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“Holy shit. I’m happy Fiona considers me a friend.”
Teag laughed. “She’s sweet, but get her Irish blood up, and watch out.”
“She loves you,” Maria said. “I knew you guys were close because of the band, but I didn’t realize how deep your friendship ran. She mentioned you flew to Germany when Jake got hurt.”
“That’s what friends do.”
Loyalty was something Maria valued and admired. Physical attraction aside, the more she got to know Teag, the more she liked him. Fiona had tried to tell her. Ah well, they were here now.
“Natalia bad-mouthed you to the press,” Maria said.
Teag rolled his eyes. “She made up a sob story that I’d gotten jealous when she broke up with me and whined to the tabloids that I had her blacklisted.”
“You didn’t tell your side.”
“No. I make a point never to talk to the tabloids, and I wouldn’t have spoken about Natalia, one way or another anyway. Not my style. Fiona offered to set the record straight, but I asked her not to. The whole thing blew over really quickly in the press, and it had absolutely no impact on my career. Natalia paid the price for her actions. She’ll eventually be allowed back in the game with another manager and another record company, and hopefully she’ll have earned it cleanly. Drama is par for the course in this industry, and so is having a short memory. I’m over it.”
Maria wasn’t so sure he was entirely over it. That kind of betrayal stuck for a while. But she was also sure Teag didn’t have any lingering affectionate feelings for Natalia. He was too honest and emotionally transparent to hide something like that.
“I’m sorry you got played like that, Teag.”
“Yeah, it sucked,” he agreed.
“I’m amazed you’re still willing to put yourself out there for real. With me, I mean.”
Teag tilted his head and gave her a slightly puzzled look. “You’re more than worth it, love. Besides, I’m not going to allow Natalia’s actions to ruin my chances with someone else. It wouldn’t be fair of me to cast judgment on all women because she pulled one over on me.”
Maria stared into the contents of her coffee cup, unable to meet Teag’s eye. “I did. I cast judgment, and I allowed one person’s actions to define too much of my life.”
“Ah, babe, you were so young, and he did real damage to you. The only damage Natalia did was to my pride if I’m being honest. I thought I loved her, but I got over her way too quickly for it to have been the real deal.”
Teag reached across the table and took Maria’s hand. He ran his thumb over the soft pad of her palm, the gesture comforting and intimate at the same time.
“I’ve been running from my feelings for a long time, Teag. I’m gonna fuck this up,” she said, biting her lower lip.
“It’s okay. You’re allowed to make mistakes. Just don’t run again, okay? I’m too injured to chase you.”
She gave a startled little laugh. “Oh Teag, you honestly seem too good to be true. Are you for real? Is this for real?”
At that, he laughed. “I’ll try not to ruin your new and improved impression of me.” He paused and held her gaze. “Yeah, this is real. For me, it’s real. I’ve wanted you for a long time. I’m ready for something more, Maria, and you’re it.”
His words so closely echoed her own thoughts that she blinked at him, opened her mouth, closed it again, and simply nodded her head.
