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“You too,” I say, though I wonder if she can feel the racing of my heart that started the moment I saw her.
I have no idea if she’ll bring up Ryker and drop details about his life in Canada. I’m not even sure if I hope she does, or if I hope she keeps this completely professional without any mention of the family at all.
“Thank you for meeting me. I know that your business is extremely busy so I can’t tell you how happy I am that you’re at least considering helping us.”
“We’re certainly willing to try to help you as best as we can. We brought on some extra help recently so we’re able to accommodate more work.”
“That’s great news. I know this is a big ask, but I also know that this could be huge for you as well. We have many clients that host large charity events, corporations that throw big parties, and one of our clients is the event planner who puts on the Super Bowl every year. I will make sure that you never miss an introduction to any of these high-profile clients who could potentially send you big ticket item projects.”
I knew that this would be an important meeting to agree to. I’m glad I didn’t let my nerves get the best of me and chicken out. I won’t let Ryker spoil anything else in my life.
“Where do I sign up?” I ask.
She laughs.
“Good. I’m glad to hear that. The art showing is in ten days and this is a huge up-and-coming artist so we want a huge splash. There’s no budget for this. It just needs to be done right.”
I pull out my tablet and start writing down notes.
“Do you have thoughts on inspiration for this show?”
She smiles. She likes this question.
“The artist has a very Parisian inspiration so let’s go with that. Not an obvious Paris theme but the color pallet, the food, that kind of thing.”
“Perfect. No problem. Shawnie, my assistant, loves the whole Parisian aesthetic, so I’ll put her as the lead on this one,” I say, jotting down more notes.
There’s a small silence that sets in as I’m writing. I look up to see if she got distracted but she just stares back at me as if she is studying me.
“Is something wrong?” I ask.
“Your ring.”
Shit.
My hands turn clammy instantly and I feel like I can hear my heartbeat in my ears. I’ve been caught by my soon-to-be ex-husband’s sister.
I forgot to stick it in my pocket before I walked in. Not taking it off is hard wired now into my brain and I hate it that I can’t seem to bring myself to take it off.
I lift my hand and straighten out my fingers, locking my sights down on the diamond that represents so many broken promises.
“Right, well… we’re not technically divorced yet so I guess…”
I have no idea what to say next. What do you say to an almost total stranger who’s also your in-law and the woman who has probably seen Ryker since he came home… without his wife.
But there’s a part of me that’s mad at her a little too. She sat in that kitchen and lectured me about how I was the one who could hurt her brother. The fact that she thought I held enough of his heart to crush him is almost laughable now.
But I gave him more of me after she told me he was in love with me. I believed she knew him well enough to know his heart. It turns out that none of us know Ryker at all.
“I need to tell you something,” she says, biting down on her lip as if what she has to say isn’t something she should say at all. “And I’ve been debating whether or not I should get involved…”
I try to swallow down the clog in my throat at how serious she looks as her eyes narrow on me and she leans in a little.
“Ryker might kill me if I tell you this, but I think you deserve to know…”
Oh God, please don’t tell me he’s seeing someone else. I don’t think my heart can take it.
I just sit there, waiting to be run over by a semi-truck and flattened like a pancake.
