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“Yes.” I cleared my throat. “I’m fine.”

“I work here. And even though my job is technically to shell out mints and tampons, I do offer advice for free, if you need to talk.”

“How could you tell something was wrong?”

The bathroom attendant pointed to her eyes. “Mascara. It’s running.”

“Ah.” I looked at myself in the mirror. Indeed, I was a bit of a raccoon. I’d been on the verge of crying several times. Some of those tears must’ve escaped.

Fuck it. It felt almost like I heard a voice say that inside my head. And then I was pouring my heart out to this total stranger, starting with my affair and ending with my current status. I didn’t even know this woman’s name.

“You want my opinion?” she asked.

At this point, I had nothing to lose. “Sure.”

“I think you telling Rafe to take the job was your way of punishing yourself for cheating on Calder.”

I considered that a moment. It was an interesting take. I’d assumed I was protecting Rafe, but if I dug deep enough, there could’ve been an element of self-punishment. But I wasn’t prepared to dive too deeply into that at midnight in a nightclub bathroom.

She tilted her head. “If Rafe doesn’t return, would you consider going back to Calder?”

I sighed. That was too much and made my head spin. So I thanked her for listening and politely excused myself.

Back at home later that night, I had to continue stopping myself from contacting Rafe. I was wired, unable to even consider sleep. I sat on the couch staring into space, and I realized I could again hear Calder’s footsteps up above. They eventually moved across his apartment and down the stairwell.

Then there was a knock at the door.

CHAPTER 39

“Uh…hey.”

Calder’s eyes did a quick sweep over my body before lifting to meet mine. I hadn’t yet changed from my night out.

“You look…” He seemed to debate whether to finish the sentence before the corner of his lip quirked. “Smokin’ hot.”

I smiled. “Thank you.”

His face fell. “Were you on a date?”

“No. I went out with a friend from work. Lacey. We went dancing.”

Calder shoved his hands into his pockets and nodded. “Cool.”

Seems I wasn’t the only one dressed up for a Friday night out. He wore a linen button-down shirt and slacks that emphasized his narrow waist. The material stretched tight over his muscular thighs. Calder always did a lot of weighted squats, and it showed.

“You look nice, too,” I told him.

“Thanks.” He paused. “I had a date.”

The words landed like a quick punch to the gut, but Calder was watching me closely, so I kept my face perfectly still. “That’s nice.”

He waited. Maybe he was expecting me to pry, or at least show a reaction. Instead, I changed the subject. “How’ve you been?” I asked. “I haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Busy. My office did some restructuring, and I stepped up to take on more work. I wanted to show my boss I wasn’t the flake he saw when we were in London.”

I made a face. “I’m sorry.”

He shrugged. “It worked out for the best. The guy who beat me out for the position is freaking miserable. Two of the biggest clients left, and he’s taking all the heat. I pretty much escaped a disaster.”