Page 71 of Book Club Confidential

Tessa hurried onward, forcing back the tears.

“What’s this about?” Millie demanded as Tessa reached the elevator.

She jammed her fingertip against the call button, commanding herself not to lose control at the office. Do not cry! She screamed inwardly. Not until you’re in your car!

“Tessa!” Xavier snapped.

“It’s six o’clock,” Tessa said. She cleared her throat when it cracked. “I have an event in an hour. I can’t miss it. It’s important.”

“This is important!” He pushed passed his ex-wife in the narrow hallway, and Millie gave chase.

“Xavier!” she scolded. “Calm down!”

The elevator doors parted a second later, arriving like the getaway car it was. She hurried onboard and turned to press the lobby button.

“If you leave this office,” Xavier warned. “After I’ve told you how important this is—” His face passed every shade of red to eggplant. “Don’t come back.”

Millie yanked his arm. “No! What are you saying?”

“Leave now, and you’re fired,” he clarified, eyes hard. Threat made.

“You can’t fire her,” Millie said.

“I can,” he said. As the doors began to close, he added, “I will.”

“No,” Tessa said, chin up and shoulders square. “You won’t, because I quit.”

The doors sealed before her, and her tears fell wild and free.

It wasn’t fair. Wasn’t real. She loved her job. She loved her clients.

And she’d let it all go, because the altruistic, strong, and confident heroine in her story wouldn’t have tolerated being talked to that way.

Too bad the very real version of her couldn’t survive on fictional money.

Shit!

Chapter Nineteen

Tessa arrived at the Winthrop Grand at the exact moment she’d promised. She’d skipped curling and pinning her hair into the updo she’d found on Pinterest, skipped the full-face makeup she’d spent the previous night practicing with an online tutorial and the slow, methodical “everything shower” she’d hoped to enjoy before the big event. She did not, however, let her friend down. And that was all that mattered.

A crowd of paparazzi, members of local media, and onlookers gathered along the street opposite the historic hotel. Many snapped photos and called out to attendees as they waited to enter the building. Tessa recognized more than one familiar face from her For You page as they exited outrageously priced vehicles at the valet.

“There she is!” Hallie’s voice rose through the white noise, and Tessa pulled her eyes away from the cars in search of her friend.

Hallie rushed toward her, bare shoulders curved against the wind.

The temperature had dropped steadily since Tessa left work, and the occasional sound of distant thunder put her on edge. She and her friends had already been rained on once at this bar, and it couldn’t happen again tonight. Kate needed this night to be perfect.

The wind picked up as Tessa trudged toward Hallie. The fervent gusts plastered Hallie’s thin satin-and-gossamer gown against her skin. The fawn-colored liner clung to her petite form, while the deep-purple overlay added a sexy, edgy appeal. Combined with her newly cut and colored hair, she looked like a manic pixie.

She’d gone light on the makeup per her usual style, opting for ivory foundation to match her flawless skin, long eyelashes with liquid liner, and lip stain the color of a fresh bruise. As promised, her military boots peeked out from the long slits on either side.

Tessa grabbed Hallie’s hand when they met near a stone column, several yards from Kate and a circle of women taking selfies. “This is wild!” she said, motioning to the crowds.

“Look at her,” Hallie said, smiling widely at their friend. “She’s practically glowing.”

Tessa squeezed Hallie’s icy fingers as they rushed to Kate’s side.