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“Yeah, I’m an official stalker.” She chuckled. “I’m proud of you, Zane.”
He cleared his throat, unsure what to say at her admission. He went with ignoring it. “Yeah, so Draven effected an intro, and here we are.” He stirred his coffee with one of those wooden sticks even though he took it black and without sugar. “How long have you been back in New York?”
“A few months. I moved back to America years ago, basing myself on the West Coast. California. I love being back in the east, though.”
“No place like home,” he murmured.
“So true.”
“How long did you stay in India?”
He didn’t even wince, although it hurt like hell to acknowledge that time. Go me.
“Six years. I completed my degree over there then went to work for a large consultancy company which turned out hella useful for when I started my own business. I learned a lot during my time there. Then, like I said, I settled in California until a client—not Dayton—brought me back to New York. Then I heard about the opportunity with Somers Tech. I pitched for the work and got it. I still wonder why.”
“You always did struggle with a lack of confidence.”
“Unlike you.”
She grinned, and his stomach flipped. What he wouldn’t give to thread his fingers through her hair, to tilt back her head and look into her eyes as he kissed her.
“I have my moments. Trust me.”
“Few and far between.”
His eyes locked on hers. “I thought I saw you a couple months ago in a restaurant on Thirty-Second Street, but I dismissed it. I wasn’t aware you were back in New York at that time. But it was you, wasn’t it?”
She ducked her head. “Yeah. I was meeting a prospective client. I panicked when I saw you and cut the meeting short. Blew the pitch, but what the heck.”
“I’m sorry.”
She hitched a shoulder. “I didn’t want you to see me and ruin your evening. You looked so happy, Zane.”
Looks were deceiving. All he recalled was how difficult it had been to maintain a façade of happiness. “I was celebrating my birthday.”
“Your birthday?” She frowned. “But your birthday is September second.”
She remembered a lot. Then again, so did he. “Too busy to celebrate on the day itself.”
Not entirely accurate. Brie had to work the weekend of his actual birthday as well as the two weekends following, hence they’d finally gotten to celebrate toward the end of September.
“Ah. I know that feeling. A CEO’s work is never done.”
Except Lori hadn’t checked her phone once since he’d sat down, and he’d had no desire to check his either.
“She’s very beautiful.”
He frowned, wondering who she was talking about. “Who?”
“Your girlfriend.” She glanced out the window, avoiding his eyes. “After I saw you at the restaurant, I went home and looked you up. I’d avoided doing that since…” She returned her attention back to him. “Well, you know. Anyway, that’s how I knew about your company. And your girlfriend. I’m glad you found someone special.”
Yeah. I did. You.
“We broke up. A few days after my birthday.”
Her jaw slackened, and she pressed a palm to her chest. “Oh, Zane. I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. It had been coming for a long while. Sometimes things just drag on, but it’s for the best. We parted on good terms.”
