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The whole Donovan clan did.
Who needs family when the Donovans have my back?
And Lottie.
Don’t forget she has your back, too.
“So, is that why you’re calling me? To congratulate me?”
“Actually, I’m calling to see if you’d like to come to my birthday party this Thursday night at Roy’s Bar. It’s nothing fancy. Just a few close friends and clients will be there. You should come. You deserve a night out just to kick back and relax. In other words, I’m going to make sure that everyone hands in their phone before entering the bar. No risk of TMZ getting any videos or nasty pics.”
The first thing that pops into my mind is to ask if Lottie will be there, but then I remember that they are best friends, so Lottie will surely be there.
She wouldn’t miss Piper’s birthday for anything in this world.
And it looks like neither would I.
Chapter 25
Charlotte
I step out of the shower, wrap a towel over my wet hair, and walk over to my closet to see what I should wear for Piper’s birthday tonight. I scour through the closet and land on my Marilyn-Monroe-type dress draped on its hanger. My fingers run over the phantom feeling tingling over my lower lip as the few memories I have of the charity gala come at me in thunderous waves—Nate’s face taking precedence over everything.
He looked so gallant in his tuxedo.
Like a mercurial James Bond.
Everything about that night seemed magical, full of potential.
Until Riley tried to outbid me, that is.
Argh.
But she’s not even the worst part of the night.
I remember being on a balcony, the winter chill doing very little to cool the raging inferno that seeped through my blood. Like the sweet guy he is, Nate covered my bare shoulders withhis jacket, and when he thought that wasn’t enough to keep me warm, he engulfed me in his embrace.
Little did he know how close I came to kissing him that night.
Another minute in his arms, and I would have, because that was all I could think about throughout the whole night. I wanted to see if he tasted as good as he looked. If his kiss was as decadent as the spicy scent of his cologne.
Everything about Nate was tempting, and I couldn’t help but desperately want him to kiss me throughout the night. That he would take the choice away from me and just press his lips against mine. I shouldn’t have wanted that, though. Kissing Nate should have been the last thought to ever cross my mind. But God, how I secretly yearned for it, telling myself that one quick kiss was all I needed to stay sane.
And those types of thoughts are the very definition of trouble.
For both of us.
Maybe Becca is right. Maybe I didn’t take Riley as a client because, deep down, I don’t want to let him go.
These past five weeks have been incredible. Going out with Nate and getting to know him, really know him, has been the highlight of my day. Each day we had a date planned, I was giddy with nervous anticipation. It felt like being a teenager again, falling for the jock.
But I already went down that road once before with Coop, and I’m not a fan of repeating past mistakes. Back then, I was the geeky computer whiz who happened to catch the eye of the captain of the high school football team. Now, I’m a successful entrepreneur who can’t stop pining over a hockey player.
Sigh.
I push the gala dress back as far as it can go on the rack, pushing it away from my sight, before my guilty conscience sets in.
I might not have physically cheated on my boyfriend, but I’m not sure my heart can tell the difference anymore.
