Page 89 of When Stars Collide
“Of course I do. We have a history together. Nothing will ever change that.”
“But there’s someone else, right? At least, that’s the impression I got last night.”
I shook my head. “For a split second, I thought that maybe there could be, but I was wrong.”
“Well, it’s his loss.”
“If I had known you were a kiss ass, I would have tried to do the whole sister thing sooner.”
She struck me with my pillow, turning it around so that the crocheted message faced me. “Okay, I have to know the meaning behind this.”
I explained the meaning of the pillow; I explained that and everything. Melissa and I spent the rest of the evening catching up on the time we’d lost, which had basically been all of it. We were up so late that she decided to spend the night at my apartment, promptly leaving early the next morning to meet our mother at their hotel to prepare for their return flight to Ohio. Before she left, she penned a note, not wanting to wake me. A note that simply read:
Sis,
I love you.
*****
I sat at my desk on my first day back, completely lost. My brain was still at home in bed, wanting nothing more than to be anywhere else but here. Cursing myself for not having done any work at all to keep my mind sharp and the brain fog at bay, I flipped through the stack of papers on my desk, settling on a manuscript Phineas had asked me to go through shortly before my surgery. There was no better place to start, I suppose. I had just begun to dive in when a knock on my door startled me.
“Welcome back,” Phineas greeted me, looking just as hot as he had the night of the opera.
Get a grip, Mena. He rejected you, remember?
“Yes, I’ve been combing through the warm welcome awaiting me on my desk this morning.”
“Perils of the business. Do you have a minute?”
“Yeah, sure.” I swallowed hard, already nervous about the content of our discussion.
He entered my office, closing the door behind him, looking just as apprehensive about speaking to me as I was to be spoken to.“About that night at the opera, I—”
“You don’t have to explain anything. You’re right, things went too far. We should remain professional.”
He nodded, clearly relieved as he took a seat in the chair across from my desk. “Still, it was my fault. I got caught up in a moment and should have stopped myself. I’m sorry.”
“Honestly, I’ve forgotten all about it.”
Phineas winced, briefly stung by my comment before he managed to shake it off. “Are we still on for the red carpet event in three weeks? If I must spend the night hobnobbing and kissing ass, I’d really like you there as a buffer to keep me sane.”
I thought about his request, remembering I’d already agreed to be his plus one months earlier. If nothing had truly changed between us, I should honor my commitment and get over myself and the pain being around him may cause me.
I nodded. “You know me and how much I love kissing some ass.”
“Thank you,” he sighed, relieved. “I know I’m supposed to be getting used to events such as these, but they’re still so exhausting.” He fell silent, and I could sense he was watching me shuffle through the manuscript I’d picked up. Since he walked in, I’d been purposely avoiding looking at him, or breathing through my nose, dare I catch a whiff of the same cologne that had invaded my nostrils the second my lips touched his. “You wouldn’t happen to have a formal gown, would you?”
“Should I wear my Saturday gown or my Friday gown?” I snorted.
“That’s what I figured. Since this is a work event, and I’m asking you to attend as a favor, I want you to use our company credit card and buy a gown. Deidre’s is nice, if you need suggestions.”
“I’m not even going to ask how you know where to find the best women’s formal wear.”
“I’ve been in relationships before, I— Oh, you meant that as a slight.”
“A slight? Me? Never.” My hand clutched my chest as I stared at him in faux shock.
“All right, then. Maybe I won’t tell you the next bit of news I came in here to share with you.”
