The Invitation

I laughed. “Top secret, huh?”

A light gust of wind pushed a lock of hair onto my face. Hudson used his finger to move it. “Feel better?”

I took a deep breath and relaxed my shoulders. “I do. Thank you.”

He tilted his head toward the door. “Why don’t we go back in, then? As much as I’d rather be right here, I don’t want you to miss anything.”

I nodded.

Back in the living room, I took my seat next to Olivia on the couch and looked up at the countdown clock to see how things were going. I blinked a few times reading the number. I hadn’t been gone for more than five minutes, yet we were already almost completely sold out.

“I’ve been watching this show every day for the last week and a half,” Olivia said. “And they never sell out this fast. You’re absolutely slaying it. I was worried you’d miss the part where Robyn says her big tagline—Going…going and buh-bye!”

Sure enough, only minutes later, the side of the screen with the countdown started to flash.

“Uh-oh,” the host said. “We’re about to sell out. Hurry up and get those orders in!” She paused and shook her head. “I better say it before it’s too late. Going…going…” She raised her hand and waved. “…and buh-bye!” A big stamp appeared over the countdown clock on the screen.

SOLD OUT

Everyone in the room cheered. Olivia hugged me, and people took turns coming over to congratulate us. When I turned back to look at the TV, the next product was already being introduced. Relief washed over me that we’d done well, and I wouldn’t have to see my face up on that giant TV anymore.

Olivia and Mason popped champagne, and she handed out glasses. As she extended one to me, my eyes met Hudson’s across the room. He silently raised his glass and smiled.

Olivia looked between the two of us before hooking her arm around my neck. She turned us so our backs were facing Hudson and spoke with a low voice. “He really likes you.”

“Who?”

She rolled her eyes. “Uh, the man who hasn’t taken his eyes off of you since he walked in. Hudson, of course. I see the way he looks at you.”

“He’s excited about today…about Signature Scent.”

She pointed her finger at me. “He’s excited about you.”

I glanced over my shoulder at Hudson, and our eyes met once again. I couldn’t deny that I’d felt like the center of his focus today. He looked between his sister and me, and his eyes narrowed. He absolutely knew we were talking about him.

I sighed. “He’s a great guy.”

“So…” Olivia shrugged. “Why are you two still playing cat and mouse, then?”

“We’re in business together. He’s an investor in my company.”

“And…”

“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “If it doesn’t work out, it could be pretty messy.”

Olivia sipped her champagne. “Life is messy. You know the only time it’s not? When you’re not living it—when you’re just going through the motions.”

“I know… But—”

She interrupted me. “What happened to the woman who crashed my wedding and ran out laughing and drinking champagne?”

I laughed. “God, that’s a good example of being a mess.”

“Maybe.” She shrugged. “But look where that mess led you. To a new business and a new best friend—and if you ask me who the new best friend is, I’m going to punch you. We’re having a moment here.”

I chuckled. “I get what you’re saying, but I told you what happened with Aiden. A lot of our fights centered on being in business together. He would question how I spent money, and we would argue over the direction things should go. It was really the beginning of our problems.”

Olivia shook her head. “I think you’re wrong. Not to be crass, but the beginning of your problems was him sticking his dick in another woman.”

“Not that it’s a valid excuse, but he turned to someone else because we weren’t getting along.”

“No, he didn’t. He turned to someone else because he’s a piece of shit. That was just the most convenient excuse.”

I sighed. “I guess…”

“Did I tell you that Mason and I met at work?”

“Really? At Rothschild Investments?”

She nodded. “Hudson brought him on as director of IT. He was there for three years, and we were dating for two of them. We worked together on a few projects, and we didn’t always see eye to eye.”

“He owns his own IT firm, right? Is that why he left?”

“No. There was nowhere for him to grow at Rothschild. We only have a few IT people, and he wanted to keep growing. But my point is, we worked together and fought. That didn’t lead him to cheat on me.” Olivia looked over at her husband and smirked. “Occasionally it led to some hot, angry make-up sex on my desk, though…” She held up her hands and her face scrunched. “Oh God. Don’t do that with my brother because my office is so close. I once walked in on our parents, and I still haven’t gotten over it.”