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Sliding to the floor, I fumble for my phone and hit Jasmine’s number. She picks up on the second ring.
“Cari? It’s late, what’s wrong?”
“Jas,” I gasp, “I think I’m losing my mind.”
“Whoa, slow down. Deep breaths. What happened?”
I gulp air, trying to steady myself. “Dylan and I… we almost kissed.”
“Holy shit!” Jasmine’s squeal pierces my ear. “Details, now!”
The words tumble out in a rush. I tell her everything. About the crochet dress, Dylan’s towel mishap, our intimate dinner, and that charged moment where the world narrowed to just the two of us.
“And then there was a knock at the door, and I panicked and ran,” I finish, burying my face in my hand. “God, Jas, what am I doing?”
“Okay, back up,” Jasmine says. “Why were you having a romantic dinner with your boss in the first place? I thought this was a work trip.”
I wince. “Right, I forgot to mention. Trevor’s here.”
“Trevor?” Jasmine’s voice sharpens. “As in abusive jackass Trevor from your past?”
“The one and only,” I confirm bitterly. “He cornered me earlier, and Dylan… well, Dylan pretended to be my boyfriend to get him to back off.”
“He did what now?”
I launch into the whole sordid tale ending in our hastily concocted fake relationship scheme.
“Jesus, Cari,” Jasmine breathes when I finish. “That’s… a lot.”
“Tell me about it,” I groan. “And now my stupid heart doesn’t seem to understand it’s all pretend. Jas, it’s racing so hard I swear I’m having a heart attack.”
“Okay, drama queen, let’s dial it back a notch,” Jasmine says, but her tone is gentle. “You’re not having a heart attack. You’re just feeling things you’ve been trying to ignore for a long time.”
“What? No, I-”
“Don’t even try to deny it,” she cuts me off. “I’ve watched you moon over Dylan for years. The way your face lights up when you talk about him? Come on, girl.”
Heat floods my cheeks. “It’s not… we’re just friends. And he’s my boss. And Joel’s best friend. It would never work.”
“Says who?” Jasmine challenges. “Look, I get it. You’re scared. After everything with Trevor, opening yourself up again is terrifying. But Cari, you can’t let fear of the unknown keep you from happiness.”
Her words hit me like a punch to the gut. Am I really letting fear dictate my life? The thought sends my mind reeling backto earlier this evening, to a moment I’d almost forgotten in the chaos that followed.
“Jas,” I say slowly, “there’s something I didn’t tell you about tonight.”
“What is it?”
I close my eyes, the memory washing over me. “Before dinner, when Trevor showed up… Dylan punched him.”
“He what?”
“Trevor was being his usual disgusting self, making crude comments,” I explain. “And Dylan just… snapped. He decked him right in front of everyone. And the way he looked at me afterward, Jas. Like he’d do anything to protect me.”
There’s a pause on the other end of the line. “Cari,” Jasmine says finally, “that doesn’t sound like just a boss looking out for his employee.”
“I know,” I whisper. “And that’s not all. When we were talking later, he said I was important to him. That he’d always have my back, no matter what.”
“And what did you say?”
