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“That’s why I’m here too,” I lied.
“I just love the magic of places like this,” Charlie said, her voice less shaky this time.
“So funny we’re all here by ourselves.” Hannah tilted her head.
I nodded. “Very.”
“Actually, now that I’ve caught you, would you mind if I ran something by you? It’s a campaign I want to do for the launch. I think it could be huge.”
Stiffening, I snuck a glance at Charlie. A smile remained plastered to her face, but I could see something in her eyes. Anxiety? Fear? Pain? She looked off and it killed me.
“Perhaps another time,” I said, willing Hannah to get the hint and disappear.
“Oh, come on.” Hannah pouted. “You’re always so busy at work, and I swear this is important. It could be vital for our launch strategy.” She glanced between Charlie and me. “Unless you aren’t really here alone.”
“Fine, let’s hear it,” I resigned.
“Great,” she said. “I’ll buy you a cocoa. See you later, Charlie.”
“Bye,” I nodded at Charlie, pleading for her to meet my apologetic gaze.
“Bye,” she said flatly, looking from the ground to her left—anywhere but my eyes.
I let Hannah pull me away as I watched Charlie disappear into the crowd.
Shit. She was definitely upset.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
CHARLIE
My cheeks burnedas I walked the flight of stairs up to my apartment. Nathan had driven us to the market so I had been forced to call a cab to get home after he unceremoniously ditched me. Throwing open my door, I flung myself onto the couch. Edward peeked his face out of his cat castle before jumping down and padding over to me. I welcomed him onto my lap and buried my face in his soft fur.
It was one thing to agree to a private relationship, but it was another thing entirely to feel the shame of being disregarded by the guy you’re falling for in person.
Realistically, what had I expected him to do?
But anger quickly replaced my shame.
He could have made an excuse. He could have left both Hannah and me there, and then met up with me by his car. He could have said we were discussing something important about the launch. Instead, he just left me there. Like I was nothing to him. Which I guess, technically, I was. He had made it abundantly clear where I stood. He would not sacrifice his position at his company for whatever was blossoming between us.
I wiped a hot tear that managed to escape. Lila’s warning nagged at the back of my mind.
He’ll always put work above everything else.
While his drive and ambition had been some of the reasons I gravitated toward him, could they end up being an issue in the long run?
To my displeasure, thoughts of my ex swirled in my mind. How he was ashamed of my ventures with ConnectHer, almost as if he were embarrassed to admit to others that I thought I could make it a success. While I knew Nathan wasn’t ashamed of me, it still stung knowing he couldn’t claim me. Not for real, anyhow. And while the rational part of me knew there was a huge difference between the two men and the scenarios, my heart still ached all the same.
“I feel so stupid,” I muttered into Edward’s fur.
Here I was falling for Nathan and I hadn’t even stopped to think how seriously he was taking this.
I hadn’t told him about my pending resignation yet. Theoretically, that could solve all our problems. In a month or so, after I’d given my resignation and stayed on a few weeks for the transition, we could pretend to start up after I left.
If he even saw us lasting that long.
Also, I’d have to spend at least the next month feeling like his dirty secret. Was it worth it?
