Page 18 of The Hookup
“We weren’t allowed to take any. Sorry.”
“Friday, then,” said Erin, and spun around on her heels and left.
By the time Friday came around, she was back to her normal self, and the jetlag had worn off. Her productivity levels were high again, and she had caught up on everything. She and Erin were able to leave work early.
They jumped into a cab and headed for the bar where Luke worked, though Kay kept quiet about him. She prayed he would be working at the bar tonight because seeing him would make the end of the working week that much sweeter.
“This better be good,” Erin said. “What’s this place called again?”
“The Oasis.”
“I’ve heard of it,” said Erin, and looked as if she was scrambling for details. “Does it have a club in the basement?”
“That’s the one.”
A short while later, they were sitting upstairs in the rooftop terrace of the bar. “Thisiscool,” said Erin, glancing around the room. Kay agreed. It was. She’d been here once or twice before, with Savannah, but hadn’t paid as much attention to the place back when she hadn’t even met Luke. She looked around the room, hoping for a glimpse of Luke.
“Why do you keep looking around?” Erin asked. Her friend knew her well, so there was no point lying about it. “Wait,” she said, grabbing her wrist and not giving her a chance to reply, “Did you arrange to meet someone here? Am I…am I your gooseberry?”
“No!” Kay replied, then shook her head for emphasis. “It’s not a date exactly, it’s just that one of the bartenders from the wedding works here.”
“That’swhy we’re here?” Erin’s brows pushed together. “I knew it. Which one?” she craned her neck around the bar, scanning the clientele.
“It doesn’t look like he’s here,” Kay replied, feeling the heavy weight of disappointment. Seeing Luke had been her reward at the end of a tiring week.
“You had a holiday romance and you’ve said nothing to me until now?”
Kay turned around to set the record straight. “It wasn’t a holiday romance, and there’s nothing to tell—except for the wedding details which I’ll get onto when we’ve ordered our drinks.” She glanced over at the bar again, hoping that a miracle might have transported Luke to it.
“Why don’t you ask one of the servers if he’s working tonight?” Erin suggested, examining the drinks menu.
But she couldn’t do that. It would smack of desperation. And what if Luke had a girlfriend now? Who was to say he’d been telling the truth on the island? She certainly hadn’t been, even though she considered her secretary lie to be tiny in comparison.
When a server came over they ordered cocktails. Kay reined in the temptation to ask when Luke might next be in. Even if she wasn’t fully able to strictly follow Savannah’s ‘man-free edict’, she had to at least give it a try.
While they waited for their drinks, Kay told Erin as much as she could remember about the wedding. “You can’t tell anyone. I’m sure people don’t care, and it’s no big deal, but Tobias is a nice guy, and believe it or not, I feel like I’m doing the dirty telling you.”
“I won’t tell a soul,” replied Erin, with a degree of solemnity that looked fake. The server set down their cocktails and disappeared as discreetly as he’d appeared, leaving Kay to spill everything. She told Erin about the four day wedding extravaganza, and answered the many questions she had.
“Wow,” was her friend’s response at the end. “You lucky thing. You should have stayed out there for another week at least.”
“The newlyweds are using the island for their honeymoon.”
“I bet they christened every part of it.”
“It’s huge,” Kay replied, recalling her days there. “It would be a heck of a lot of christening to do.”
“She’s a lucky woman, your cousin.”
“I know.”
“But still, it sounds awesome. I don’t know how you managed to return to work and get on with things. I know you like to prove you’re as good as the guys, but after what you’ve described. I’m amazed.”
“The Pembroke deal is huge, and I’m lucky that he let me have a few days off at least. Plus, I don’t want Geoffrey thinking I can’t handle it. I have to prove myself every goddamn day.”
“I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes,” said Erin, chewing her lip as if the problem were hers. “How come you’re in charge of the Pembroke deal? It’s huge.” Then, as if she’d realized her mistake she quickly added, “I mean, it’s about time, too. He’s passed you over too many times.”
Kay nodded in agreement. “Maybe he wants to give Geoffrey something big, but he knows I’ll kick up a fuss if he bypasses me again. I can’t mess this up.” Geoffrey was a brown-noser, and Remington, for all his authoritarian sensibilities, seemed to like that.
