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I grabbed my phone. There was another text message from Max.
What about dessert? Small finger foods of cake?
I smiled.Not chocolate. I sent back the response before I thought about the time. Fuck. I hoped I didn’t wake him.
His message came back fast.Not sleeping either? Well, now I know who I won’t wake up when I’m up.
I loved the idea of Max texting me when he was up. With shaking fingers, I texted him back.Anytime.
Maybe I wasn’t the only one who hated to be alone in the dark. I didn’t suppose I could ever be friends with him. It was too rough between us, but maybe we could be those people who filled a need for each other. Text messages when it was way past the point of acceptable, even though we both hated texting.
4
The Save The Whales charity event went off without a hitch, and my client ended up raising ten million dollars for her trouble. She was thrilled. It looked like she was getting her name on some kind of plaque, but that went beyond the scope of my know-how. I was the one who could throw the party and get the right people there. It wasn’t really event planning. No one would ask me to plan their wedding or business dinner.
I could probably pull off a birthday party, if it were a who’s who kind of a thing.
“Hope.” A woman named Drea pulled me into a hug. I’d known her for years, but we’d only seen each other in these kinds of settings. “You look so gorgeous. Who made that dress?”
The way I answered this would determine how she treated me for the rest of the night. “It’s vintage.”
“Oh, I love it.” She spun me around like I was her plaything, and I let her. As long as she showed up and wrote checks that kept me in business, I’d let her be as condescending as she wanted. My feet were killing me in these heels. They pinched and I was going to regret wearing them later, but they matched theshort black dress that I was getting attention for right now. “But then again, when do you Redheads not dress to impress?”
I smiled. “You know us.”
Truth was these days, Layla wore jeans more than anything else, while Bridget was always found in business suits. I was the only one dressing fancy, and I didn’t think I was altogether that good at it. I was still trying to figure myself out in that way.
I left Drea and headed toward the exit of the party. I never had to be at these things the whole time. It was getting louder, and people were getting drunker. I’d done my job, I’d gotten the right people there. My clients needed something from me they couldn’t get enough of on their own—attention from strangers.
My phone dinged, and I looked down at it, surprised to see Max there. He hadn’t texted me in two days. We were weeks from the party, and the details were ironed out. I’d become convinced our night of texting was a fluke. I’d sent over oranges they’d needed, but I hadn’t heard any acknowledgement of them.
What is your favorite restaurant?
That was a random question, considering things. I thought about what I wanted to say in answer and almost texted,Well, I’ve heard there’s this hot new restaurant downtown called Hyperion, but even after you manage to get a reservation, there’s no guarantee you’ll get to eat there. I quickly deleted that. No. Not sending that. As amusing as I might find it, we weren’t there yet and might never be.
I like this fish place called Aqualina uptown. It’s quiet but busy, and they make the best scallops I’ve ever eaten.
He’d asked; I’d answered. That was the way to handle it.
I’d made it into my car, and Luke had pulled us onto the street to go back home by the time he answered me.That’s a really good one.I was getting ready to put my phone in my purse when he called. I picked it up.
“I make better scallops.”
I lifted an eyebrow. “Really? That’s remarkable. Of course, I have no way of knowing.” I winced as the words flew out of my mouth. Oh well, in for a penny, in for a pound, as one of my nannies used to say. “You could just be lying.”
He laughed. It was a low sound, and not one I’d heard him make before. It was smooth like velvet, and it moved right through me. I wished I could make him laugh again and again and again. I leaned back in my seat.
“That’s true. I could be. What are you doing right now?”
I yawned. It wasn’t even that late. Maybe I was just old at twenty-four. Worn out. “Going home. I just worked.”
“How did whatever event you were throwing go?”
I watched the traffic move around us, the pedestrians on the street going about their lives. In the front seat, Theo and Luke spoke to each other in low tones. “The gathering I organized was very successful. My client was happy.”
“And you? Were you happy? What were you saving tonight?”
I shook my head. People didn’t really get it, and I couldn’t blame them. My role made little sense to anyone who wasn’t living in this echelon of BS. Most people hated it if they ever got the chance to touch it. My sisters couldn’t get away fast enough.
