Tyler nodded. "I know the type."
She sighed. "I bet your parents tell everyone who will listen what a talented musician you are. They probably have your songs on heavy rotation."
Tyler couldn't lie. His parents were great and he knew it. He tried to cover a guilty smile.
"So you've been practicing law for what, ten or eleven years? Why didn't you just get a new job when you realized you were miserable? Try a different kind of law?"
His line of questioning may have sounded critical coming from someone with less empathy, but from Tyler, it brought honesty and self-reflection bubbling to the surface.
"The truth is, I'd developed an identity, a persona that seemed to exist separate from the real me."
Tyler gave her a pitying look. "Well, I have to admit, I like you both. Real
Alexis and Alternate Alexis. Like Coke Classic and New Coke."
"Oh, c'mon. Nobody liked New Coke."
"I have a confession," he said. "I liked Zima too."
She smiled. Now she knew he was lying, but she let him off the hook anyway.
He reached under the table to squeeze her thigh and her body rippled with pleasure.
"Ty," she began and he immediately removed his hand. He recognized that tone of voice.
"Sorry, it just felt so natural," he said. His heart beat so loudly in his chest, he wanted to yell at it to be quiet.
She lowered her gaze, searching for the right words. "I am very attracted to you…" That was an understatement. "But I…I," she faltered.
He waved her off. "No buts. I like the first part of your statement. Let's stick with that." He gave her a devastating smile and her insides trembled.
"I really do like you, Ty, and trust me when I say I didn't think it was possible."
"Gee, thanks."
She realized what she'd said and her cheeks flamed. "Not that it was impossible to like you, specifically." She stumbled over her words. "That it was possible for me to like someone."
He grinned again and she realized that he was teasing her. "I could get used to this," he proclaimed. "A tongue-tied Alexis MacAdams."
"You have only yourself to blame."
"Good, I don't want you to blame anybody else but me. I want to be the one who ties your tongue."
She couldn't resist a smile. Staring at her across the table, admiring her lush hair as it blew gently in the breeze, Tyler Barnes felt like the luckiest guy in the world.
After feasting on lobster and scallops at The Galleon, Alexis and Tyler went to Lottie's Greenhouse to watch the skaters on the temporary ice rink. A Christmas tree loomed in the background, illuminating the festive atmosphere. Even though the weather rarely dipped below sixty degrees in winter, islanders loved invoking the look and feel of Christmas to the best of their abilities.