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Megan knew they were going to hit hell when they let themselves leave this room and this paradise of understanding. They could ignore the outside world all they liked, but it wasn’t about to ignore them. After they’d made love again and he’d put coffee on—complaining about Megan’s perfectly good coffee machine as he did so—and toasted a couple of bagels, she allowed him to scroll through their mentions while she scrambled eggs. They had agreed not to talk to Yasmin until they’d eaten.
“Most of it is the fundraiser,” he said. “The official photos aren’t up yet, but the gossip sites have theirs.” He angled the phone toward her. “How do you like it?”
Megan paused and looked at the photo of the two of them on the red carpet. “Hey,” she said. “Look at us.”
“Flawless.Impeccabile.”
She had to agree. Whatever she’d learned from her years of scrutinizing fashion and how celebrities chose and wore their outfits had paid off. She allowed herself a pat on the back for how good the dress looked and how good she looked in it. When she was done cooking, she would have to make sure she tagged the store. They deserved their own post.
“What about the kids?” she asked, and Alessandro found shots of the students posing, laughing, pouting, and having the time of their lives.
“That’s wonderful,” she said sincerely. “I’m so glad. Do you think the community center can give them what they need to graduate from high school?”
“With the money you helped them raise? Yes. And the adult classes, too. I know Etta wanted to make a pathway for homeless people to get work skills. Now maybe she can do that.”
Megan’s PR brain jumped to press releases, updates, polls, photo opportunities. Then she remembered that, aside from a few official thank-you posts for the Studio, her work with them was officially done. She wasn’t prepared for the disappointment that swept through her.
“The eggs,cara.”
“Shoot.” She pushed them off the heat so hard, the pan almost fell off the stove.
“It is no problem. I like them a little crispy.”
“No, I’ll remake them.”
“Don’t.” He reached across the counter and grabbed her hand. “You have cooked for me. I will eat whatever you make.”
Blushing hard, she turned off the heat and checked on the eggs. Only the very bottom was crispy. She plated them up and gave him his.
“What made you look so sad?” he asked as she came around to sit with him at the counter.
“What? I wasn’t sad,” she said at once. “I was… distracted.” She nodded at his outfit, which consisted of his tuxedo pants and nothing else.
He smiled. “Nice try. Tell me.”
“I was just thinking… Well, but it doesn’t matter.”
“It does matter. Do not fall back into those patterns. Tell me what you want, Megan.”
“Oh, sure. Sit there looking like an entire snack and ask me what I want.” He shook his head at her. “Okay. I was just thinking… wondering, really, if there are other charities that could use a little bump. I hadn’t thought about the fact that not everyone knows how to build a social media presence like I do. Maybe I could do that in my spare time. It didn’t take much to help the Studio. I couldn’t make a fundraiser like that happen again, but…”
“It sounds like you’re passionate about this. So do it.”
“Okay. I’ll put out some feelers. I don’t want to offend anyone.”
“You have not been around charities much. They are dying for help. You only have to offer.”
“Okay, I will.”
She’d been involved with the foundation Kane ran, but that was a slick organization with paid employees and top-tier graphics. She blushed again at her assumption that everyone had that kind of help.
They ate in silence but side by side so they were always touching. Alessandro kept scrolling, and Megan weaved dreams in her head. When her plate was empty and Alessandro’s coffee was refilled, she retrieved her own phone. Ignoring the messages from Cat and Yasmin for now, she found a photo of her and Alessandro and tagged the store that had sold her the dress. When she got back to her profile page, she was shocked to see she had gained a hundred thousand followers overnight. “Lord,” she said.
Alessandro looked over her shoulder. “You’re an influencer now,” he said.
“But… I’m not ready.”
