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“You’re miserable," Lena said. "Surely apologizing is better than this—And don’t even ask. I’m not going home with you tonight,” she said, laughing in my face.
I looked at her, for the first time noticing the intelligence in her eyes. I was a little shocked at myself. I'd been hanging out with her all night, but I hadn't seen her. Then I burst out laughing, and she joined me. She was good.
“How’d you know I’d ask?” I said between laughs.
“You’ve been dancing with me all night, so that’s a natural conclusion. It'd be the icing on that jealousy cake you’ve been serving up all evening” she said.
Damn, she really was very good.
“I’m sorry for using you like that,” I said sincerely.
“It’s fine. It was fun while it lasted, and besides, it made this bearable,” she said motioning to the crowd around us.
I reached out, took her hand, and gallantly kissed it. She giggled and swatted at me.
“You never stop, do you?” she asked with a smile.
“Why stop now?” I asked.
“Go make that right,” she said pointing in Alex’s direction. “You might have a good thing going on there.”
With that, she rose, picked up her purse and phone, and slipped out the door. It was probably good advice, and after deep reflection, I might just take it, but for now, I checked in on Sophie and Nathan. The party was winding down and Sophie had taken her shoes off. She handed them to Nathan who held them for her.
“Been having fun?” Sophie asked, eying me suspiciously.
“Just entertaining a client. Congratulations, love,” I said to her, kissing her on the cheek.
“And Alex?” Nathan asked me.
“I’m about to go get her," I said, nodding in her direction. We're just about to leave,” I told them.
Now to get Alex. She was still in conversation with Valerie.
“Ready, Alex," I said, making it more of a statement than a question. Whatever it was that was happening between us, I was pretty sure she wouldn't turn down the ride. I didn't need to beg her.
A hint of the vulnerability I saw earlier softened her eyes, but then her face turned to stone. She did though take my hand as she rose from her seat. She hugged Valerie goodbye, and then we said our final goodbyes to Sophie and Nathan. Alex hadn’t said a word to me yet, and judging from her expression, she wasn’t planning to.
We walked together out of the party to the parking lot. I wanted to reach for her hand but instead, I just walked very close to her, so we were almost touching but not quite. Maybe there was a way to salvage the night yet. I opened the car door for her, holding her hand as she slid into the seat.
“Alex—” I began.
“Not a word Christian, not one,” she interrupted.
"Have it your way, princess," I said. A wave of exhaustion hit me, and I was ready to be done with the whole evening. I’d have to talk to her another time then. She didn’t look willing or ready to hear a word from me. Come to think of it, I wouldn’t have wanted to talk to me either if I was in her place. I started the car and drove out of the parking lot.
Chapter Six
Alex's POV
Last night had been gruesome, to put it mildly. I decided to counteract my blues with focused self-care. I thought of how Christian had dropped me off at home after the party without a word, speeding away like he couldn’t wait to be rid of me, and my face flushed. It was ridiculous, but that had hurt me even more than watching him twirl that bimbo around the dance floor all night.
I was genuinely surprised to find Christian on the other side of the door when I opened it. And he looked like he’d rather be anywhere but here. But he also looked nervous, and that got me wondering. I had truly never seen the man nervous. Why was he here? And just what did he want with me now?
“Alex," he said, his voice a little soft. He was standing way too close to me. “I came here to apologize for what happened at the engagement party and for getting mad because you were late. I thought you did it on purpose to irritate me, and I let myself take things too far. I know I was out of line."
This Christian was strange. He sounded sincere, like he was actually sorry. Even though I wasn’t certain about anything now, I was taken aback by the gesture, and I wasn't sure what to say. Christian and I already had a complicated history, and if last night was any taste of things to come, I wasn't sure if I wanted to let him back in.
"Thank you for apologizing," I finally said, my voice cool but not unkind. "But I'm not sure if I can just forgive and forget. What happened at the party was just the latest in a series of ugly misunderstandings between us."
