addie had been fucking hell. I was jealous as fuck that Addie had been the one making her laugh. I wanted to be the one who made her laugh. I didn’t do jealousy. I was a confident man and the fact that this little woman had me feeling like this made my blood boil. She had no idea how I felt about her and I needed that to change.

  I wanted her, and I usually got what I wanted.

  I’d hated the look on her face when I’d offered her my place next door. I’d been able to see the shutters coming down. She didn’t trust me. After David, she probably didn’t trust any man.

  I was determined to change that.

  It was an hour before closing, and I was hoping for a quiet finish, but luck wasn’t on my side. Addie came sauntering through my door with a wicked smile on her face.

  “Hi, handsome.” She took the seat that her roommate had occupied hours earlier, resting her elbows on top. “So, how did it go with Charlie?”

  “Do you pimp your roommates out often, Addie?” I raised my eyebrows at her, waiting on a response.

  “Please!” She rolled her eyes at me. “She’ll thank me one day. Besides, I know you’re a good guy.”

  “And what idiot told you that?” I uncapped a bottle of Budweiser and took a swig from it. “I offered her the place next door.”

  “What did she say?” she asked. Her eyes sparkled a little. “Did she take it?”

  “No.” I shook my head. “She said she wanted to think about it.”

  Her shoulders slumped a little before she straightened up. “Come around to mine for breakfast in the morning. Give her a reason to say yes.” She turned to the side and blew me a kiss. “I’ll see you around.” She walked out the door, leaving me to close up.

  After locking up, I made my way upstairs to my apartment, checking the windows before taking a shower. After a long day of being stuck behind the bar, I felt dirty and sweaty.

  I couldn’t get Addie’s words out of my head.

  “Give her a reason to say yes.”

  What the fuck could I say? Convincing a woman to my way of thinking wasn’t exactly one of my skills. There was a reason I was a bachelor at the end of the day. Being with a woman for more than one night wasn’t a part of my plan, but Charlotte…

  Fuck me, she was THE girl. She was smart, beautiful, sexy, kind and sweet as hell. She was pure and light and too damn good for me.

  Climbing into bed, I resigned myself to going over in the morning with donuts and attempt to sell my offer in a positive light. It was a business arrangement, and I had a feeling that she would be more than comfortable keeping it as such.

  Her head was fucked, and if I took what I wanted from her, it would be even more fucked up.

  My darkness—my past—would just swallow her light.

  Standing outside her apartment, I knocked on her door. I didn’t like how tense I was feeling. Alexander Winters didn’t fucking do tense.

  The door swung open, what was waiting for me on the other side of the door surprising the fuck out of me. Charlotte stood there in only a pair of shorts and a sports bra.

  Fuck me, she was stunning.

  “Uh, Alex.” A blush took over her cheeks. She was mortified. She crossed her arms over her chest attempting to cover herself. “What do you…? Can I help you?” She raised her eyebrows, waiting.

  “Addie came by the bar last night and asked me to come by?” I was going to kill Addie. Charlotte didn’t have a clue about me coming over.

  “Oh!” She took a step back. “Please, come in. Addie isn’t here at the moment but…”

  “Actually…” I walked through her door and stepped to the side so she could close it. “I’ve brought my business plan over,” I said, holding the folder up in my hand. “I thought we could discuss my offer from last night. I even brought donuts.” I held the box out to her, smiling when she took it.

  “You have a good selection here,” she said, peeking into the box. She turned and led me to her kitchen. “You even have chocolate and jelly ones!”

  I was unable to keep my eyes off how perky her little arse looked in those shorts. Before I could look up, she spun around, catching me checking her out. She blushed and quickly grabbed her hoodie that was on the back of the chair at the table and quickly pulled it over herself, hiding her delectable body from my view.

  “Would you like a coffee?” She turned back to the worktop, avoiding my gaze. “We have tea or…”

  “Coffee is good, thanks.” I pulled a seat out at her table, trying not to make things worse by staring at her arse again. “Black with two sugars, please.”

  She quickly made us some coffee and placed the box of donuts on the table.

  “Help yourself.” She grabbed a chocolate one and took a bite. “That’s so good.” She moaned at the taste.

  “You’re a chocolate addict.” I grinned at her.

  “The biggest.” Her eyes flicked down to the folder in front of me as she reached up to wipe the chocolate smudged on the corner of her lips. “So, what is it you wanted to talk about?”

  “Right.” I nodded my head and put my coffee to the side. “So, the building next to me has had all its necessary testing. The emergency lighting is up to code and a gas safety certification was carried out last week. It passed with flying colours.”

  “Okay.” Her eyes flicked down to the certificates in the file before coming back up to me.

  “I originally bought the building as I was planning to extend the bar into a dance area but I decided against it.” I don’t know why the hell I was sitting there explaining myself. “Look, I understand you have other things going on in your life, but I was serious about leasing the place out to you.”

  “I don’t know, Alex…” She took a sip of her coffee. “What if I mess it up? What if it doesn’t…?”

  “You won’t mess it up. I’m sorry if this sounds harsh but you’re never going to know if you don’t try.” I stared at her for a few moments before I spoke again. “If you’re worried about owing me anything, you wouldn’t. This would be yours. I’d have no input.”

  “I guess I can use the redundancy money I’ll be having in a couple of weeks to help me get set up until the doors open.” She nibbled on her bottom lip before a beaming smile took over her face. “Okay. Let's do this.” She held her hand out to mine and we slowly shook.

  The door behind me opened and Addie’s voice joined us. “What’s going on? Ooh! Is that donuts?”

  “I’m going to be a baker!” Charlotte shrieked. They both squealed and hugged each other tightly.

  “I’ll leave you ladies to celebrate.” I began walking to the main door. “I look forward to seeing what you’ll come up with, Miss Chase.”

  She giggled at me. “Maybe we can have a chat about that when I’m up and running.”

  “Sure.” I reached into my pocket and tossed a key to her. “If you need anything else, you know where to find me.” I winked at her, loving the blush that appeared on her face.

  I left them to it and made my way down the block towards the bar. I looked back and froze when I saw who was hanging outside her building: her waste of space of a cheating ex was sitting on a bench, glaring in my direction. I turned around to walk back up and move him along but stopped when he got up and began walking in the other direction.

  That fucker had a serious problem.

  It had been a few weeks since I had last spoken to Charlotte. I had seen her going past the bar enough times, carrying gadgets that she would need for her new venture. She’d already paid a month's rent to my accountant, and it looked like she was determined to have an opening date soon.

  I really needed to make an effort to go and have a talk about her making some treats fo
r the dessert menu.

  “Still pining over that chick next door?” James took a seat at the bar. “Didn’t think I’d ever see the day where you’d be tamed by one woman.”

  “What do you want?” I asked, ignoring his comments. “Your shift doesn’t start for another hour.”

  “I thought I’d swing by and see if you wanted to get some lunch.”

  I shook my head. “I have paperwork to go over and then I’m going to…”

  “Go and check on your obsession next door and see if you can find another detail of hers to stalk over?” He laughed. “Dude, just grow a pair and ask her out.”

  “I don’t stalk,” I quickly defended.

  He cocked an eyebrow at me. He knew I was bullshitting.

  “She just got out of a relationship, man, and do you remember? I don’t do relationships.”

  “Who’s saying it has to be a relationship?” He tapped his hand against the bar before giving me a one-handed salute and going past me in the direction of the staff room.

  “I’ll be back in a few,” I called out. I quickly went through the exit, ignoring his mocking laugh.

  Heading next door, I walked straight in without knocking. I looked around and saw she already had several sets of tables and chairs arranged and had a worktop installed with several high-top chairs set up. She had obviously gotten the ball rolling and was eager to begin opening soon.

  “What do you think?” She came out of the door that connected to her large kitchen at the back. “We’re having an ice cream counter set up in the corner where customers can choose what flavour they would like with their waffles and pancakes.”

  “It sounds like you’re almost ready.” I chuckled when I saw she had a toffee sauce stain on her cheek.

  “Oh no.” She walked further into the room. “I need to do some test dishes first and finish getting the place ready.”

  “Dishes?” I asked. “For me?” I walked closer and took a seat at her worktop. “I was thinking we could have a meeting to discuss the dessert menu in the bar.”

  “Really?” She smiled at me before coming to a stop in front of me, with the worktop between us. “You’d trust me to be your official dessert supplier?” She said it mockingly, but I knew that she was teasing.

  “Of course. I would need to test these samples myself,” I joked. “For research purposes, of course.”

  She giggled. “Of course. I suppose I could do some test dishes and bring them by one night.”

  “Or I could come here? I could finish early one night and get James to watch the bar.”

  “Okay.” She smiled at me. “That might be easier.”

  I reached over and rubbed my thumb along the toffee on her cheek. Her eyes widened at my actions and I couldn’t stop myself from what I did next. I sucked the toffee off my thumb, humming at the taste. “That’s sweet.” I grinned at her and slid off my chair. “So, when do you want to do this tasting session?”

  “Tomorrow night?” She fidgeted with her hands, linking her fingers together. “Around six? No! Seven!”

  I chuckled at her babbling. “Sounds good.” I smiled at her before giving her a wave. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Charlotte.”

  “It’s Charlie.” She reached up and tucked a curl behind her ear. “I prefer for my friends to call me Charlie.”

  I nodded my head and exited her building.

  Tomorrow with Charlie sounded fucking perfect.

  3

  Charlie

  “That smells delicious!” Addie slid on to the stool that Alex had been occupying the previous day. “Can I have some?” She craned her neck to spy what was in the oven behind me.

  “Absolutely not.” I flicked my towel at her. “Those caramel bites are for Alex. I made extras for him to take away with him.”

  “You sound pretty sure of yourself there.” She stared at me for a moment as a sneaky smile appeared on her face. “Are you blushing?”

  “No!” I quickly defended. “No.” I shook my head in denial before giving in and nodding my head. “Yes.”

  “Tell me everything!” She leaned forward on her elbows.

  I rolled my eyes at how eager she sounded. “When he was here last night, I had some toffee sauce on my cheek and he… He wiped it off my cheek.”

  “And?” she demanded.

  “He licked the sauce off his thumb.”

  We both burst into giggles.

  “He’s into you!” Addie reached across and took my hand in hers. “Do you like him?”

  “Don’t be silly, Addie! I mean, look at him. There’s no way he would ever be interested in me. I’m a mess.”

  “No, you were a mess. When you were with that idiot of an ex, you weren’t the same girl. He controlled you.” She shook her head. “You could always do better than that fool. And…” She mock-swooned. “Alex is so much better.”

  “It’s too soon, Addie. I don’t think I’m ready for anything serious.”

  We were disturbed when the main door opened and in walked Alex. Addie looked back at me and raised her eyebrows.

  “Who said it had to be serious?” She wiggled her eyebrows at me before she slid out of her seat. “Have fun guys! Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” She winked at Alex as she passed, embarrassing me further.

  “Am I too early?” Alex asked, taking a seat.

  “Not at all.” I turned around and grabbed my apron, tying it around my waist. “I just hope you enjoy what I made for you.”

  “I’m sure I will.” He pointed his thumb over his shoulder. “Addie could have joined us if you…”

  “No!”

  He laughed at my outburst.

  “I mean…” I rolled my eyes. “Addie can be a bit bossy.”

  “I noticed that.” He looked past me. “So, what do you have for me first?”

  I took a seat on the other side of the worktop next to Alex as I watched him pop another caramel bite into his mouth.

  “So, out of all the desserts, which is your favourite?” I was eager to know if he’d enjoyed them.

  “You expect me to pick just one?” He turned in his seat to face me. “If I had to pick one, I’d probably say the caramel bites.” He reached for another and popped it in his mouth. “Your cheesecake and gateaux are very tasty as well.”

  “Well, I can’t just fill your menu with caramel bites.” I giggled. “You need to tell me what you want.”

  There went another caramel bite.

  “How about you just give me a selection and we can build the menu from there?”

  I shook my head at him. “Men can never make decisions.” I grabbed the notepad and pen and began writing a list of desserts. “I think if we start with six or seven and we can have around four as a mini selection. Maybe put some muffins, bakewells and brownies on there as well?” I looked up at him to see if he agreed with me.

  “That sounds good to me. I’ll get the menu updated.”

  I tore it from the notepad and slid the list across to him. “Just let me know when you’d like me to start and we can…”

  “Next week?” He folded the note up and put it in his jean pocket. “It could be a good test run for you.”

  “Okay. Feeling the pressure now.” I slid down from my stool and picked the empty dishes up. “I’ll just get your caramel bites for you.”

  “You made me extra?” he asked. He sounded surprised.

  “I did.” I went into the kitchen and felt him follow me.

  “Wow!” He looked at all of my kitchen gadgets laid out in their spaces. “This place looks stocked.”

  “I’m ready to open. The sign will be going up out front tomorrow. ‘Sinfully Sweet’.” I placed the lid on his tub of treats. “Here you go.”

  “Thank you. That was really nice of you.” He reached for the tub, our fingers touching.

  I felt sparks where he touched me. That was new. It had never felt like that when David touched me.

  “Th-that’s okay.” I smiled up at him. “I-I know how addictive they
can be.”

  He placed the tub on the side next to us before he placed his hands on each side of me, caging me in. “Am I making you nervous?” he whispered. He reached up and pushed the hair back off the side of my neck.

  “A little.” I nodded my head. “You’re looking at me like…”

  “Like what?” he asked, interrupting. “Like I want you?” He dipped his head and inhaled against the column of my neck. “You smell good.”

  I gasped when I felt him press his body closer to mine. “I’m sorry, I…” I shook my head and placed my hands on his chest, pushing him back a little. “I’m not… After David, I don’t think I’m ready for that. You’re a great guy. It’s just that—”

  “It’s just that he messed your head up,” he finished for me.

  “It’s never easy catching your boyfriend cheating on you, Alex. I think it’d mess anyone’s head up. I wouldn’t want our friendship to be ruined by a one night stand.”

  He stared down at me for several moments before he stepped back.

  “You wouldn’t be a one night stand, darling.” He picked the tub up and walked away, leaving me alone.

  Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.

  I reached behind me and untied my apron and hung it up behind the door. I quickly locked up the shop after turning everything off and made my way up the block to my apartment, cursing myself the whole way.

  “What are you looking so happy about?” Addie asked sarcastically when I came through the door.

  “I think I just upset Alex.” I plonked myself down next to her on our sofa.

  She frowned at me. “Upset how?”

  “He tried to kiss me and I messed it up.” I cringed as I looked at her.

  “Charlie!” she whined. “He likes you and I know you like him. He’s funny, runs his own business, is sexy as hell and wants you. What’s the problem here?”