“You got your job. Did he not destroy you?” I asked as he looked out at the ocean for a moment.
“No. I answered vaguely when Rick questioned why I left Seattle. I hadn’t looked him up and had no idea what he was up to, but he didn’t ruin my future.” Remy sighed, and I watched him reach for his beer. “The interview today was with Amy, my ex.”
“What?” I asked as my fork clattered to my plate. “Did she come here for you?”
“She knew I worked here. She claims that she wanted to apologize and be friends again. I want nothing more than that if anything at all so that isn’t an issue. The problem is that she is well-qualified for the job and an intelligent woman. She’s a good worker when she isn’t cheating. She has a lot of regret over what happened.” Remy looked at me as I frowned at him.
“Are you going to hire her?” I asked, my voice filled with dread.
“Rick liked her more than the others.” I sipped my water, longing for it to be wine. I felt so much insecurity in this moment and wanted to get up and leave. Remy didn’t do relationships with anyone before me apart from Amy. While I didn’t think they were together for too long, it was a substantial amount of time. “He asked if I would mind and if I could work around our past.”
“How long were you with her?” I asked as Remy stared at me.
“The last year or so of college and a year into forming the firm with Ian. It wasn’t love or anything close, but I respected her for her hard work. It was comfortable for me.” He looked down at the table. “She told me that Ian was killed in some robbery two weeks after I left and that they were more or less over. Either he didn’t ever plan to ruin me, or he didn’t have time. I’m not sure.”
“Dead?” I breathed as he nodded. “Oh, Remy. I’m so sorry.”
“We weren’t friends anymore. He did me wrong and while I’m sorry that he went through that, I am not sad. I think that she is but not because she loved him. I don’t know, Celia. I didn’t realize who I was even going to interview until today. I was caught off guard.” Remy shrugged and stabbed a shrimp on his plate. “Now, Rick wants to hire her. Everyone else was so underqualified compared to Amy.”
I wanted to protest. I didn’t want Remy working with a woman that he spent that much time with, sleeping with her and knowing her. Amy might see the same side of him that I’d seen, foolishly thinking I was the only one. I should trust him and allow this, so he could work less and be home with me. He told me that he didn’t want her. “If it is best for the company, then you should hire her.”
“Do you mean that?” Remy asked as I breathed out gently.
“I believe that you don’t want her.” I did even though I felt uncertain about all of this.
“I told Rick I’d think about it. I wanted to talk to you first.” He reached out, and I took his hand across the booth, squeezing gently.
“I just want you happy, Remy. If working less will do that, then do what you have to.” It wasn’t completely supportive, but I didn’t protest, and he gave me a long look.
“Okay.” He looked down at the plate of food that was growing cold and cut into his steak. I felt my stomach growl after barely eating all day, glancing down at my shrimp and lobster plate. We ate in silence, both of our minds racing as we thought about the future.
When we were done, he asked me to take a walk on the beach and I agreed. Remy told me that he loved me as we walked, clinging to my hand. I told him that I felt the same, smiling when he asked me if I wanted to try to beat everyone home. I agreed, and we ran to the car, laughing as we raced over the sand to the steps.
We walked into the empty house and he dragged me to our room. We kissed hard as we stripped our clothes off, tumbling back to the bed. He kissed my mouth hungrily, then my neck. His mouth covered my nipple, and I arched my back to offer him more. “I need you.”
“I want you inside of me. I want you to fuck me,” I breathed, surprising both of us. I normally didn’t swear much but my need for Remy took all my control away from me. He spread my legs with his knees, easing himself before me as I wrapped my ankles around him. Remy entered me in one hard thrust, making me gasp as I grabbed his shoulders. He moved slow and hard and I rocked against him, drawing him deeper inside.