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She narrows her eyes and pulls her arm away. “We’ll find out on Monday,” she says, sounding far more discouraged than I’d like her to. I watch as she tries to paste on a polite smile, and all it does is make me feel unsettled.
I should be happy that she’s making an effort to act professional around me, but it just makes me feel like the distance between us is greater than it’s ever been before. I want the girl I had in my arms on prom night, the one she showed me a glimpse of at the gala last month.
“It’s not just the proposal, is it?” I ask, my voice soft. I step toward her, but she takes a step back, surprise crossing her face. “Something else is bothering you. I can tell by the way you raise your left brow, and the way your pupils dilate just a little. It somehow turns your beautiful eyes a shade darker. You only ever look like this when you’re deeply upset, and something as simple as this proposal couldn’t have been the reason. What happened?”
She stares at me wide-eyed, caught off guard. “I don’t understand,” she says, her voice faltering. “Why do you care?”
I sigh and run a hand through my hair to keep from touching her. “I’ve always cared.”
“You’ve always had a funny way of showing it,” she retorts, pain bleeding into her voice.
I can’t help but recoil, a hint of shame washing over me. “I’m sorry, Celeste. Truly. Being young is no excuse — I often took our rivalry too far, but that doesn’t mean I never appreciated your intellect. No one has ever been able to challenge me the way you do, and being able to compete with you again is something I’ve been looking forward to since you left. I just thought you’d feel the same way. After that night, I thought…”
Her lips part, and her face flushes beautifully. She’s so fucking stunning, it’s insane. “I thought we agreed we’d forget it happened,” she murmurs, her gaze darting around us like she’s scared to be seen with me.
“I don’t recall agreeing to that particular demand of yours, my sweet Celestial. How could I possibly forget my first time—”
I cup the back of my neck and look away as heat rushes to my face. I hadn’t meant to let that slip, but as always, she makes me feel fucking unhinged, out of control.
“You… you were a virgin too?” she whispers, pure shock transforming her face.
“Wasn’t that obvious? You were my first, and you ruined me for everyone else.”
She sucks in a breath, her expression disarmed. “But all the rumors in school… and Isawyou.”
“Yeah? What did you see, Celeste? You saw some girls trying to get my attention, but did you ever see me hold someone’s hand? Have you ever seen me kiss someone that wasn’t you?”
She stares at me, and I can’t help but smile. I reach for her, and this time, she lets me. I wrap one of her curls around my index finger and cup her face with my other hand, my touch reverent. “I truly am sorry, Celeste. I was a shitty little kid, and at the time, I didn’t realize how hurtful some of my actions were. If I asked for a ceasefire, would you grant me one? I won’t ask for your forgiveness, Celestial. I’m only asking for one single chance to earn it.”
She raises a brow, her chest rising and falling faster than before. Does she feel this thing between us too? “A chance?” she repeats, seemingly unconvinced.
I nod, my expression solemn. “A chance to be friends, to leave the past behind us. I won’t lie to you and say I won’t enjoy competing with you at work, but it won’t be the way it used to be. We’ve both grownup in the last couple of years. Won’t you give me a chance to show you who I’ve become? Who knows… you might just like what you find.”
“I… I don’t know what to say. It’s true we’ve both grown up since high school, but that doesn’t mean all my wounds healed. Some of the things you did and said when we were kids really hurt me.”
“Sayyes,” I whisper. “Please.”
She studies my face, as though she doubts my sincerity. I can’t even fault her for the suspicion she treats me with — I earned that behavior all by myself. “One chance,” she murmurs, inclining her head ever so slightly, barely a nod.
“Thank you.” I brush the back of my fingers over her cheek, my heart hammering in my chest. “Then… will you tell me what’s bothering you so? Is it something I did? Don’t tell me it’s the proposal. I’ve known you since we werethree. I know it isn’t that.”
She parts her lips like she wants to deny my claim, but then she seems to think better of it. “You won’t make fun of me?” Her voice trembles, and it hurts to know that I’ve mistreated her so often that she genuinely believes I would.
I take a step closer and cup her face with both hands, my eyes on hers. “Never again, Celestial.”
Her gaze heats, and I just know she’s reminded of the first time I called her that. My goddess, myCelestial. She claims she wants to forget it ever happened, but the way she’s looking at me makes me think she’s lying to herself as much as she’s lying to me.
“I’ve… I’ve been meaning to ask you for a favor. I know it’ll cost me, and that’s okay — you’ll probably want a favor in return, if you hear me out at all…”
“Yes,” I say, interrupting her rambling.
She raises her brows, the edges of her lips turning into a tiny smile. “You have no idea what I’m trying to say.”
I shrug. “You’d never ask me for something unreasonable, so whatever it is you want, consider it done.”
She looks down and grabs the lapel of my suit, gripping it tightly. Does she realize how intimately we’re touching each other? The way I’m holding her face, and the way her fingers are wrapped around the fabric of my suit… I can’t be the only one who feels this, can I? She claims to hate me, but she fails to realize that in doing so, her attention has always been on me as much as mine has been on her.
Celeste takes a deep breath, almost like she’s trying to steel herself, and I stare at her, eager to find out what makes her set aside her pride to ask me for a favor.
