by Mika Lane
If he couldn’t figure it out, to hell with him.
* * *
By the time I arrived at work, my mood had gone from crappy to all out horrendous. How could he not have told me he was leaving town? Jesus, I was an idiot.
“Nara,” Mimi called as I whizzed past her. “Coffee?”
“Thanks, Mimi. That would be great.” I must have looked like shit, because her eyes widened ever so slightly when I turned to her. Makeup drawer, here I come.
I listened to my voicemail messages while I put my face on. The first was from Becca.
“Nara, sweetie, your mom says you’re not coming back for the reunion. Is that true? I’m so bummed. Everyone is just dying to see you.”
Right. Everyone was just dying to see the class slut. I didn’t think so.
The next message was from my mom.
“Well, Nara, you’ve succeeded in disappointing a lot of people with your stubborn refusal to come home. I just don’t understand it. It’s not like you had a horrible childhood or anything like that.”
Had I had a horrible childhood? Probably not. But a Norman Rockwell childhood it hadn’t been, either.
The last message was from Simon.
“Nara, I’ve been thinking about what you said. I’d like to talk.”
Oh. My. God.
Had we broken past our standoff? Might I finally be rid of him?
Joi popped in and handed me a coffee. “Here you go. Mimi asked me to bring this back. She seemed kind of afraid of you this morning.”
Note to self—apologize to Mimi later. And call the creepy faux husband back.
“Yeah, I arrived in a fury. I’m fine, though.” I forced a smile.
“Mmmm. You don’t look fine.” She leaned onto my desk. “I know you. I know when you’re fine, and I know when you’re not. Spill it.”
Ugh. She was right. I was horrible at hiding my moods, especially from her.
“Well, I spent last night with Brodie.”
Her face lit up with the kind of excitement usually saved for winners of the lottery. The big lottery.
“Ooooh, was it hot?”
If she only knew…
“It was great,” I said, nodding. “Until I woke up this morning to hear him talking about moving to San Francisco. Apparently, it’s supposed to happen very soon.” I caught the hitch in my throat before Joi heard it.
“He’s moving and didn’t tell you?” she asked with raised eyebrows.
“Correct. Apparently, he’s leaving town. Never bothered telling me. Nice guy, huh?” I slammed my desk drawer so hard my pencil cup went crashing off my desk. There went another Mommy Knows mug, smashed to bits.
“Maybe there’s some kind of misunderstanding?” she asked hopefully.
After picking up the shards of my mug, I huffed back into my chair. With nowhere to put my pens, I just dropped them on top of my desk where they landed like Pickup Stix.
“I don’t know. I don’t care. I’m just done. Done, done, done.” I buried my face in my hands.
Joi jumped up and put her arm around me. “Okay. I’m sorry, sweetie. This just sucks. Hey, look at me.”
I took my hands off my face. “Yeah?”
“We have a big day ahead. Let’s focus, and afterward, we’ll go out for a nice dinner.”
I nodded slowly. I needed a damn vacation. Maybe I should have planned to go back for my reunion. No wait, scratch that.
That was the last thing I needed—to feel like even more of a freak than I did when growing up there.
We got to work on the last of our testing. We had to make sure our app could confidently tell the difference between number one and number two.
Such a glamorous life I led.
Chapter 30
Brodie
Nara had run out of my place like her pants were on fire. Strange, because she never seemed to worry much about being late before. Clearly, something was up, but she had split so fast I couldn’t ask what was eating at her. Maybe she hadn’t liked the club after all? Had I pressured her to go? God, I hoped not.
I’d get to the bottom of it. First, though, I had to get to work.
I started by calling my lawyer.
“Joe, Brodie here,” I said.
“Hey there. Hope all is well.”
“All is well, and I think it’s about to get better. Go ahead and send the buy-out papers to Wooten’s and Evershire’s attorneys. I’ll call them in a little while. We’ll see what they say, and I’ll leave the door open for a counter offer. I suspect they’ll be surprised as hell.”
“Got it. What else?” Joe asked.
“Next, my brother in San Francisco has rounded up a group of investors to open a sister hotel there.”
“Wow. That’s amazing news.”
“It is. I’m psyched. Can you draw up partnership papers for this? I’ll email you all the pertinent info. And one last thing.”
“Yes?”
“I’m moving to San Francisco.”
“Oh, you lucky bastard. I love that city.”
“I do, too. I have some things to wrap up here, but the New York hotel will be in good hands with my general manager. And I’ll be back and forth all the time.”
“So now you’ll be breaking hearts on the West Coast. I guess you ran out of women here in New York?” He laughed.
“It’s funny, but the shoe is on the other foot these days. I’m the one who may end up with the broken heart.” But I had a plan for that.
Next, I got my partners on the phone. I suspected they’d be shocked as hell when they found out HWE Enterprises was about to drop the W and the E. That is, if all went according to plan.
“Brodie,” one of them said, “to what do we owe this honor?”
“Hey, guys.” I didn’t want to hate them, especially since my father essentially stole money from their fathers. But because of all that went down, I was pretty sure they hated me. Or at least resented me. To be honest, couldn’t say I blamed them.
“I have a proposition for you,” I started.
“Brodie,” one of them interrupted, “we’ve already told you we’re not interested in the San Francisco expansion—"
“That’s not what I’m calling about, guys,” I interrupted. Might was well try to keep it friendly. I got to the point. “I’m prepared to buy you out of HWE. To release you of the partnership by paying a lump sum balance of what you’re owed.”
“Well, Brodie, no need to be so rash—”
“This isn’t rash at all, Steve. I’ve given this a lot of thought, and I think what I’m offering is more than fair. It covers what’s owed to you in damages due to my father’s actions.”
“Um…well…I don’t—” one of them said.
“Look, guys. I’m going to be straight with you. I know you’ve wanted to get rid of me. I don’t know why, since it was my hard work that turned Hotel Vertigo into what it is today. But I know you wanted to buy me out. And now I want to buy you out.”
“Well, Brodie, we’re not really interested in an offer like that—” one of them said.
“Wait,” the other chimed in, “What is the offer?”
Now I had them where I wanted them.
“My lawyer is sending over the papers within the hour. I think you’ll find them more than generous.”
I ended the call. My plan of catching them unaware worked perfectly. It would take them some time to digest all I’d said, but by the time they got my offer packet, the pump would be primed. Honestly, it was an offer they couldn’t refuse.
Wow. Moving to San Francisco. It was a long way from New York, but I was ready for a change and to see my brother on a more regular basis. I wondered, however, if it would be far enough to escape the guilt of my father’s sins…?
Now to see if Nara wanted to be part of my plan. I hoped to god she did.
Chapter 31
Nara
The day flew, and by the end of it, my mood had upgraded from crappy to hopeful but resigned. The Mommy Knows softw
are sensors were working like the champs I knew they were, and that was a huge load off everyone’s back. The moms who had come in for the day’s test had raved about the results, thrilled that they might be able to know their little ones had a dirty diaper before they got some kind of nasty rash, or worse, someone smelled it.
I’d left Simon two messages but strangely had not heard back. I was hoping against hope we’d reached some sort of détente, and that I would get my divorce with no further trouble.
But who was I kidding?
And I’d pretty much convinced myself to just let the whole Brodie thing go. He was just one guy, like many others, who’d come into my life. I’d had some fun with him, and I’d forget about it in due time. No harm, no foul.
And yet…
No. I would not waste my time thinking about how he touched me and was so in tune with me that a single look from him made me weak in the knees. And then there were those dark eyes that looked at me like he saw every bit of who I was.
Yeah, right. Forget it.
I straightened up my desk and headed to Joi’s cubicle.
“Well, look who left her laptop on her desk,” she said, observing my lack of tote bag.
I nodded. “Yup. I’m leaving it here. We’re going out, and I’d like to try and forget about work for one evening. Just one.”
She stood up and grabbed her things. “I’m with ya on that, sweetie. Let’s roll.” We headed out the door like we had serious business to take care of. And we did.
Five minutes later, Joi and I settled into a dark paneled place staffed by hipster bartenders with man buns, retro mustaches, and bow ties.
“What’ll you have?” she asked me.
“Scotch. On the rocks.”
“Damn. Goin for the hard stuff. All righty then, I’ll join ya.”
The first sip of the brown liquor burned the hell out of my throat and reminded me why I hardly ever drank the stuff. And of course, it reminded me of Brodie. Ugh.
“So what’s the latest with the wedding?” I asked Joi.
Talking about it thrilled her to no end, and I was happy to oblige. I could sip my burning scotch, toss back a few of the salty peanuts they’d set before us, and smile and nod. The problem with that, though, was that my mind wandered back to exactly where I didn’t want it.
Joi’s elbow stuck in my side. “Are you listening?”
I perked up. “Yeah. Of course.”
Hand on hip, she asked, “Okay then, what was I just saying?”
“Something about purple tablecloths and white flowers?” Not my taste but whatever.
“No. No, that is not what I was talking about. I said we’d decided on white tablecloths and purple flowers.” As offended as she was, you’d think I’d called her baby ugly. If she’d had a baby.
“I’m sorry, sweetie. I’m distracted. You busted me.” I shook my head.
Ugh.
Joi put her hand on my arm. “Okay, hotel guy is moving across the country. What are you gonna do about it?”
“Huh? There’s nothing to do about it. He doesn’t even know I know. Apparently, he didn’t care enough to mention it to me.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. I was not going to cry over that jerk.
“Look,” Joi said, “you want my opinion?”
Not really. “Okay.”
“You don’t have the whole story. I know you don’t like me telling you this, but I’ve seen you jump to conclusions before. You drive yourself crazy. You drive me crazy.”
I shrugged. “Yeah. That’s me.” I took another sip of my scotch. It wasn’t burning nearly as badly now.
The phone rattled in my pocket.
Guess who?
we need to talk. are you free?
I put my phone face down on the bar. Time to change the subject. “So the tests went well today, didn’t they?”
“What? Oh yeah.” She nodded. “Pretty exciting. Now that our proof of concept is solid, do you think the investors will come through? I mean, with some nice, green cash?”
“Ugh, I hope so.” I hadn’t been working on this damn software application every day of my life for the last several years for it to go nowhere.
My phone vibrated again, skittering a few inches across the bar.
I picked it up and yes, it was him again. A knot in my stomach tightened.
“Who is it?” Joi asked, craning to see my phone screen. “Oh, it’s him! Answer it!”
I turned my phone away from her. “Do you mind? This is personal.”
i’m serious. i need to see u.
Joi threw her hands up in the air. “He has no idea you are tweaked at him. At least give him a chance.”
i’m out with joi.
where can I meet you?
why do you want to meet?
c’mon. it’s important.
all right. come meet us at epic grill.
c u in 20.
I put my phone down. “He’s on his way here.”
“Thatta girl! Talk it out. I’m sure everything will make sense soon.” A huge grin was plastered over her face as if she’d won the lottery.
She kind of had won the lottery. Unlike me.
* * *
Brodie entered the bar like he’d been born in the place. That’s how confident he was, never looking out of place, never facing a moment of faltering confidence.
What must that be like?
I watched him over Joi’s shoulder as he scanned the bar, looking for us. When his gaze met mine, my heart nearly pounded out of my chest. Damn him.
“Ladies,” he said with a quick peck on my lips. He shook Joi’s hand, leaving her beaming like she’d solved the world’s problems.
“Brodie! So nice to meet you,” she gushed. That’s the effect he had on women.
He took a sip of my drink. “Whoa. Going for the hard stuff.” He raised his eyebrows at me.
When I tore my gaze from his magnificent face, I saw Joi gathering her things.
“You guys. I am just exhausted,” she said with great drama. “And I have another early day tomorrow.” She gave Brodie a squeeze on the arm, which she clearly enjoyed, and leaned to hug me.
“Don’t be a bitch,” she whispered in my ear.
I made a silent plan to kill her first chance I got.
“Good night all!” she sang as she sauntered out of the bar.
That left just Brodie and me, staring at each other. He climbed into Joi’s vacated bar stool and shook the ice cubes in her half-drunk scotch.
“So,” he started, “what was with the quick exit this morning?”
He didn’t waste any time, did he?
I shrugged one shoulder. “Big day. Yeah, I had a big day. In fact, our testing went really well today—”
He held his hand up to stop me.
“No. That’s not why you left.” He looked serious. “I need you to be honest.”
Well, shit.
If he wanted honesty, he was going to get honesty.
I took a sip of my drink and straightened my back. “I overheard you planning your move to San Francisco.” I looked at the ice melting in my drink, leaving wavy lines as it mixed with the booze.
He ran his fingers through his hair and sighed loudly. “So you just leave? Without a word?”
I chewed on my bottom lip. “What was there to say? I heard all I needed to.”
He looked up at the ceiling as if he were counting to three. Then he turned on his barstool to face me directly. “I’m sorry.”
I shrugged. The sooner this ended, the better.
He continued. “I’m sorry you heard only part of the story.”
“What else is there to know?” I asked.
“That I want you to come with me. To San Francisco.”
Chapter 32
Brodie
So that’s why she’d hightailed it out of my place that morning. Thank god I’d chased her down and gotten to the bottom of her silent treatment.
I don’t know what she did to me, but I was just wrec
ked by her. Nothing was as important as it had been before. Not the hotel, not my dad’s misdeeds, not my business partners. Nothing.
And you know what?
It felt damn good.
There was a clarity in all this that I’d never had before. Like a fog had lifted, and I knew how to get where I was supposed to go. It narrowed my focus, and for a change, I knew exactly where I should be heading.
Nara. It was Nara.
“So, will you come with me to San Francisco?” I repeated.
She looked at me like I was crazy. Which was to be expected.
She crinkled her nose. “What? No. I can’t move to San Francisco. But I wish you well there.”
Clearly, my work wasn’t done. Not that I’d expected it to be a slam-dunk.
“Why?” I asked.
“Why what?”
“Why can’t you come to San Francisco with me?”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, for one, I have a company here. A company that is about to take off.”
She had a point. But I’d thought that through.
“Okay. Why else?” I asked.
“Because…my life is here. I don’t want to leave New York.” She was shredding the bar napkin in her hands.
“Anything else?” I asked.
“I barely know you. And you barely know me.”
She had me on that one. And she was absolutely right.
I put my finger under her chin and turned her face toward mine. Very slowly, I lowered my lips to hers, barely touching them. Drawing back, I could see her eyes had fluttered closed, her lips relaxed and receptive.
So I dove in to seal the deal.
I returned to her mouth, devouring her lips until she gasped for breath. I didn’t care that we were in public. If anyone had anything to say, they could just fuck off.
“Brodie,” she whispered.
“What, baby?” I pressed my forehead to hers and inhaled her clean hair. God, I loved that smell.
I looked at her beautiful face, framed by masses of dark waves, her red lipstick smudged thanks to my hungry kiss. A single tear ran down her cheek.
