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“Do you really believe in that kind of thing?” I thought I had at one point in my life, but after all the shit that happened, I wasn’t so sure anymore.
“I believe in chemistry, and the two of you definitely have that. And if you have chemistry, you have everything. The only other thing you need is timing. That can sometimes be a bitch.”
“A cruel bitch,” I said with a sardonic laugh.
“Maybe he’s back because the timing is officially right. And you will have me to thank for that. You do realize that, don’t you?”
“How so?”
“I hired him for the photo shoot, remember? That was all me. So now you have to name your firstborn child Catherine.” Her expression told me she was dead serious, but her brown orbs danced with mischief.
I howled with laughter. “I don’t think we’ll ever get to that point, so that’s one promise I don’t think we could keep.”
“I don’t know. I’ve seen the way he looks at you. Especially when he thinks no one else is watching him. It’s like he’s devouring you with his eyes. Trust me, I’m betting you could get him to make some mini-Mia and Terry’s.”
I stared at her with my mouth wide open.
“Oh, come on, tell me you haven’t noticed.” It was Catherine’s turn to look surprised when I shook my head no. “Well, next time, pay more attention to your surroundings and try to catch him staring at you.”
“Okay, but all I’m saying is it wouldn’t matter anyway. He already left me once. Who’s to say he wouldn’t do it again?”
“Hmm,” was all Catherine said, narrowing her eyes as she continued to watch me. “That was, what, five years ago?”
I thought back on it. Time had certainly flown by. I was sticking to my previous statement: time was a cruel bitch. “Yeah,” I confirmed for her. “Wow, I hadn’t realized it had been that long.”
“How long were you with Chad?”
I shrugged, cringing openly at hearing his name.
“Sorry, you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.” Catherine got up and came toward me, her warm brown eyes shining. “You realize that, with your interesting life, you could totally have your own movie?”
I could tell by her tone she was teasing. I laughed out loud. “I suppose I could, but it would make for a pretty boring one. Once I was able to rid myself of Chad, I lived a pretty boring life. I did whatever I could to get this company off the ground. Did my best to stay out of the press and keep a low profile. Kept myself hidden from the rest of the world.”
I felt my eyes tear with the last admission. I wiped a stray one away and got up to fetch a bottle of water from the minifridge in my office. I didn’t actually need it. I just needed to be out of Catherine’s watchful gaze. The woman was too insightful.
“Maybe it’s time to start living. You’re doing wonderful things with this company.” She spread her arms out, gesturing at the space around us. “You healed from what he did to you, and now you’re whole again.”
I swallowed hard at her reference to him.
“Maybe it’s time to make yourself happy. You light up when you talk about Terry. Whenever he talks to you, your smile is a mile wide. Sometimes it’s completely sickening,” she teased. “But he’s good for you. Maybe it’s time to confront the demons of your past head-on so you can move on with your life.”
I shrugged.
“Just think about what I said. No man is an island—or so some famous poet once said. Believe me, I’ve tried doing it on my own. It’s lonely. You don’t want to spend the rest of your life only half living. Let him make you feel alive again, and take this chance with him.”
“Man, I’m really making you earn your keep for this job.”
Catherine laughed. “Okay, fine. Wreck our serious moment when I’m trying to be all poetic and wise. Make a joke out of it, if that’s what you’ve gotta do. Just make sure you think about what I said.”
“Okay,” I promised her.
A knock on my office door caused us both to turn toward it. As if he knew what we had been talking about, Terry strolled into the office, his cowboy boots leading him over to us.
“Miss Catherine, Mia,” he said, tipping an imaginary hat.
“Terry,” I said, my cheeks flushing.
“Cute,” he said with a wink. “I have some proofs for you to review. Whenever you have a minute, come find me.” I swallowed as I felt his words all the way to my core. “I wanna hear your thoughts.” Once again, he tipped his hat and left my office.
