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Seventeen
Sabrina accepted a wineglass from Veronica and sipped the golden liquid. It was good. Expensive, she’d guess. Seemed like Veronica to demand only the best.
The square breakfast bar where Sabrina sat was positioned at the center of a huge kitchen. The stainless steel gas stove had eight burners and a tall decorative hood. There were roughly two million cabinets painted a regal buttercream with carved gold handles.
“This is a beautiful kitchen.” It was the safest thing to say in this situation.
“For the amount of cooking done in it, it might as well be a bar.” Veronica’s smile was tolerant.
Sabrina honestly didn’t mind that they were here, but she wasn’t about to suggest Flynn come alone. Not that she thought anything would happen between him and his ex-wife, but Sabrina felt much better keeping an eye on Veronica.
“I always knew you liked him,” Veronica said.
Sabrina had been waiting for the gloves to come off. She didn’t have a snappy comeback prepared, but she was less interested in being witty than being honest.
“He’s been my best friend for a long time.” Predating you, she wanted to tack on, but didn’t. “We weren’t planning on dating. It just kind of...happened.”
“Uh-huh.”
“It’s true,” she continued as if Veronica wasn’t growing increasingly peeved about this conversation. “We went out on Valentine’s Day as friends. I was trying to extract him from the office since he’s been so stressed.” No thanks to you. “It was his idea to kiss me on the pier.”
The look on Veronica’s face was priceless. Sabrina was half tempted to pull out her cell phone and snap a picture for posterity.
“I was the one who asked him to kiss me again. We didn’t expect it to turn into more. Or at least I didn’t. I was testing a theory.” A theory that had since been proved false. The idea that Sabrina and Flynn could go back to just friends was as dated an idea as Pluto being a planet.
“I’m not sure there’s anything long-term there for you,” Veronica spat, “but you’re certainly welcome to look.”
Ouch.Gloves off, claws out.
“Oh, I’m looking. I don’t want to overlook it. Life is about trying. We never know if things will work out or not until we try. I didn’t expect your approval, and that’s not why we’re here.” Sabrina purposely referred to herself and Flynn as we. “I didn’t want you to spend the evening in fear.”
Veronica took a healthy gulp of her wine before tipping the bottle and refilling her glass. “How big of you.”
Sabrina had attempted to be polite, but apparently Veronica wasn’t going to reciprocate. Sabrina refused to sit here and take it.
“While I totally disagree with you for cheating on Flynn, I don’t begrudge you for following your heart. I do think you should have ended your marriage before you started an affair with your husband’s brother, though.”
Veronica gaped at her for a full five seconds before she managed, “How is that any of your business?”
“I’m here tonight at Flynn’s side. That’s how it’s my business.”
A condescending, but musical laugh bubbled from Veronica’s throat. “Oh, I see. You think this little rebound he’s having with you is going to last.”
Sabrina couldn’t help flinching. She didn’t like the word rebound. The word itself hinted that their affair was temporary and meaningless. What Sabrina and Flynn had was layered and complex.
“I disagree.” Not her strongest argument, but there it was.
Veronica’s brow bent in pity. “I’m sure you’re building castles in the sky about how you two are going to be married, have babies and live a wonderful, long life together, but, Sabrina...” She sighed. “Woman to woman, I’ll level with you. He’s not cut out for it.”
“I’m not building anything except for one day on top of the last. But I’m not going to waste time worrying and wondering about an expiration date.”
“He’s not working now, right? I called the office earlier this week to talk to him and Reid said that Flynn was on hiatus. Are you on hiatus with him?”
Thrown by the line of questioning, it took Sabrina a second to regroup. “I—I took my vacation at the same time as him, yes.”
“And how long are you two lovebirds off work together?”
She ignored the sinister smile and answered Veronica straight. “We go back around Saint Patrick’s Day.”
