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“I don’t know if I believe anyone can predict how a couple is going to be ten or twenty years down the road,” Harper says.
“I would love for her to find me a guy,” Anika says with enthusiasm. “All the ones I meet are terrible. I know this is going to shock you, but people who desperately want to be on TV are often not great people to date.”
“Especially when they want to date a whole bunch of women at the same time and in the same hot tub.” I can’t help but tease her, too.
Anika blushes, and I immediately feel bad. “It’s just a job. I don’t even start for a couple of weeks, so who knows. Maybe they’ll find someone else.”
“Or you could say no,” Harper insists. “This is a big step down for you. I don’t understand why you’re sitting back and accepting a demotion.”
The pink in Anika’s cheeks deepens, a sure sign she’s getting emotional, and I wonder how hard this is for her. She changes the subject when it’s brought up. “Well, I guess you know more than I do about my job. Except you know absolutely nothing about it and I wish you would keep your opinions to yourself, Harper. You’ve made it plain. You don’t like my decisions. You don’t like Ivy’s. We get it.”
Well, that escalated quickly. It’s not often I find myself playing the mediator. Like I said, Anika is usually the peacemaker, so I have to wonder what’s going on. “It’s your career, Ani. We know you know what you’re doing.”
Anika pushes her seat back and tosses her napkin down. Her sequined dress sparkles in a happy way that runs counter to our current vibe. “Oh, I don’t think Harper believes that in any way. I’m going to the bathroom. I do not need company.”
I watch her walk away and wish I had something stronger than the wine. “What was that about?”
Harper sighs, toying with the whiskey sour she ordered. “She’s mad that I expressed an opinion about her letting her bosses push her around. This show she’s going to start work on is beneath her. She should be running her own show by now. She needs to stand up for herself.” Harper looks a bit defeated. “I know I sound like a bitch, but I’m really trying to help her.”
“I think it’s dumb, too,” I admit. “But we can’t know what she’s going through. I think you’ve made your statement and it’s time to support her unconditionally the same way she would support you. You don’t know how hard it is to build something from nothing.”
Her eyes narrow. “I do it every day.”
She’s so literal. “I meant a business. And before you get your back up, I know I don’t understand how hard it is to step into someone else’s shoes. Can we agree it’s all crappy and we should support each other even if we don’t completely understand the whys and hows?”
She’s quiet for a moment and then takes a long drink of the whiskey as though she’s steeling herself. “It’s hard because I worry that supporting you might mean I contribute to something bad happening to Heath.”
We’re back to me, and my gut takes a deep dive. “What do you mean?”
“Forty percent, Ivy?”
I can’t help but feel exasperated. “He needs seed money. I’m not sure what you expected me to do.”
“I expected you to date him, not take almost half the man’s company,” Harper replies.
That hurts more than I expected. “So this was a setup.”
“Of course it was a setup. I told you that a week ago,” Harper replies, obviously exasperated. “I hoped you would help him out with his code and realize what a great guy he is. I thought Heath would…”
“Would what?” I ask, not sure I want the answer. But I’m a “pull the bandage off in one painful swoop” kind of girl.
She stops, seeming to understand she’s walked onto a big old minefield. “I don’t know, smooth out your rough edges. I thought he would make you happy.”
“Rough edges?” I know I’m not some polished gem of a woman, but I don’t think I’m that terrible.
“You can’t be unaware of how irritable you’ve been since you got back. You’re crabby all the time and you won’t let anyone except CeCe help you, and the only way she helps is giving you cash so you feel obligated to spend time with her.”
I feel my jaw drop. I’ve never heard this kind of crap come out of Harper’s mouth. “Have you been spending time with my mother, too? Because you suddenly sound a lot like her.”
“Maybe she makes some sense,” Harper insists. “Ivy, she’s your mom. Don’t you think she wants the best for you? I have to ask. How much of Heath’s business does CeCe now own? Are you two going to take the whole thing away from him?”
