5

A noisy construction site greeted Taylor as she trudged up the walkway of a worn looking building. It had been two days since she’d last seen Christian and it had been a welcome respite. With school, work and helping out with her brother, she hadn’t had the time to be his lackey.

She’d sent him her schedule the night before letting him know what days and times she was available that week, so it had been no surprise when he’d called her that morning telling her to meet him at this address.

Sidestepping a burly worker carrying a large wooden board, she walked over the threshold and paused as she tried to figure out where to go next.  Briefly noting the messy surroundings and the people working around her, she wondered how exactly she was supposed to help.

When Christian had said that he was opening a café, Taylor hadn’t quite imagined anything of this scale. While the place was faded and shabby, it had the bones and the size to be something really great. 

“Good, you’re here.” She turned around to see Christian coming down the stairs, a folder tucked underneath his arm.

“Hey,” she said, shoving her hands in her coat pockets. She couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable around him.  Some of it had to do with his personality, she just never knew what to expect from him. Some to do with his looks, she’d never been comfortable around very good-looking men. But mostly, it was the anxiety she felt partaking in this masquerade. It was like having an anvil swaying over your head and not knowing when it would fall and crush you.

“You’re free for the rest of morning, right?” he said, striding over to her.

She nodded. “Yeah. What’s up?”

“I have a friend coming into town and I promised him that I’d pick him up but I can’t get away right now, so you’ll have to do it.” He reached into his back pocket and took out his wallet. He looked through one of the compartments, grabbed a few bills and handed them to her. “Take a cab to the airport and once he arrives do me a favour and bring him here.”

She took the money and brushed away the slight feeling of irritation at the demand. If she had to do this for the next three months, she’d have to get used to being ordered around.

“How will he find me? And vice versa?” she asked.

He removed the folder from his arm and after looking through it, handed her a piece of paper. Written on it in thick black letters was the name Carson Lee. “Hold that up at arrivals. If he misses you, he’ll call me and I’ll tell him where to meet you.”

The sound of a honk came from outside and Christian stretched out his neck to take a look. Noting the car stationed in the front, he turned back to Taylor. “That’s the cab. The plane should be arriving at 11:30 so you should leave now. Call me if you need anything.”

“Okay,” Taylor said, making her way to the front door. “Oh,” she stopped at the door. “What does he look like? Should I be looking out for something specific?”

 A grin came over Christian’s face. “Tall, dark haired and accompanied by a beautiful brunette.”

…

“Are you here for me?”

Taylor jerked up from her position slumped against the arrival gates and looked up into deep brown eyes. Tall, black hair … Taylor looked around … but no beautiful brun-

“Thanks for waiting Carson.”  A petite girl with long, dark hair came stumbling over to the man, reproof clear in her voice.

Taylor straightened up even more. Her passenger – passengers? – had arrived.

Carson Lee was a handsome man somewhere in his late twenties. While he wasn’t as disturbingly good looking as Christian, his sharp, masculine features were appealing in their own right.

As for his female guest – while Taylor wouldn’t quite call her stunning, she did have that pretty, fresh look that men seemed to love.

Carson ignored the girl and gave Taylor a once-over. “I’m Carson Lee. And you are?”

Taylor cleared her throat, rubbing the back of her neck nervously as she felt a sudden torrent of anxiety. “I’m Taylor Mooreland. Christian had a few things to do so he asked me to come get you.”

The girl peeked around Carson’s back and stared at Taylor unabashedly. “Cute,” she murmured, either to herself or to Carson, before sticking her hand out to Taylor. “I’m Alana Lee. Carson’s sister. Nice to meet you, Taylor.”

Taylor reached for her hand tentatively and shook it lightly. “Hi,” she said awkwardly. So they were siblings. Now that she looked at them, she could see the resemblance in the tilt of their eyes and the sharp slash of their cheeks.

She let go of Alana’s hand and took a step back. “So, uh, we should probably get going. Let me help you with your bags.” She grabbed one of Alana’s suitcases, pulled it up beside her and before either could ask any more questions, she marched towards the exit. 

“So, Taylor was it?” Carson asked stepping up beside her. “How do you know Christian?”

Taylor had hoped to avoid the question. How could she explain the odd relationship between her and Christian without bringing up the ridiculous and embarrassing situation she was in? They weren’t friends. They weren’t employee and employer. The only way to describe their relationship was as creditor and debtor and that wasn’t something she wished to say aloud. 

The only thing she could do was to fudge the truth. “Uh, I’m helping him out with the café that he’s opening and uh, some other stuff…Oh great, here’s a cab.” She rushed over as the cab driver hopped out of his vehicle and reached for the suitcase she was carrying.

She glanced over at Carson and noticed apprehensively that he was looking at her even more curiously than he had before.  Ignoring him, she watched the bags get stored into the trunk before she hopped into the front seat. It was her hope that if she sat beside the driver, Carson would keep the questions to a minimum. 

“325 Alliot Blvd,” she mumbled to the driver when everyone had gotten into the car.

She turned around to face the siblings letting them know where they were heading. “We’re going to the café now. Christian asked me to bring you guys there before he sends you home.” Without waiting for their reply, she turned around to face the front and got ready to ignore them both for the rest of the journey.

Unfortunately, for Taylor, Carson had other ideas. “So, what do you do, Taylor? Besides, helping Christian out with … stuff.”

She knew he was making fun of her but she pretended not to notice. “I go to school and I work,” she said, keeping the details to a minimum. 

“Is there a reason that you’re being so close-lipped?” he asked curiously.

“Is there a reason why you’re so curious?” she shot back, turning around to face him.

He grinned and shrugged. “I can’t help myself. I’m a curious person.”

Taylor noticed Alana eyeing them and smiling at the back and forth. Something about the way the siblings were smiling at her made the anxiety start to dissipate from her body. They had this relaxed air about them that would make it impossible for anyone to feel uncomfortable around them.

“Sorry. I’m just not that interesting of a person. School and work is the extent of my social life,” she said bluntly.

Carson raised a brow. “Uninteresting? Oh, I doubt that,” he said smiling at her. 

She gave him a slight smile before turning back around. Carson seemed like an okay guy. She wondered how he and Christian knew each other. And Alana -- Christian had called her beautiful. Did he have feelings for the girl?

Not that it was any of her business either way. Background history was for friends – not for, whatever it was she and Christian were. The less they knew about each other the best for all around.

…

“Carson.” Christian gripped Carson’s hand before giving him a short hug.

“You couldn’t come and get us at the airport, you lazy punk?” Carson asked when he was released from the hug.

“Look around you.” Christian waved at the construction site. “I’ve been busy trying to get this place up and running before the end of the month.” He gave Carson an abbreviated version of the reason he was involved in the project and shrugged. “This will be my life for the next three months, man.”

“Sounds fun. Hey, I have nothing on for the next couple of months. I could give you a hand if you want it,” Carson said, assessing the progress of the renovations.

Christian eyed him cynically. “You must expect to be really bored while you’re here to offer your services.”

Carson grinned. “Maybe I just want to help a friend out. Besides,” Christian saw him look out the window where Taylor was helping Alana put her bags into Christian’s car, “this place looks more fun than hanging out at my place for the next couple of months. Who’s the kid?” he asked.

“Who Taylor? He’s just a friend,” Christian said nonchalantly not elaborating on the situation. He didn’t feel like explaining it. Not even to his closest friend.

“He? Wait a minute, Taylor’s a guy?” Carson asked doubtfully.

Christian snorted. “Last time I checked.”

“Huh.” Carson shook his head. “I could have sworn he was a chick. Not that he’s particularly womanly in his actions but the face …” Carson’s voice drifted off as Taylor and Alana walked through the door.

Christian wondered at his friend. Sure Taylor was somewhat delicate facially and kind of short for a guy but nothing about him, not his voice or his behaviour, was particularly womanly. Taylor just needed to grow up – get laid, add a few life years on him – and he’d get rid of all the babyish things about him that made him look like a boy instead of a man.

“Christian!” He jerked out of his thoughts when Alana came bounding over to him, falling into his arms.

“Baby doll,” he mumbled into her hair. She felt so small. Breakable. He wondered if he’d ever stop feeling protective over her.

“Oh God,” Carson said with a roll of his eyes. “I think now’s the perfect time to make a few calls.” He walked away, phone already pressed to his ear.

Christian chuckled and looked back down at Alana. He’d known the Lees well over ten years now. He and Carson had been friends since high school and he was more like a brother to Christian than a friend. Alana was the little sister he’d never had. She’d always been under step when they were growing up and while Carson had found it annoying, Christian had found it pretty endearing – probably due to his being an only child.

“How was the flight?” he asked her.

She looked up at him. “Great. It was a very easy flight. I almost wanted to turn back, though, when I saw how much snow was on the ground. And I probably would have if dad hadn’t gotten me that internship at Belle Magazine. And you of course. I wouldn’t have left without seeing you,” she said with a sly grin.

Christian snorted. “Save it,” he said, tousling her hair and letting her go. “Listen, when this is all done, I want to put some kind of mural on the far end wall and I want you to do it.” Alana was a gifted artist and he was sure that she’d do something beautiful.

“I would love to!” she said excitedly. “I have just the perfect idea.”

As she drifted over to the wall, Taylor came up beside him. “Is there anything else for today,” he asked, looking more than ready to be on his way. “I’m not trying to get out of working or anything. I just have class at one and it’s already 12:30.”

Christian, realizing that he had kept Taylor longer than he’d intended, told Taylor to go. “But I’ll see you tomorrow at 4pm,” he reminded.

Taylor agreed, zipping up his coat. He sent Alana and Carson a quick wave and was heading towards the door when George walked through it.

George stopped in his tracks when he saw Taylor and recognition gleamed in his eyes. “Taylor, is that you?” he said in his deep bark of a voice.

Christian noticed that Taylor tensed up at the sight of George and when Taylor looked back at him, his eyes shifting guiltily on his face, he couldn’t help but feel his old suspicions about the boy resurface. What exactly was going on here?

“George, hello,” Taylor responded facing George again. “Good to see you. How long has it been?” he said, grabbing George’s arm and dragging the man towards the front doors.

Christian was about to follow them when Alana called him over. He sent one last look in their direction before going over to her. He was sure Taylor was up to something but what?

…

Taylor dragged George well across the garden before he had a chance to protest.

“Taylor, what’s going on?” he asked curiously, stopping in his tracks.

She stopped and faced him. What were the odds that her old employer would have found her here?

In high school, she’d been a server at a local diner where George had been the owner. He’d been a great boss and she’d enjoyed her time working there until he’d decided to sell the place. The new ownership hadn’t been anywhere as good a boss as George had been and it hadn’t taken Taylor long to move on to greener pastures.

She didn’t know what to tell him now. She was in such a strange position and if he knew the full story, knowing George, he’d probably march right into the café and punch Christian in the nose. As humorous as that might have been to watch, a pissed off Christian wasn’t of any benefit to her. So, she’d have to tell him some form of the truth without cluing him into the whole situation.

But what was George doing there in the first place? “What are you doing here?” she asked curiously.

“I’m managing the place, for a little while at least. What about you? What was that all about back there?” He folded his arms in front of him and gave her a stern look.

“Actually, I’m working for Christian,” she said fiddling with her ear. “We kind of met accidentally and he needed someone to do some odd jobs, so he hired me. The thing is George, he and I kind of got off to an odd start and he, and you’re going to think this is crazy, but he kind of thinks that I’m a guy.”

She watched his eyes go round in astonishment. “You’re kidding,” he said disbelievingly.

“I wish I was. The truth is, I haven’t told him otherwise because he thinks he’s hired a guy and if he knows I’m a girl he might call the whole thing off. And George, I really need the money.”

George looked concerned. “Is everything all right? Can I help? I know what kind of person you are Taylor, so I don’t mind lending you some money until you can pay me back.”

She shook her head even though she was touched by the offer. Sure, she’d worked for George for over a year but they’d had an amicable employer/employee relationship, nothing more. While it was very kind of him to offer her the money, she didn’t want to be beholden to him or anyone else for that matter. “I really appreciate that George but I couldn’t. I wouldn’t feel right. If you really want to do me a favour, please don’t tell Christian that I’m not who he thinks I am.”

George shook his head and sighed. “I’ll do what you ask Taylor but believe me when I say that lying about something this big will only lead to trouble.”

Taylor’s stomach dropped at the ominous words but she refused to let them get her down. All she had to do was make it through the next three months and this living a lie thing would be behind her.