Page 70 of Reply All
She heaves a sigh and stops to stare at me. “It’s fine. You’re here. Go get yourself a drink and scan the party for Iris. If you see her, text me. I’ll do the same if I find her first.” With that, she turns on her heels and disappears into the crowd.
Checking she’s out of sight, I head towards the bar because, if I’m going to endure the rest of this night, I’m going to need a cocktail. And a strong one at that. It’s a work event, and of course I need to focus, so I remind myself to keep my drink limit to one. But when I’m hit with a familiar scent at the bar, my whole body tenses in anticipation, head swims with it. Because I would know that orange blossom and vanilla scent anywhere—even surrounded by a crowd.
WILL
Every time he thinks there’s no possible way she could be any more beautiful, she ends up outdoing herself.
Her beauty truly is unmatched.
Her heart is one in eight billion.
Bridget Quinn is all he’s ever wanted.
And she’s here.
Fuck.
24
I LOVE NEW YORK. AND YELLOW CABS. AND YOU.
The image is so impactful, it does something to my soul. Such a welcome surprise. Such horrible timing. Still, how funny is it he’s here? Though I shouldn’t be surprised—it is the company he works for, after all.
When he sees me standing there, his laugh catches in his throat and he chokes, eyes widened in shock. “What are you doing here?” he sputters.
I take a physical step back, shocked by his reception. “I—I told you. I had a work thing.”
He sets his drink down at the bar and mutters some goodbyes to his… colleagues? Bosses? I’d say friends, but they all look to be at least twenty years older than he.
“This was your work thing?”
“Obviously.”
“But it’s a Stevenson thing. You didn’t think to tell me? Since I work for the company after all?” His voice is light, but something in his eyes has me unsettled. What the hell is going on?
“I wasn’t aware I needed to ask your permission to do my job, Will. Plus, you had originally said you had nothing to do so I didn’t think you were going.”
He rubs a hand down his face and sighs. “Sorry. I realize how dumb I sound right now. Like I’m questioning you or something. I’m just surprised, is all. I didn’t expect to see you here. This isn’t something lower-level employees from the company or our vendor’s companies usually attend.”
“Well, it must be different because you’re here tonight, too, right? And I’m just here as Lena’s date.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah.”
Something about his less-than-warm reception gnaws at me. Contrary to his reaction,Iwould’ve been happy to have him here. It would’ve meant bonding over how much we hate work events. We could’ve talked endless amounts of shit about our bosses and coworkers together. Without ever spilling too many corporate secrets to each other, that is.
I roll my eyes and wave down the bartender, who looks me over appreciatively before grinning and leaning over to meet my eye.
“What can I get for you, darlin’?” His southern accent is thick, his blue eyes shining bright. If I weren’t head over heels for the irritating guy standing next to me, I swear I’d be giggling just from his smile alone.
Will’s body tenses at my side, but I ignore him, choosing instead to order a glass of champagne. By the time the bartender brings me a full flute, he still hasn’t apologized. I thank the bartender and begin to walk away, only to have Will stop me by gripping the upper part of my arm.
He drags me to the side of the ballroom behind a column, hidden away from the rest of the guests. “I’m sorry. That was rude of me. You caught me off-guard, is all.”
I refuse to meet his eye, keeping mine instead on the marble wall across from us. He moves to stand in my eye-line, forcing me to finally look at him.
“Seriously, I’m sorry. I get nervous at these work things because my boss is here, and he’s the worst and utterly unpredictable, and you look amazing, and I was blindsided. I’m here solely for work and I swear the first thing I thought of when I saw you was how fucking gorgeous you look and how much I want to take you home. I never would’ve thought that the worst thing that could happen tonight was to have you here as a distraction, but there it is.”
