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“I haven’t agreed.”
She grinned. “You’re going to.”
She was right.
I was going to.
Not just because of the number and what it would mean for my kids and their future. What I could give them with just that number.
It was mostly because what it would mean to me. Something more. Something different. A dream I hadn’t let myself have. Even though it scared the shit out of me. Even more than the person potentially trying to kill me.
“Kace isn’t going to be happy,” I frowned.
“Another plus!” Amy exclaimed. “Pissing off the alpha male is all part of the process. Plus, makeup sex. We’ll call him from the jet.”
“Wait,” I demanded, holding up my hand as Amy tapped on her phone. “We can’t go today.”
She glanced up. “Why not?”
Holy crap, she was serious. “First, we both have kids. Second, I can’t just have my kids coming home from school and me not be there. Third, I’m pretty sure that a big publishing company won’t take a meeting at such short notice. Fourth, I have nothing to wear to such an important meeting. So there, four reasons.”
Amy grinned wider. “We both have men to look after said kids. And if you don’t want your man to look after them, you’ve got a mother-in-law, Evie and about six other women who would happily let them stay, and who your kids would love to stay with. We’ll book the jet for later this afternoon so you can pick up the kids and give them the lowdown. The publishing company will move shit around for me, rather for you, so we’ll do it tomorrow morning. A breakfast meeting. I know the woman at Chanel. She’ll keep it open for us. All problems solved.”
“Chanel?” I repeated. “I cannot afford Chanel.”
Amy raised her brow. “Honey, did you not see that number? You can totally afford Chanel. Beyond that, any woman walking into a meeting that is going to change the course of her life is like... obligated to wear Chanel.”
“This is too crazy,” I whispered.
“Which is exactly why we’re doing it. You need crazy.”
I should’ve argued harder. Stayed in my safe zone. Told her I’d take a phone meeting. Or something a little less spontaneous.
But I didn’t.
Instead, I told the kids about the situation. Both were absolutely fucking elated. Well, in their own ways. Beyond that, they were more than happy to stay with Evie.
I hugged them close, inhaled their smells and left them, though, it felt wrong and hurtful. I called Kace from the plane.
He was not happy.
Like, at all.
But he couldn’t do anything about it.
Amy and I shopped at Chanel. I got the most kickass outfit that made me feel like someone who belonged in a fancy meeting in downtown Manhattan. Amy used her credit card when I wasn’t looking and waved me off when I tried to fight to give her cash. She informed that the only reimbursement she wanted was to meet Chris Hemsworth when he played my male main character in the movie version.
We stayed at the Ritz. It was the most opulent place I’d ever been. We ate at Per Se, which served food that had to have some kind of drugs in it, it was that good. We drank incredible cocktails.
Then, the next morning, we meet with serious publishers. Who were totally fucking serious about giving me a book deal. An agent who was serious about representing me.
Then we flew home. Amy on the jet. Me on cloud nine.
Kace was totally fucking pissed when we got back.
And Amy was right, the makeup sex was amazing.
Out of this fucking world.Chapter 20“Lizzie! What a wonderful surprise,” Olive said, hugging me. We’d already had a champagne dinner together, celebrating my publishing deal. One of many dinners and parties thrown for me. Kace was beyond proud of me, but I’d banned him from acting like it because I still felt weird about it. He, of course, did not heed my ban and continued to buy my flowers and cook me dinners to celebrate.
I relaxed into Olive’s embrace, soothed by the warmth of it, grateful she still wore the same perfume she’d had on the day I met her. It comforted me that some things stayed the same, even though everything else was different.
Different meaning completely and utterly fucked.
“What do I owe the pleasure?” Olive asked.
“I was just in the neighborhood,” I lied.
“The kids at school?”
I nodded. I’d been tempted to wait till they got home so I could use them as some kind of buffer. But that would’ve made me feel like an even bigger fuck up. My stomach had been churning since Kace and I had gone public with our relationship. I’d been putting off this conversation, even though it was like a ticking time bomb. Olive may not move in the Sons of Templar circles, but she was around my kids, who were likely to talk about Kace at some point. It was hard to get Lily to stop talking about Kace. Fate had stepped in and Olive had had to work extra shifts at the hospital because of staffing issues, so we hadn’t seen her in almost three weeks. The kids missed her. I missed her. My worst fear was that the truth would create a chasm between us, and I’d lose her forever.
