Page 3 of Tour Wars
Dusty nodded. “You applied, too, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, but I got rejected. Then I found out TJ was super tight with the professor who organized the panel. When I accused him of having an unfair advantage, he insisted he’d gotten accepted on his own merits. Which is total bullshit. What made it worse was that he kept bragging about all the amazing connections he made at that symposium.”
To be fair, a lot of academics were just as boastful as TJ, but none of them grated on Emilia’s nerves like he did.
She continued. “Then, in December, we got into a month-long debate on ArchForum.”
Dusty groaned. “No. That online forum is full of toxic archaeology bros.”
“No kidding. I made the mistake of starting a discussion about Bronze Age climate change. Naturally, TJ came at me with his own theories and got his buddies to take his side. He’s always looking for ways to undermine me, like at today’s panel.”
What made it infinitely worse was that TJ never got riled up the way she did. He was so sure of himself that he sailed through life with a smug confidence she secretly envied.
When Dusty didn’t reply right away, Emilia’s hand tightened around her cocktail glass. “I sound paranoid, don’t I? Do you think I’m blowing things out of proportion?”
Her friend gave her an impish smile. “What I think is that you mention his namea lot. I get that you’ve decided he’s your personal nemesis, but…”
A rush of heat flooded Emilia’s cheeks. “But what? Are you suggesting I’m secretly pining for him and trying to cover it up by acting like he’s my sworn enemy?” The words tumbled out with more fury than she’d intended, but Dusty’s grin only widened. Like she knew she’d hit her mark.
Dusty raised her wineglass in a salute. “You said it, not me. For what it’s worth, I don’t think TJ was trying to sabotage you today. Sounds like he was just presenting his own research. I mean, the topic of the session wascontrastingtheories on the collapse of the Bronze Age.”
While her friend’s logic made sense, Emilia couldn’t bring herself to agree. “Sure, but he didn’t have to be a dick about it. Now I’m worried I botched everything.”
“You have more interviews tomorrow. Maybe then you’ll be in a better frame of mind.”
“Maybe.” Pushing aside her anger, Emilia tossed back the rest of her drink and crunched the last bits of ice between her teeth.
Dusty drained her wine and set down the glass. “If it helps, last year when Stuart did his interviews, he was sure he’d tanked. Then he landed an awesome teaching job at the University of Boston.” She scanned the room. “This whole scene makes me so grateful I dropped out of grad school last fall. I’m just happy to be here as Stuart’s plus-one. Speaking of which…” She waved him over. “He must be done schmoozing.”
In Emilia’s opinion, Stuart was a little too tightly wound, but Dusty adored him, and he treated her like a queen. The two of them had known each other since childhood, but they’d only started dating last August, after they worked together at Troy.
Stuart came to stand beside them at the bar. He placed his hands on Dusty’s shoulders and kissed the top of her head. “Having fun? Or plotting future shenanigans?”
Dusty grinned up at him. “What makes you think I would ever get up to any trouble? I’ve only had two glasses of wine.”
“Do you want another round?” he asked. “Or are you ready to call it a night?”
Emilia couldn’t miss the way he caught Dusty’s eyes and the smile she gave him in return. That secret, knowing smile of a couple that can’t wait to get into bed and start screwing like rabbits. She waved them away. “Get going. I’ll be fine.”
“You sure?” Dusty asked.
“Yeah. I’m just about done for the night. I’ll see you tomorrow, right?”
“Definitely. Let’s meet up for lunch. I’ll text you.” Dusty pulled a few bills out of her wallet and left them on the bar. “Have a good night. I’m sure you’ll crush those interviews.”
Emilia fought off a pang of wistfulness as she watched them walk away. Her romantic life was nothing like Dusty’s. For the past year and a half, she’d been on a self-imposed dating hiatus. All because her last partner had broken her trust and left her emotionally gutted.
Rather than go up to her room, she ordered another mojito. She sipped it slowly, savoring the taste of mint and lime. If she was lucky, the buzz would ease the negative voices in her head.
Until another, more annoying voice broke into her thoughts. “Anyone sitting here?”
And because fate was such a fickle goddess, of course it was TJ.
CHAPTERTWO
Emilia scowled at TJ, who stood beside her, holding a bottle of beer. He’d changed out of his business attire but still looked maddeningly attractive in jeans and a dark green Henley.
He gestured to the empty seat. “Okay if I join you?”
