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“Jen, I’d like you to meet Kate. Kate, this is Jen.”
Jen smiled as her gaze moved from Kate to Hollis. “The Kate?”
Hollis could feel herself blushing beneath her makeup. “Yes.”
“Wow. How did this happen?” Jen asked, looking from one to the other. “Do you work here, Kate?”
“No.” Kate shifted her weight from one foot to the other as she looked at Hollis. “Do you know the friend I was with that weekend that we met? Lexi? Her girlfriend actually works here, and when Lexi saw you, she called me.”
Hollis could see Jen grinning like a fool out of the corner of her eye.
“And I rushed over,” Kate said. She looked down at her clothes. “Which is why I look like this.”
Jen was still smiling when she spoke. “Well, you look great. And it’s a good thing that both of you have such good friends.”
“It is,” Kate agreed.
“What do you do, Kate?” Jen asked as she reached for her wine.
“I went back to college. I just have a year left, and then I’m hoping to get into social work. But right now, I’m working at a sports bar not far from campus.”
Hollis turned when she felt a light touch on her arm. It was her personal assistant. “Am I wanted?” Hollis asked.
Her PA nodded. “The table in the back corner with four gentlemen. They’re interested in having their office space redesigned.”
“Duty calls,” Hollis said, giving her attention to Jen and Kate again. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“I’m going to get going,” Kate said with a smile tugging at her lips. “We’ll be in touch?”
Hollis melted at the mixture of longing and hope in Kate’s eyes. “Yes. We will,” she answered, unable to resist reaching for her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.
“It was lovely to meet you,” Kate said to Jen. Her gaze lingered on Hollis before she turned, weaving her way back through crowd gathered by the bar.
Hollis watched her go until she was completely out of sight. There was an ache in her chest, but it was so different than the one that had settled there these last few months. There was hope now. Anticipation. Kate hadn’t moved on.
“She’s young,” Jen said, taking Hollis away from her thoughts.
“Hm. I know.”
“But not immature. That’s an important distinction.”
“You barely spoke to her.”
“Yeah,” Jen said with a shrug. “But I trust your judgement, and you can get a feel for someone in just a few minutes. Social work? That’s not a job for the faint hearted.”
Hollis had filed away that bit of information, that Kate was in college. It could have struck Hollis as a negative, that she could potentially be dating a student, but it hadn’t. Going back to college was a big deal, and she wanted to ask Kate more about it. Why she wanted to get into social work? Had something happened to her in her youth that was motivating that career choice?
“You were gone for quite a while,” Jen said as she sipped her wine.
“I ran into Kate in the restroom.”
Jen laughed. “Well… That explains the rosy cheeks.”
“Alright,” Hollis said with a roll of her eyes. “I have to go mingle.”
“Take your time,” Jen said with a smile.
Hollis made her way over to the table her PA had pointed out, her stride confident, her heart light. Things might just be working out for her after all.
