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"You’re doing a fabulous job of it so far, Zara."
"That’s why I had a one night, which became a two night stand, with the possible Prime Minister to be of this country, and I might be pregnant with his child."
Silence descends on the room.
Isla looks at me with concern in her eyes. Solene stares at me with a shocked expression.
A woman clears her throat. "Umm, sorry, don’t mind me. Cade sent me in to make sure you were okay. But uh, I’ll just tell him you’re fine."
I glance up to find a woman standing at the doorway. I scowl at her, and she raises her hands, palms face up. "The door was open."
Fantastic.
"Who’re you again?" I manage to choke out.
"Uh, I’m Cade’s friend’s sister. Cade didn’t have a date to the gala, that’s the only reason he asked me to the ball and… Oh, god, I’m talking too much, aren’t I? I swear, I didn’t mean to barge in and listen to your secrets. And no, I didn’t just hear you say that you’re pregnant—I mean, possibly pregnant—with the child of the man who might be our next Prime Minister and… Hey, are you going to marry him?" She seems to run out of steam, finally, and glances between me and Isla. If Isla’s face looks anything like mine, it’s a combination of shock, horror, surprise, frustration, and maybe even a glimmer of humor—because, let’s face it, there’s a touch of absurdity to the proceedings.
Isla is the first to recover. She rises to her feet, marches to the door, shuts and locks it, then gestures to the sofa. "Take a seat please—what’s your name again?"
"Abigail. My friends call me Abby... But you guys are not my friends… Yet… But I’d like you to be. You’re Cade’s sister, after all." She looks at me with big doe eyes that carry more than a touch of hero-worship in them. Oh, god, she has a crush on my brother, and it seems, by transference, on me.
"Umm, Abigail—"
"Call me Abby, please." She locks her fingers together in front of her in a gesture that hints at her nervousness.
"Abby, please do sit down." I nod toward the sofa.
"Of course." She heads for the sofa, sinks into it, then glances between the two of us again.
"So, you’re Zara’s brother’s girlfriend?" Solene asks from the phone.
Abby presses a hand to her chest. "Oh, no, no, no, not his girlfriend.” Her cheeks pink. “I’m, uh, his friend’s sister."
"And you came with him to the ball," Isla murmurs before taking her seat again.
"Yes, and I saw what happened." Abby turns to me. "That was some fight, huh? They both held their own."
"Is Cade okay?" I ask.
"He has a shiner, but that only makes him look even more dashing." She bites the inside of her lip.
Isla and I exchange another glance.
"So, about what you heard when you walked in—"
"Oh, you don’t have to worry." Abby waves her hand in the air. "It’s been forgotten. I promise. In one ear, out the other. Nothing to it. Also, I know how to keep secrets." She mimes zipping her lips.
"Hmph." I look closely at her. Her gaze is open. Her expression indicates she has nothing to hide.
"No, really. I know when a person says that, you think the next thing they’ll do is turn around and blab out the secret to everyone. But I understand how difficult it must be to conduct a relationship when all the media attention is on you. So, you can count on my discretion."
I press a finger to my cheek. Can I believe her? Should I believe her? More to the point, when did I become so cynical that I couldn’t take a person at face value? Oh, wait, that’s because I work in a cut-throat profession, where I’m trained to disbelieve the words of people, and normally, they deliver on my suspicions. Still, my instinct says Abby made an honest mistake, and she means it when she says she’s not going to tell a soul. Doesn’t mean I’m not going to find a way to ensure she sticks to her word. "So, Abby, what is it you said you do?"
"Uh, I’m interning at a communications agency."
"Oh?" I tilt my head. "And are you looking for a career change?”
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