The Choice

He did not just say that.

I could feel the heat on my cheeks at his words.

Adam was offering me a contented smile.

Get it together, Mia!

“Yeah, right,” I said, my voice even.

He was obviously just teasing me.

“Do you want to grab a beer tonight after work?”

I started picking up the chairs to put them in rows where he had left off. The room was divided into two rows of chairs facing a small stage. On this stage was everything they would need for the ceremony. We made sure of it. It was our job to make sure everything was perfect.

“Are you inviting me out, Mia?” he asked, amused.

“Haven will be there too,” I said, shaking my head. “Stop teasing me, boss.”

He chuckled and it was a deep rumble that I liked. I always wondered how that would be in bed. I know, bad to think that way about your boss but come on, he was hot and I was no virgin.

“I’m not teasing. I really would like to take you out sometime, since you seem to be through with Jackson,” he said.

I whipped my head to him as I was unfolding a chair and I noticed that he was right beside me.

Really?

Since I had known Adam, he had never had a girlfriend.

Is he waiting for “the one,” like Haven? What is with these big guys?

I looked at his face for an indication of teasing but he only looked serious. His green eyes were sparkling in the light of the room and they were fixed on me.

Way to make me nervous.

I swallowed and looked back at him.

“I’d like that,” I said.

He broke into a smile and nodded before grabbing other chairs to finish the row.

What just happened?

I fantasized about us having sex probably everywhere, but dating? That was entirely something else. Did he really find me interesting? Me?

I was nothing like him. I was fit, since I trained hard every day for it, but I was never going to be a model. I had curves.

Mother Nature was generous with me in the breast department, and I was only five foot four. So, not tall, but not small. My long chocolate-brown hair ended in the middle of my back and I had gray-greenish eyes.

Nothing spectacular about me.

Everything was spectacular about Adam, though. Every person in the world who is interested in males would look at him twice if they passed him on the street. He was beautiful, truly and simply.

But that was nothing compared to his personality.

Adam was calm and collected. He was also reliable and loyal. He was a boss who made all his employees proud.

I always thought that whoever he married would be lucky to have such a good man at their side. We had talked about it when things were good with Jackson, and he told me he was looking for a good girl, too.

Could it be me?

I was getting conceited there. I needed to focus on my work.

We finished setting everything up before the guests arrived.

Of course, we were dressed to the nines. Adam was hot in his black suit and white dress shirt. No tie.

I was wearing a light gray dress with hose and black heels as well as a black jacket. I could not show skin at this kind of event, so I would have to endure the heat of the summer.

I was lucky, though, compared to the men, who had to wear suits. That would definitely have made me sweat.

We greeted the guests and guided them to their seats while the room started to fill.

The young man having his bar mitzvah was sweating like crazy next to the stage while the rabbi and his dad were trying to soothe him. Tough day for him. I could only assume an amused smile thinking about it.

I was not religious myself. France was a secular country, and although we had a tradition of being Christian, a lot of the population had actually no religion.

“What are you smiling about?” Adam whispered.

“Thinking about how brave the boy is,” I answered, just as quietly.

Adam knew that I was mostly not very comfortable talking in front of a crowd. A small crowd was okay but this big a crowd gave me the creeps.

I liked my job, though, because it allowed me to see other religious ceremonies.

In France, the state and religions were separate. Your faith had to be for yourself and you should not rub it in everyone’s face.

Here, it was normal to talk about it at every corner, mostly without judgment. I liked that. In France we were always reserved about discussing our religion.

“I see.” Adam smiled as well.

We had talked about religion. Adam was 100% Christian—nothing unusual about that.

The rest of the ceremony went smoothly. The young man gathered his courage as he talked to his family and peers. It always made me happy to see that confidence in people’s eyes.

After they were done talking, they all gathered around the food and drinks.

Adam and I made sure that it ran smoothly and helped the staff when we could.

The women were looking hungrily at Adam.

I was used to that, but somehow that day it made my heart ache. He had just invited me out and I was already feeling like this.

Not pretty, Mia.

I shook the feeling and went on with my job. I could not afford to be sidetracked.

We expected to be done around eight o’clock, which was still early, but the guests decided to hit a restaurant at seven. It gave us an extra hour to put everything away, and soon the cleaning staff was hard at work.

“Still up for the beer?” I asked my boss.

“Sure. We’re going to The Den, right?”

“Of course.” I smiled.

We took Adam’s car because I usually never drove. First, I did not have a license in the States and I had to take classes for it. Second, we lived in a big city, so public transit was on point.

I finally relaxed in the car as Adam drove smoothly through traffic.

Jackson’s bar, The Den, was a bit on the outskirts of town, so he could afford a parking lot. Adam parked the car in an empty space.

I could see that Haven was there already because I recognized his Mustang.

“How long since you last saw Jackson?” Adam asked.

“Three days ago. When he left,” I said, furrowing my brows.

I was not particularly happy to see my ex again. We always ended things badly and he would come running back in a week so we could get back together.

I was tired. This had been going on for five years. He was so sweet at first and he always was when we started again—but eventually, all the good resolutions would go out the window.

Adam seemed to pick up on my foul mood because he put his hand on the small of my back to urge me on.

I looked at him with shock plain on my face. He had never touched me like this before. I did not dislike it though. His big hand was warming me all over. Did I say that he was hot?

“Go on. He won’t bother you,” he said in his deep, rumbling voice.

I smiled at him as a thank you. I knew that I could count on him.

We walked inside the bar and I noticed Haven right away. It was kind of hard to miss him in a crowd because of how big he was.

He waved at us. I waved back as I made my way over to him.

I could feel Jackson’s eyes on me from behind the bar.

Too bad for you, asshole.

Once we reached Haven’s table, I hugged my friend and he shook hands with Adam. We sat next to him and he smiled at us as we ordered beers.

“I feel underdressed,” he said, his blue eyes sparkling.

He was wearing jeans and a blue T-shirt, so I could understand. I waved my hand in front of my face to dismiss the thought.

“Work,” I said simply.

“This dress suits you though, Mia,” Adam said with a smile. “You’re pretty.”

“That she is,” a voice next to us said in low growl.

I knew who that was without turning around. There was only one growling man who could say that.

I turned to face Jackson...and his eyes were definitely not the color I was used to.

Instead of hazel with specks of gold, they were truly yellow.

What is going on?