8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Archer

Crispin was absolutely adorable, and contrary to what he seemed to believe, he was one of the most interesting men I'd met. The whole point of him coming up to my place was to work on his webpage, but all I'd done was listen while he told me all about his life.

He was so passionate about helping others that, I swear, if money wasn't necessary, he'd make every single thing at Harmony and Joy free. To my way of thinking, the fact that we had the same middle name was more of a coincidence than something we had in common, because there were much bigger things we shared. Things like passion for our work and a willingness to put in the time and effort to succeed.

However, if he was going to succeed, I needed to stop focusing on his beautiful blue eyes and get his webpage done. That was why I closed the laptop and shoved it in my satchel instead of leaving it here in my living room.

"I'll take this down with us, and we can work on your site while we eat."

I thought I saw a flicker of disappointment before he nodded. "Yeah, I guess I did waste our whole afternoon prattling on and on about how much I loved sound healing and how important it is to balance your chakras and stretch your body."

"Crispin, you didn't waste our time. I loved hearing about the passion you feel for what you do and for the people who come to your classes."

He let out a small, nervous chuckle. "I really do love it."

"I could tell. Now let's go get some food."

We made our way down the massive staircase to the ground floor. I grinned as I watched Crispin looking out over the lobby area from the stairs. I remembered when I first moved here and how impressive I found the place, but just like with my home, over time, I'd gotten used to it and it became normal.

"It's pretty amazing, isn't it?" I asked.

"It is. I've really only gone upstairs when I'm dashing so it made more sense to hit the small stairway near the doors or if I was headed up more than a few floors to take the elevator, but this is just amazing. It takes you back in time, you know? Like I can picture us all dressed up in fancy clothes headed down the ballroom for a party."

"I'm so used to the old ballroom being the gym, sometimes I forget that they used to have amazing parties here."

"They did. The Windsor was the fanciest place in town. It was where anyone who was anyone stayed. I read all about it when I first came to work for Aziza. The history of a place contributes to its energy, so it's important."

"Well, you'll have to tell me all about what you read." And I meant that. I didn't know anything about a building's energy or anything, but what I did know was I loved listening to Crispin talk about things he was excited about. While I did know a lot about the history of the Windsor—you couldn't be friends with Hitch and not know—I would love to hear his unique perspective on it.

"Oh, well, I only know a little. I'm sure Hitch could tell you all about it. I can tell from the way he decorated that he took some time to learn its history."

I could tell Crispin knew plenty, and if he were my boy, we'd have a nice long talk about not downplaying how smart he was. But for now at least, it wasn't my place to tell him what to do.

"I'm sure he could. You know, I bet you two would get along great." Hitch had mentioned that he'd met Crispin, but I was surprised he hadn't said more than that, considering how much Hitch loved this place, and it was obvious Crispin did as well.

"Oh, I don't really know him. I've only talked to him a couple of times and mostly about the studio." He bit his lower lip and glanced down. "Honestly, he makes me a little nervous."

"Hitch?" I asked, more than a little shocked. Hitch was a really personable guy, so I couldn't imagine why he'd make anyone nervous.

"Well, yeah. He's my landlord, or at least he will be once I buy the Harmony and Joy. He could decide the studio isn't a good fit anymore, or that he wants to raise my rent, or that I'm not a good businessperson, or… well, or anything that means I have to find a new location. I figure the best thing I can do is to be polite, professional, and keep my distance."

"Umm, maybe we should go somewhere else for dinner," I said. I was sure Hitch would be in the bar. He was most nights, and the last thing I wanted to do was make Crispin uncomfortable. Hitch was a great guy, and Crispin didn't have any reason to be worried about interacting with him, but he didn't know that, and I didn't want to push him to do something he didn't want to do.

He froze and looked at me. "Why? Am I right? Is it best if I avoid him? Do you think he might actually think the yoga studio is bad for the building?"

"What? No, no Crispin, not at all. Hitch hasn't said anything but good things about the studio. I just didn't want you to be anxious about eating in the bar since he's usually there."

"Yeah, I've noticed that you hang out with him there a lot." He paused and got a slightly panicked look on his face. "Not that I was like, watching you or anything. I don't mean that. I just meant, you know, like when I walked by the bar, I would see you sitting there sometimes."

How cute that he worried I might be upset he'd been watching me. At least I hadn't caught him standing outside my window staring at me while I contorted my body into positions that made him imagine all kinds of things he could do with my body. Nope, that was all me. I mean, seriously, it had been days, and I still couldn't get that out of my head.

"But anyway," he continued. "I won't be anxious if you're with me."

I felt my chest puff up with pride at the idea that he'd do something he'd been afraid to do before because my presence made him feel safe.

"Okay then, let's go eat." We turned to the left to cut across the lobby area, and Crispin paused in front of one of the photos hanging on the wall.

"See, this is what I mean by Hitch honoring the history of the hotel. See how he chose a picture that shows the old ballroom? This whole room was designed to let in light before electricity was an option, and the big doors on the top with the open balconies allowed people places where they could observe the people dancing below. Mostly Mothers keeping an eye on their daughters to make sure no hands were scandalously placed. Can't you just picture it?"

"I can, actually."

"Yeah, me, too. They did such a great job with these photographs. Like they're modern, but they have this nostalgic feel to them. I love this photographer's work. And the ones in the hallway over by the Luxe. Oh my gosh. They're stunning. I love owls, and there's one of an owl that I'd love to have, but I can't justify the price. Not that I think he's overcharging. I just mean, with me wanting to buy the studio and everything, I can't afford to splurge."

"That one of the owl is pretty amazing."

It truly was. It was one of my favorite pictures I'd ever taken. I'd been camping up in the mountains during a full moon. I was headed down to the lake, hoping to get some good shots of the moon reflecting off the water when I heard a sound off to my right, and there was an owl sitting on a branch watching me. His whole body was backlit by the full moon, like he was just waiting for me to take his picture, so I did. It was priced higher than most of my works because it had won numerous awards that year.

"I've wondered if the artist has ever given any thought to selling prints. I could probably afford the cost of a print."

"He has, actually, and I bet if you asked, he might even consider giving you one."

"Oh, I could never. I mean, all artists should be paid for their work." He paused for a minute when he realized what I said. "Hold on, how do you know he's thought about it?"

I chuckled and pointed at the signature on the photograph. "AJ Baptiste." He looked at me like, yeah, so what? So I spelled it out for him. "Archer. Jean. Baptiste."

"Archer. Like, as in you?"

"Yeah, like as in me."

"No way! I thought you only took, like, pictures of kids in your studio down there." He pointed down the far hallway towards my studio.

"I do take a lot of photos of little kids, that's true, but shots like that owl are what I really love."

"That's so awesome. I can't believe you let me go on and on about them and didn't tell me."

"Well, like most artists, I love to hear people say they like my work." I shrugged. "Now, let's go to the bar and get you some food."

Crispin

When I didn't think I could crush on Archer any harder, he had to go and reveal that he was the photographer of all the beautiful photos hanging around the Windsor. Handsome and a truly talented artist. I'd already been a little awestruck by him before we'd ever spoken, but after today… gah . He was so attentive, and he seemed to care about everything I had to say. He made me feel seen in a way that no man I'd ever been interested in had before. He made me feel special.

As Archer and I walked into the bar, he steered me toward his friends, Hitch and Bram, and another guy I'd never met before. "Mind if we join you?" he asked them when we reached their table.

Holy shit. He expected me to sit with them? Eat in front of them? Goddess, I hoped I didn't make a complete ass of myself.

"Please do. It's good to see you, Crispin," Hitch said as Archer pulled out a chair for me.

"You, too," I said with a wave as I sat down, then wanted to hide in embarrassment. Waving? What, was I five?

But Hitch merely smiled kindly. Archer placed a chair at an angle next to mine and set his laptop on the table. "You know Hitch, Crispin, but let me formally introduce you to Bram Evans, who runs the bakery."

Bram immediately stretched his arm across the table, holding out his hand to mine to shake. "Hey, Crispin, it's nice to officially meet you."

"H-hi." My voice came out so squeaky that I was starting to hope the floor would open up and swallow me. Personally, I thought Archer was the most handsome of them all, but that didn't mean Bram wasn't intimidating. Between his sexy five o'clock shadow and his deep, gruff voice, the man was smokin' hot.

Archer snorted, then pointed to the blond man I'd never seen before. "That's Cort Thompkins. He's a private investigator."

"Really?" I asked, whipping my head toward him. "I've never met a PI in real life. What's it like? Is it dangerous? Have you ever had to work with the police before?"

Cort responded to my enthusiastic greeting with, "It's pretty good. Sometimes, but not usually for me. And only once. Also, it's very nice to meet you, Crispin."

Hitch snickered. "Well, Bram, guess you're not as interesting as Cort. You barely got a hello."

Archer snickered and threw his arm around my shoulders. "Don't worry, Bram. He's a yoga instructor, so sweet treats aren't really his thing."

Turning from Cort, I took advantage of Archer touching me and cuddled in, while pouting. "What do you mean? I ate all the pie you bought me from Luxe."

Hitch and Cort both cackled, and Bram rubbed a hand over his chest. "Damn, Archer. Pie from Luxe? That hurts, man."

Archer snorted, hanging his head. "What?" I asked, confused by their antics. They were acting like teenage boys heckling each other. Moving my gaze back to Bram, it hit me. "Oh, you have a bakery." I knew coming down to eat with Archer and his friends was a terrible idea. "I'm sorry. I'm sure if we hadn't had lunch at Luxe, Archer would've suggested we stop by your bakery."

Cort leaned an elbow on the table. "So you had lunch together, and now you're here for dinner, huh?"

"Uh…" Well, crap. "It's not what you think."

"I'm sure it's not," Hitch said, winking at me.

Archer gripped my shoulder and leaned in, whispering in my ear. "Don't mind them. They're just jealous that they didn't get to spend the afternoon with you."

"Okay"—Bram leaned both elbows on the table—"this just got interesting. You spent the whole day together?"

What had Archer been thinking telling them that? They were already insinuating that it was more than business. "Yes. Because Archer's helping me." Slamming my hand down on the top of his laptop, I continued, "He took pictures of me, I mean, my studio." Good grief. I hoped I didn't hurt his computer.

"I bet he did," Bram muttered.

Archer wadded up a napkin and threw it at him. "I'll have you know, Crispin's designing a website. We had lunch, and then he came up to my place so we could pick out the best photos."

My face heated, knowing we didn't do any of that because I babbled at him all day. Like he knew what I was thinking, he covered my hand where it still rested on his laptop. "It ended up being one of the best afternoons I've had in a while getting to know Crispin better."

Startled, my gaze jumped to his smiling face and the sincerity radiating from his eyes. Oh. "It was amazing."

His smile widened, and I felt my own lips stretch into a grin that probably looked like it was taking over my whole face. Someone cleared their throat, and I jerked my attention back to the other three men, who all appeared amused.

"Can we see the pictures?" Hitch asked.

Archer squeezed my fingers. "It's up to you. What do you think?"

I shrugged. "Uh, if you really want to."

"I do," Bram said immediately. "I've never been inside Harmony and Joy, so I've always been curious. Although, from what I've seen when the blinds are up, it's gorgeous."

With one last rub to the top of my hand, Archer gently pulled his computer out from under me and opened it up. "I got some great shots, but you really need to go inside, Bram. As beautiful as the space is, it's how peaceful it is inside that will blow you away."

Shifting in my seat so that my knees touched Archer's legs, I asked, "Really? You felt peaceful?"

He stopped clicking on the keyboard. "It's like being wrapped in a warm hug the minute you step inside." He winked and went back to work.

Gah . I knew he'd been listening to me, but Archer using my own words back at me when I described the atmosphere I was going for in the studio made me feel all melty. He was older and so put-together, and yet, he'd taken in everything I said. I'd been wanting a man like that my whole life. It felt as wonderful as I'd always imagined it would.

"Here they are. Push the right arrow to scroll through. You can see some of the foot traffic through the windows leading outside, but I won't clean them up unless Crispin decides he wants one of them." Archer pushed his laptop to the other side of the table where the three men sat next to each other. I watched nervously as they clicked from one photo to the next, and Archer grabbed my hand, threading our fingers together. "Don't look so scared. They're going to love them. I had a great model."

I peeked at him out of the corner of my eyes, whispering, "Thank you." He winked, and we both went back to waiting while they scrolled the pictures.

"Damn, Archer, you're really talented," Cort said.

"These shots of you will look fantastic on the website, Crispin," Hitch added. "You look…"

"Trustworthy," Archer said when he trailed off. "Knowledgeable. Peaceful."

"Zen," Bram said. "I'm not even sure what that word means, but I've heard it tossed around enough to know that he looks it."

Feeling self-conscious at their flattery, I opened my mouth to explain the official definition of Zen, as well as the everyday term, when Cort leaned toward the screen. "What the…" His cheeks paled as he fiddled with the keyboard, looking like he'd seen a ghost.

"What's going on, man?" Hitch asked.

Followed up with a, "Are you alright?" from Bram.

Cort's head lifted, and he stared at Archer with disbelief. "I'm going to need you to tell me exactly when you took these pictures and where."

Archer exchanged a worried glance with me, then nodded. "Of course. But what's wrong?"

Slumping back in his seat, Cort rubbed a hand down his face, sighing deeply. "You captured the image of my brother. He's been missing for four years."

Well, shit.