Mr. Big Shot (Mr. Big 1)

She'd be someone I could imagine getting involved with on a more long-term basis – if I was into that kind of thing. Which I wasn't.

Not any longer, anyway.

But if I was, Alexa would be it.

"What do I smell?"

"Dinner, my lady. Prepared especially for you."

She entered the kitchen and glan

ced at the pots on the stove.

"Fresh asparagus, steamed and almost ready. In the fridge is a fresh spinach salad and my grill on the rooftop patio will cook the two New York Strip steaks I got from my neighborhood butcher. In the oven is a fresh baguette heating up."

"I didn't realize you're a chef," she said with a smile.

"I enjoy cooking. My mother took a course from one of Julia Child's students when she was young and she and I used to cook together."

She glanced at me, an expression of sympathy on her pretty face. "You were young when she died."

"I was," I said, "but I had enough time with her to pick up her love of cooking and her appreciation for space. She was a maverick for her time, studying astronomy in school instead of how to find a husband."

"I doubt a rich woman with a fortune would have a hard time finding a husband…"

I laughed. "She didn't," I replied, thinking of my mother and father. "My mother was an heiress to a fortune and had all the money in their marriage. My father was a banker, but he wasn't wealthy in his own right."

"Your family is pretty convoluted," she said. "You and Dana are orphans."

"We are," I said with a sigh. "Neither one of us likes our adoptive parents. They're tolerable, but only. We have each other."

"It must have been hard to find out that Eric was cheating on Dana.”

"I wanted to kill him," I replied and leaned against the counter. "Honestly, it was the closest I've ever come to violence. John had to hold me back from driving right over to their house and punching him in the face."

Alexa nodded and smiled softly. "John is a good friend if he kept you from doing it. That would have done no one any good. You'd be charged with assault. Your sister would be angry with you, and would probably side with Eric."

"I know, I know," I said, the thought still making my heart race, my blood pressure rise. "Luckily, cooler heads prevailed and I went to talk to a marriage counselor instead. She told me to let Eric know I knew about his infidelity and that if he didn’t stop, I'd tell my sister."

"You thought hiring Lexxi911 would accomplish the same thing?"

I nodded. "Yep. I didn’t trust myself alone with him. Honestly, I get angry just seeing his smug face."

"Violence is never the answer. Seriously. I know."

I examined her face. An expression of dismay crossed it. She'd only spoken briefly about her bad relationship. Her last boyfriend had been a control freak and that she felt she had to leave Portland because he was stalking her.

"Tell me more about Blaine."

She forced a smile. "I'd rather not. You know all you need to know about him. Let’s say I escaped with my life and leave it at that, okay?"

"Sounds serious. Did he hurt you?"

She lifted her shoulder. "Not really badly but he would have." She sighed audibly so I knew it would be better to drop it.

"Sorry to pry. Let's move on to more happy matters. Like how do you like your steak cooked? And please, don't tell me well done with ketchup."

I grinned at her and she smiled back. Her smile was so infectious that I couldn’t resist kissing her, and so I pulled her against me, my arms around her waist. She seemed a bit startled but leaned into my embrace, her arms slipping around my neck.