Page 50 of In This Together

‘Uh-uh. I’m not finished just yet. AndIhave started my baby-daddy dates.’ She clapped her hands quickly three times. ‘So, raise your glasses, ladies. To three thirty-odd-year-old women winning at life.’

With less enthusiasm than her own, Hannah raised her glass first and said, ‘Meh, take your wins where you can get ’em, I suppose.’

Rosalie held her glass against Hannah’s, and they waited for Andrea to join them. Andrea bore holes in Hannah with her eyes but eventually raised her glass too.

They quickly ordered food, to make sure the others could eat and get back to work. Andrea also ordered a ginger-based mocktail.

‘Don’t you like the champagne, Andi?’ Rosalie asked. ‘I could choose another?’

Andrea shook her head. ‘It’s great, Ros, and a nice thought. I’ve just been struggling with terrible indigestion these last few days. It’s like fire in my chest. It wasn’t helped by Hannah buying me chipotle for lunch yesterday, though.’

‘Hey!’ Hannah said. ‘I got you lunch, didn’t I? Nothing like being grateful, huh?’

Rosalie was used to seeing Andrea and Hannah bicker. They were the oldest friends of them all – closer even than Andrea and Sofia’s sisterly bond – but there was a snappy tone about them both today.

‘It is part of your job to get me lunch. That is, when you’re in the office,’ Andrea jibed.

Ouch.

‘My kid has been sick.’

‘There’s always one of your kids sick.’

Wow, okay, that was vicious.

Hannah’s head snapped back as if Andrea had slapped her. ‘That’s a low blow, Andi. Don’t have a go at me when you’re actually just pissed that… Forget it.’

Thinking quickly of something to say to break the arctic air, Rosalie said, ‘Andi, actually, I have a little favour to ask of you. You know how Sofia has been helping me to get some experience in the music industry, like, more production-y type stuff? Well, I was thinking I could come to XM and see how you do things some time, too. I mean, I know you won’t have the time to show me all the digeridoos and what not but if I got that from the indie side, like you trained, then you showed me the more exec side, then I’d be…’

‘What? You come to XM?’ Andrea snapped. ‘Ros, I don’t have time to have you playing around in my office. I have a job to do.’

Rosalie gasped, unintentionally theatrically. ‘An-drea. I need all the experience I can get to prove to Daddy that I can run my new label. And he always talks about you, so I figured if I?—’

‘What label?’

‘The recording label. That Daddy is giving to me at XM. We’re going to be music label sisters.’ She beamed as she clapped in her seat.

‘Is this a joke? Hunter is going to gift you a label? He can’t do that. There’s an exec. A board. And besides the obvious governance issues… you don’t have the first clue about running a music label.’

Stunned, Rosalie could only stare at her so-called friend.

‘Andi,’ Hannah admonished quietly.

‘No, Hannah. It is ridiculous. You can see that. It’s… farcical.’

Rosalie pressed her hand to her pounding heart in her chest. ‘Iknewit. Youdothink I’m ridiculous. All the… All the things I do for you and I ask you for one small thing, just one time.’ With her napkin, she dabbed at the wetness that had formed in the corners of her eyes. Andrea could be so cruel.

Then she felt Andrea’s cold palm on top of hers on the table. ‘I’m sorry. When you have your label, of course we can swap tips. Okay? I didn’t mean to upset you.’

‘You’re just saying that because you think I’m causing a scene.’

‘No. No, I’m not, Ros. I mean it. It’s just this damned heartburn has got me in a foul mood. Promise.’

‘Come on then, Ros,’ Hannah said. ‘Tell us about your baby-daddies.’

‘Oh, yes.’ She bounced on her seat. ‘Well, I had my first daddy date last week.’

‘I thought the idea was that you were looking for fancy sperm, not romance,’ Hannah said.

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