Page 103 of Forget Me

28

MIMI

Beingat the country club without Mateo last week was nothing compared to walking into the gala alone on Valentine’s Day.

I had no gentle giant to hide behind as I stepped into the country club’s ballroom on the too-high heels Ben had helped me pick out, in the way-too-sparkly rose-gold sequins, with my too-generous boobs too close to popping out of the wrap-style gown.

And I could have used his sturdy support tonight, especially with the printouts in my clutch. I gripped the papers, wishing I didn’t have to ask Larissa about the foundation’s rainy-day account that had been emptied last night.

Most people wouldn’t have even known about the rainy-day account. I checked the balance once a month when I updated the balance sheet. But after a few weird transactions I’d had to ask Larissa to explain, I’d set up an alert on it.

The oddest thing about it was the deposit in my PayMo account that matched it. I’d reversed the deposit, but something funny was going on. I had to find the courage to ask Larissa about it tonight. And tact so it didn’t sound like an accusation. Not a good look from someone who wanted her to hire me.

But if I didn’t straighten this out, it would look like I’d embezzled from the foundation. That would be hard to explain to the state board when I went to renew my CPA credential.

With all that hanging over me, I’d considered armoring myself in a pantsuit or even asking Ben to help me find a different dress, definitely in fade-into-the-background black. But the bright sequins buoyed me like I still had Mateo’s strength beside me. And, despite what I’d told him, I needed that.

Natalie loved the dress. I’d sent her a photo of it—the G-rated one, not the one Mateo had taken with his hands splayed across my breasts and hips and his lips at my neck. She’d been texting me daily with questions about the gala even though she could’ve planned the event in her sleep. I saw through her ruse and loved her for it. She worried about me, thinking Mateo and I had fought. Little did she know.

All my attempts to scrub him from my life had failed. Although I’d washed them four times, my sheets still carried his scent. Every time I got a whiff of cigarette smoke, I thought of him and wondered if he’d been able to quit for good.

And here I was, wearing the dress he’d chosen for me. When I’d tried it on, he couldn’t keep his hands off my skin, my hips, even the curve of my belly.

Despite the gown’s long sleeves, I shivered.

Maybe I was coming down with something.

“Mimi!” Natalie strode to me, so sophisticated with her long legs and elegantly flowing wine-red gown. Even though the cowl neck swooped practically to her navel, her better-behaved boobs stayed hidden under the silk. “You look fabulous!” She grasped my shoulders in a half-hug, careful not to crush the carefully arranged drape, and air-kissed me so we wouldn’t spoil our lipstick.

“Thanks. You’re stunning, as usual.”

“Thank you.” She flipped her blond hair to the side and looked over my shoulder. “Where’s Mateo?”

I didn’t want to give Larissa another strike against me, so I’d been careful not to mention our breakup during our gala meetings. I’d prove to her I could stand on my own, even wearing a boob-revealing gown at a gala where I felt like I’d peeled off my skin to let everyone gawk at the muscles and tendons beneath.

“He couldn’t make it.” I gave Natalie a tight smile.

Her smile drooped. “Oh, no. I hoped you two would work it out.”

There was no point in lying to her anymore. “Honestly? We were never together. It was all fake. Though I’d rather you didn’t tell Larissa. She doesn’t need another thing to criticize me for.”

“Wait, what?” She scrunched her nose. “Fake?”

Revealing the lie felt like I’d taken off a forty-pound backpack. I breathed as deep as my shapewear would allow.

“We were just friends. Well, not even that.” Friends would’ve called each other in the two weeks since our fight at his place. “He was helping me out because Larissa said I needed to bring a date to the gala. And then things got out of control when he became part of the committee.”

She winced. “Sorry, that might’ve been my bad. Though it didn’t look fake. Especially that night we went dancing.” She gave me a piercing stare that was oddly reminiscent of the look her brother Jackson had given my dead laptop. Like she could fix me, too.

“Well, it was. Fake. At first. Then it was less fake and…” And the ten days it had been real had been the best of my life. I hated to admit it, but I missed what we had. Though I couldn’t say that. Tonight, I had to be Wonder Woman, a boss bitch who was killing it at her volunteer job. Not a sad, lovelorn sack like Barbara Minerva before she transformed into Cheetah.

Lovelorn? No, I wasn’t lovelorn.

Was I?

I squared my shoulders. After a quick glance to ensure the girls were behaving, I said, “We’re not together anymore, and I’m not planning to see him again except when I have to for family things.”

Her kind brown eyes went so soft my own eyes prickled. “I’m so sorry. Are you all right?”

---