The Invitation
: Chapter 18

I’d started to think Hudson wasn’t coming back. It had been hours since he left, though with the stress of the show over, I’d relaxed a lot and was able to have a good time. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t watching the door constantly. Half the guests had gone, and a few more were getting ready to leave. I went to the bathroom and figured I’d soon call it a night, too. But when I came out, Hudson was sitting at the island drinking a beer.

“You’re back. I thought maybe you’d changed your mind.”

His eyes flickered to my legs before returning to meet mine. “Definitely not.”

I felt that flutter low in my belly—lately it had turned into part of the man’s greeting.

“Since I was picking up Charlie, my ex-wife figured she’d go get a massage too. Must’ve been a tough week of doing nothing.”

I smiled. “I take it she doesn’t work?”

He shook his head.

“Screw asking you out. Maybe I should propose. You sound like a good ex-husband.”

He chuckled. “Welcome back.” My forehead wrinkled, so he explained. “You’ve been stressed. Apparently that caused your inner wiseass to take a hiatus.”

“Oh.” I laughed. “Yeah, I have been stressed.”

“Feel better now that today’s over?”

“I do.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “Though I could actually use a massage, too.”

He wiggled his fingers. “I could help you out. I’m pretty good with my hands.”

I smiled. “I bet.”

“You up to continue the celebration?”

I was wired and nowhere near ready to go home. “What did you have in mind?”

“Let’s go get a drink. There’s a bar down the block.”

I nibbled my lip. “Hmmm… Are you asking me out on a date?”

“Nope. Taking a colleague out to celebrate.”

“I’ll think about it.”

Hudson frowned. “You’ll think about it?”

“Yes.”

He looked a little disgruntled, but shrugged. When he reached for his beer, I tapped him on the shoulder.

“I thought about it.”

“And?”

“Let’s go celebrate some more.”

“I still can’t get over that we sold fifty-thousand boxes of Signature Scent in under an hour today.” I shook my head. “A month ago I was thinking I might never see the day one box was ordered.”

“We got lucky,” Hudson said.

“No. We didn’t get lucky. Luck means something falls into your lap. You went out and made this happen.”

“Couldn’t have happened without a good product.”

I sipped my wine. “You know, I wouldn’t have expected you to be so humble.”

“Trust me. I’m not. I just give credit when it’s due.”

We were seated at a table in a high-end bar a few blocks from Olivia’s apartment. The waitress came over to check on us. She was gorgeous, but Hudson didn’t ogle her at all. In fact, he barely seemed to look her way, which made me curious.

“Tell me about the last woman you dated. Not including Miss Guatemala. A woman you went out with more than once?”

His brows dipped. “Why?”

I shrugged. “Just curious. Do you have a certain type? A look you’re attracted to?”

He smirked. “Yes, blond hair and glasses.”

I laughed. “No, really.”

“I don’t know.” He shook his head. “I guess the last woman I dated was a brunette. Tall. Dark eyes.”

“How long did that last?”

“We went out a few times.”

“Why did it end?”

He looked back and forth between my eyes. “You want the truth?”

“Of course.”

“All she talked about was her sister who had just had a baby. It felt like she was on the fast track to get married and have kids.”

“And you don’t want to get married again or have more children?”

He sipped his beer. “I didn’t say that. I just didn’t see it with her.”

“So if she had wanted something casual, things wouldn’t have ended?”

“I don’t know, because that’s not what the situation was. But I’m not commitment-averse, if that’s what you’re getting at. I didn’t stop seeing her because she was looking for a future with someone. I stopped seeing her because the right person for her wasn’t me.”

I nodded. “The waitress is beautiful…”

Hudson tilted his head. “Is she?”

“Very.”

He scratched his chin. “Are you trying to set me up?”

“Do you want me to set you up?”

“Is there a reason we’re only talking in questions?”

I smiled. “I don’t know? Is there?”

After a few seconds of staring at me, Hudson ended our little game. “I have no interest in the waitress.”

When I said nothing, he tilted his head. “Aren’t you going to ask why not?”

The way he was looking at me, I already knew the answer to that question.

I finished off my wine and smiled. “Nope.”

He chuckled. “How are things going with you and Ken?”

“It’s Ben and you know it.” I smiled and shook my head. “I’m not seeing him anymore. We didn’t have a connection.”

Hudson’s smile stretched from ear to ear. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, it looks like you are.”

Hudson stopped our waitress as she passed. “Excuse me. Can we get another round when you have a chance?”

“Of course.”

After she walked away, he mumbled, “Doesn’t hold a candle.” Then he finished up his beer and stood. “Excuse me for a minute. I’m going to hit the men’s room.”

While he was gone, I texted Fisher and filled him in on the rest of the afternoon. We’d texted a few times earlier today, and I’d given him updates on how well Signature Scent did, but I hadn’t taken out my phone in a while.

Fisher: How’s The Rose?

Stella: How do you know I’m here?

Fisher: I tracked you on your phone a half hour ago when you didn’t answer my text for two hours. You never take that long to respond, so I got worried. Guess the party moved there?

Some people might not like being tracked, but I’d given Fisher access to my phone’s location for a reason, and I appreciated his concern.

Stella: Some of the party moved here…

I smiled, seeing the dots immediately jump around.

Fisher: Just you and the Adonis?

Stella: We went for a drink after the party.

Fisher: Are you going to jump his bones finally?

Stella: I don’t think that’s on the menu…

Fisher: Sweetheart, men are always on the menu. It’s simple. Just tell him you’re in the mood for a cocktail—hold the tail.

I shook my head with a smile.

Stella: I’ll keep that line in my arsenal. Thanks.

When Hudson returned from the men’s room, I put down my phone. He slid back into the seat across from me. “So what’s going on with Marco these days?”

“Marco?”

“The boy toy.”

“Oh.” I laughed. “He’s reading The Thorn Birds. He asked Amalia what her favorite books were, and each week he goes to the library and turns one back in and takes out another. Then he strikes up a conversation with her about the book he just finished. He’s trying to show her how committed he is and replace things in common. It’s so romantic.”

“The Thorn Birds? Sounds familiar, but I don’t think I’ve ever read it.”

“Oh, you should. It’s actually one of my favorites, too.”

“So is what’s-her-name falling for it?”

“Amalia…and I think she is. He’s started to go on the nights she closes the library, and she lets him walk her home.”

Hudson shook his head. “How old is this diary? Sounds like a lot of work. Guess they didn’t have Tinder yet?”

I laughed. “Well, I suppose it’s much easier to swipe left, or right—whichever it is. But that’s probably why the people you meet that way aren’t usually the love of your life.”

“What ever happened with his other plan—to make her jealous by bringing some young girl around?”

“Thankfully, he decided to go the mature route and show her he’s dedicated instead.”

A cell phone started to buzz. I turned mine over thinking it was me, but it wasn’t. “Is that your phone buzzing?”

“Shit.” He dug into his pocket. “I didn’t even notice.” Reading the name on the screen, Hudson’s brows dipped. He looked at his watch. “It’s my ex-wife. I should answer it. She never calls this late.”

“Of course. Go ahead.”

He swiped and brought the phone to his ear. “What’s up?”

I heard a woman’s voice, but couldn’t make out what she was saying.

“Where’s Mark?” Hudson asked after a moment.

Pause.

“Shit. Okay. Yeah. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

He swiped the phone off and immediately raised his hand to call the waitress. “I’m sorry. I need to go.”

“Is everything okay with Charlie?”

“Yeah, she’s fine. Lexi’s sister started having contractions, and apparently her husband is in California for business. Lexi wants to go to the hospital with her, and she needs me to meet her there to pick up Charlie.”

“Oh, how exciting. I bet Charlie can’t wait to meet little Homeslice.”

Hudson chuckled. “She’s going to be begging me to stay at the hospital all night.”

The waitress came over, and he handed her his credit card.

“Wait.” I reached for my purse and took out my wallet. “Let me, please.”

He shook his head and waved off the waitress, who didn’t even wait for me to argue.

“You bought dinner the other night,” I protested. “I wanted to pay for this one.”

“I’ll tell you what, I’ll let you pay when you ask me out.”

“But what if I never ask you out? That wouldn’t be fair.”

“Just another reason you should ask. Though, it’s not at the top of the list of reasons.”

“No?”

The waitress came back with his credit card and a receipt for him to sign. Hudson peeled a generous tip from his billfold and stuck it inside the leather check folio.

He tossed the pen on the table. “You ready?”

“Yes, but I’m also waiting to hear what is at the top of your list of reasons I should ask you out.”

Hudson stood and held out a hand to help me up. I took it, but after I was on my feet, he didn’t let go. Instead, he pulled me flush against him and lowered his lips to my ear.

“I’d much rather show you than tell you. Take a chance, Stella.”