Page 210 of By His Play

Shutting down my thoughts about the man who may or may not still be my best friend, I set out to get ready for work.

By the time I leave my apartment, my hair has been styled to perfection, and my makeup is flawless. On the outside, I look like I’m coping. But on the inside, I’m about to fall apart at any moment.

I don’t look at my cell all the way to the office. I tell myself to stay strong because I’ll either have nothing from him, which will hurt, or I’ll have a message...and something tells me that will be the most painful of all.

Seeing his face, his words...I’m not sure I can deal with that right now.

But despite telling myself all this, I can’t stop myself from reaching into my purse and pulling it out.

I hold my breath as I wake it up and stare down at my notifications.

I have quite a few, but as I scroll through them, my heart sinks when I discover that not a single one is from him.

A pained sigh passes my lips, and I stuff it back into my purse and try to put everything about Kieran Callahan to the back of my mind.

It works for two hours before I find myself face-to-face with the man I’m trying my hardest to forget.

I’m sitting in our monthly management meeting, trying to keep up with everything, frantically scribbling into my notebook when the office door opens, and a deep, familiar voice fills the room.

My entire body freezes, and I have to fight to keep my eyes on the paper before me.

I can’t look up and see him. If I do, I have no doubt that I’ll embarrass myself in front of my colleagues.

I already wonder what they see now when they look at me. Can they tell that I’m as broken as I feel?

“Kieran, it’s good to see you,” Henry sings.

Not only is Henry our CEO, but he’s a huge Chiefs fan and gets stars in his eyes every time Kieran steps inside the office.

Usually, I find it endearing to watch the man who’s always in control lose grip on everything in the presence of one of his favorite players, but not today.

Today, I just need to survive his presence.

It’s not unheard of for Kieran or one of his brothers to attend, seeing as they’re all on the board of directors. But it didn’t occur to me that today might be the day that Kieran decided to continue messing with my head and my body.

It would have been too easy to send Kingston or Kian.

Sucking in a deep breath, I try to school my features.

Of course, everyone knows we’re friends, and I’m sure they’re all more than aware of the recent scandal involving our fake engagement. But thankfully, everyone here is too professional to mention it. Although, I’m sure the gossip was rife when it first hit the press.

My skin tingles with awareness, letting me know where Kieran’s attention is long before my eyes find him.

But despite knowing, my breath still catches in my throat.

Just like last night, his expression is blank, not allowing anyone to get a read on him.

“Do you mind?” Kieran says after a beat of silence, gesturing to an empty seat.

“No, of course not. You’re always welcome. We’re just discussing plans for next year.”

“Fantastic,” Kieran says with a wide smile.

The sight of it would be enough to knock me on my ass if I weren’t already sitting down.

The second he lowers himself into the chair, I look down again, although not before I notice the attention of Alison, our fundraising manager opposite me.

“You okay?” she mouths.

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