“Oh so you’re gonna open the good box of wine then? I appreciate that. It’ll go nicely with the large extra cheese and mushroom I’m picking up on my way. See ya soon,” Sara said, feeling a million times better already.
After an uncomfortable talk with Roger, and a stop by Nino’s to grab the pizza, Sara showed up at Elle’s house in just under an hour. Sara knocked, and after Elle had opened the door, she walked in, noticed the tissues and the wine glass. Uh-oh.
“Oh honey. What did he do this time?” Sara asked, referring to Marc, her douche-bag boyfriend. She set down the pizza and pulled Elle into a hug.
Elle set her head on Sara’s shoulder, sniffled and said, “He cheated on me. The prick. I guess we weren’t exclusive…though he forgot to mention it until I found him fucking that tramp on my kitchen table.”
Sara winced and glanced at the dining room area and noticed that the table was missing.
“What a prick. I hope you burnt it. He was always a little too overly attached to that table,” Sara said, disgusted.
“I didn’t burn it. After he and that tramp ran out of here, I did roll that ugly fucker onto the lawn though…then turned on the sprinklers. When I got up this morning, it was gone, so I can only presume that someone took it, or maybe he came and got it. Either way, I boxed his stuff up and stuck it in the garage, and changed the locks. I texted him to come clear it out. Shit bag.” Elle finished with no small amount of venom in her voice.
Shaking her head slightly, Elle sniffled, wiped her face and smiled.
“Tonight we celebrate. We just landed that epic contract, you’re Roger-less. I just lost one hundred and eighty pounds of asshole. I will not feel sorry for myself!”
Sara watched her skeptically as Elle slugged back some wine.
Setting the pizza box on the counter, she grabbed a clean wine glass and poured herself some wine. Grabbing a pizza slice from the box Elle had opened, she moved to the couch and sat down.
“So I broke things off with Roger over the phone. He seemed pretty cool with it, actually. He said he didn’t think that it was fair for us to date anymore because I was more into him than he was me. I agreed with him, because…I feel like he never could have loved me the way I loved him.” Sara snorted into her wine glass.
Elle cracked up, grabbed the box of tissues, and said, “C’mon. Cry it out if you need to. What an idiot.”
Agreeing, Sara said, “You’ve got no idea. Get this. We’re in bed the other night and he’s doing this thing where he’s making his pecs jump. Then he says to me, ‘Ya know. I really need to get new shirts. Mine are starting to get too tight from all the working out I’ve been doing lately’. As if he’d seen the inside of a gym in the entire time we’d been dating. I had to get up and leave at that point.”
Looking over to Elle laughing breathlessly on the couch, Sara went on.
“Though Roger is clearly not a shining example, maybe you should just do what I do. If you don’t get attached, you don’t get hurt. Why don’t you try something casual for a while? Might get your mind off Marc.”
“I dunno,” Elle said, looking skeptical. “I don’t know if I’m able to detach that way. I just wanna be loved.”
Seeing Elle’s face fall at that thought, Sara patted her hand, then got up to bring the wine box over to the coffee table. Refilling both glasses, she sighed, not really sure what to say to make her friend feel any better.
“So,” Elle asked, “What did Deacon say when he came and apologized?”
Surprised by the abrupt change in conversation, Sara admitted, “It was a really good apology, so far as they go. He took total responsibility for being a dick. Then he admitted it wasn’t at all about me, and that he was the problem back then. That he hoped I didn’t feel like it was me. Told me he was sorry he hurt me.”
Blinking, Elle asked, “Really? Well, shit. It’s gonna be hard to hate the guy now. I was fully prepared to dislike him on principle. What did you say?”
“I told him that we’d never speak of it again. That it happened years ago and it was fine now. That I appreciated the apology though,” Sara said, feeling uncomfortable again.
“Yeah. That was a really good apology, Sara. Like, where do you go from there? I’m assuming he’s still a stone-cold fox, right?” Elle asked, clearly trying to lighten the mood.
“God, yeah. So freaking hot. Just wait ’til you meet him. That doesn’t matter though. We’re strictly business associates.”
“Yeah right, Sara. Business associates that have seen each other naked. Hopefully his apology was just an aberration and he’s still a tool.”
“Hopefully. I’ll find out on Friday. I’m supposed to see the on-site kitchen and plan out the menu. I’m presuming that I’ll see him at some point. Just gonna do my best to keep it cool, and professional. Personable, but not exactly friendly.”
Snorting, Elle said, “Good luck with that.”
Chapter 4
The receptionist rang through to Deacon’s office at about one thirty on Friday afternoon to let him know that Sara had arrived. Thrilled by the idea of abandoning the invoicing on his desk in favor of dealing with actual human beings, he walked out to the lobby to greet her.
She smiled as he approached, a genuine smile, not her fake professional smile. He felt his mouth curving as well.