“That’s fair.” I didn’t know what else to say.
She took a step away from me, as though being too close to me pained her. “Did you know that he told me about you? Way back, when you’d first met??
?
“I didn’t.” Though it made sense. Neil had been head-over-heels in love with me ten minutes after I’d introduced myself, or so he said.
“He told me he’d met the most amazing girl. He called you a girl, so naturally, I assumed that this was just a fling, and he was enthralled with the younger woman who’d found him attractive.” Her sad smile twisted into a grimace as she remembered. “I always believed, in my heart of hearts, that Neil and I would be together. I knew Elizabeth wasn’t permanent, the way you can tell when a friend is with someone who’s wrong for them. When Neil told me they were divorcing…”
I couldn’t tell if the situation was awkward because it was more than I’d come here for, or if it was because I didn’t want to feel sympathy for Valerie when she’d just admitted that she loved my fiancé.
“And between then and Christmas.” She held up her hands.
“Neil and I were already together.” The sympathy I felt for her was weird. “I’m sorry things couldn’t work out for you.”
“No, you aren’t,” she said, catching the sentiment I’d accidentally expressed.
“You’re right, I’m not.” It had been insensitive of me to blurt out something I hadn’t thought through “But I wish…I wish there was a way that I could be happy, and you wouldn’t be hurt.”
“I’m not hurt. Neil’s divorce wasn’t my second chance. I had to accept that. We’ve known each other . We both had plenty of opportunities.” She shrugged. “I’m not proud of the way I treated you.”
“Well.” There was so much I could have said, but nothing seemed right. “I appreciate that.”
Her expression hardened a little. “But, in the interest of us getting along in the future, let me recommend that you never bring personal business into my professional setting again.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Would you have agreed to meet me somewhere else? Somewhere you couldn’t lie about having a busy schedule?”
“I do have a busy schedule, Sophie. So, I’ll have to see you out.”
Since the queen had dismissed me from her throne room, I got up and walked ahead of her. She stopped me at the outer office doors that led to the lobby. “Wait.”
I turned, wondering what parting barb she would try to sink me with.
“Thank you. For thinking better of me than anyone would expect you to.”
I nodded. “Well. It’s my pleasure.”
What I didn’t tell her was that someone did expect me to think well of her, or least, wanted me to.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
You know how you can be waiting a long time for something you’re really excited about, but as the countdown to the thing becomes shorter, your anticipation grows, negating any sense of passing time? And, then, the moment you get the thing, it’s crept the fuck up on you, and you’re so startled that you can barely enjoy it, and you feel like you and your fiancé should just abandon your millions of dollars wedding and go to City Hall before anyone can stop you?
Thursday arrived like a rock hurled without warning through the window of my life. It was the first day of the three-week leave I’d taken. To my horror, I’d actually gotten up and started getting ready for work out of habit.
As I stumbled to the bathroom, Neil asked groggily, “Your family isn’t arriving this early, are they?”
“My what?” I scratched the side of my head. “Oh, god. Is it Thursday already?”
I slipped back into bed beside him, and he flung out one arm to pull me against him. I rolled over to be the little spoon and wiggled my bottom against him. “So, it’s finally here.”
“Two more days.” He buried his face in my neck. “Two more days until you are Mrs. Neil Elwood.”
“Sophie Scaife,” I corrected him, not for the first time.
“I promise I’ll stop after the honeymoon. I’m annoying myself now.” He yawned beside my ear. “What time do we need to be in the city?”
Now that my brain was more awake and I knew what day of the week it was, I could remember my schedule a little better. “Okay, the flight gets in at two, and we’ve got cars meeting them at the airport…” I squinted as I considered. “I’d like to be at the apartment at least a little early, so we can make sure Sue got everything under control.”