Worth the Risk

off. A minute or two later, music loud enough to rupture eardrums screeched from Amber’s room through the open window. Lexi wanted to ask her to turn it down, but didn’t fell like another confrontation.
    The portable phone rang barely loud enough to be heard over the music, and Lexi scooped it up from the ground and pushed the button to answer. “It’s Brad Westcott,” said a deep male voice.
    Her heart jitterbugged beneath her ribs. She’d been thinking about him more than she wanted to admit. “Hi,” she said as lightly as she could manage. “What’s happening?”
    “Not much,” Brad responded. “But I hired a new sous-chef.”
    “That’s great.”
    “I’ve been a little slow to let anyone else assume responsibility in the kitchen. That’s why my last chef left. Tomorrow night, the new sous-chef is taking over for me.”
    “You’re letting him run the place?” Why was he calling her? Did he want to purchase vegetables or was the call more personal?
    “The new chef is a woman. Alice Blankenship has three new entrées that will be available tomorrow evening. We’ll see how it goes.”
    There was a moment of silence; Lexi was tempted to speak, but still wasn’t sure what to say.
    “I’m getting out of Black Jack’s so I don’t make Alice nervous,” Brad finally said. “I was wondering if you might want to join me at the annual mixology contest.”
    “Mixology contest.” She nearly choked on the words. Brad Westcott was asking her out on a date.
    “Bartenders compete for most original drink. It’s being held tomorrow evening at the Silver Spoon. Trevor, my head mixologist, has come up with a concoction he calls Black Jack’s Snakebite.”
    “Is it black?” she asked, her mind scrambling for a way to phrase her response to his invitation. She wanted to go out with him more than she’d wanted anything in a long time.
    “No. Black drinks don’t sell. This is a pale amber. The ingredients are a secret, but it’s topped with foamed egg whites.”
    “Eggs?” Lexi asked, a little surprised. “In drinks?”
    Brad chuckled. “Whipped egg-white drinks are the latest. Started out in California. People are always looking for the unusual. Gives them something to talk about.”
    “That should work.”
    “How about it? Would you like to join me?”
    Would she ever! But it was impossible. Why did it have to be tomorrow evening? “It’s the first meeting of my board study course. I can’t miss it.” Despite her best efforts, her voice wavered. “I really wish I could, but I have to pass the accountant’s exam to keep a job I just found.”
    “You have a job besides City Seeds?” Brad sounded surprised.
    “Yes. I’ve been doing payroll for a family-owned company. I’ll receive my MBA in a few weeks, so I’ve been hunting for a job in that field. Gilfoy and O’Malley offered me a position. In this economy, I’m lucky to get it. I want to be sure I pass the exam the first time I take it.”
    “I’ve heard of them. Supposed to be a really good firm.”
    “It is a good firm, but there’s a lot of pressure to pass the exam. I just can’t skip class tomorrow evening.”
    “I understand,” Brad assured her.
    Lexi wanted to suggest the following night instead, but she didn’t have her sister’s bold personality. “Thanks for asking. I hope your guy wins.”
    “I guess I’ll see you next Saturday then,” Brad said.
    It took her a moment to recall what was going on then. “Yes, at the baking contest. My sister is still determined to win.”
    Brad laughed. “I’m sure she is. See you then.”
    Lexi hung up with a surge of disappointment and she wasn’t sure why. Brad Westcott was out of her league. Going out with him would only lead to more disappointment. Still, she couldn’t help feeling an inexplicable sense of loss.

    Brad hung up the phone in his small office at the rear of Black Jack’s kitchen. Since his divorce, he hadn’t dated much. His restaurants occupied all his waking hours. But Lexi was different. He kept thinking about her even though he didn’t have time for a woman in his personal life.
    He put his feet up on the desk and looked out at the kitchen through the glass that formed half his office wall. When he wasn’t out there himself, he often watched the lion’s den from his desk. This afternoon, though, he was deep in thought, wondering why Lexi appealed to him when no other woman had in a long, long time.
    Maybe it was because she was as