“No kidding. Either that or mysteries. These weepy memoirs are the worst.”
“Do you need me to stop by?” Even if he was tired, he’d make time for her. He always did.
“Nope. I’m good. Just curling up with a bowl of oatmeal and rewatching the third season ofBridgerton. It’s still as swoony as ever.”
It was beyond weird to him that his sister’s comfort food was oatmeal, as opposed to ice cream or pie, but whatever worked. “Anything else bugging you?”
“Just Mom. She called about some stupid shit. Her Wi-Fi was out, and I tried to help her fix it over the phone. But then I realized why it wasn’t working.”
Drew slumped down in his seat. “Let me guess. She didn’t pay the bill?”
“Yep. She had it on auto-pay, but her account was overdrawn.” She sighed again. “Please don’t let me end up like her.”
“You won’t, I promise.” The only upside of having financially screwed-up parents was that he and Kate were incredibly careful with money.
“Hey, tell me what’s going on with this job thing. And the Rosie stuff. Are you actually dating again?”
Over the past few days, he’d been so busy that he’d only left Kate a series of messages. But he hadn’t said much about Rosie because their fake-dating agreement was too hard to explain via text. The fewer people who knew the truth about it, the better, but he couldn’t lie to his sister. They’d always been honest with each other, and he valued her opinion.
When he was done telling her about it, she started laughing. “Holy shit. What a total screw-you to Evelyn. Did you tell her you were dating someone new?”
He frowned, remembering his ex’s reaction. “Yeah, but she wasn’t that jealous. If anything, she was all, ‘don’t hurt Rosie the way you hurt me,’ which is bullshit.”
“Total bullshit,” Kate agreed. “I’ll bet she was just covering up. She’s probably mad that you’re not moping over her anymore.”
“Maybe. I’m just glad I won’t have to feel like a loser when I go to her wedding. It might even be fun.” He let his mind drift, imagining Rosie on his arm, wearing a stylish cocktail dress and heels, her thick, dark hair falling loose to her shoulders.
“Good. When do I get to meet her? Can I pop by the hotel sometime?”
“Absolutely. I also volunteered your help in preparing the crafts for their family Saturday event. If you’re free that day, you could come in and assist them. I’m sure Rosie would love it.”
Drew suspected the two women would hit it off since they were both so empathetic. Like Rosie, Kate truly cared about the people she worked with.
After filling her in on his dinner with Rosie’s family, he told her about the job offer from Bones. She was just as encouraging as Rosie had been, especially since she knew how much he worried about building up his savings. Neither of them ever wanted to end up in a huge financial hole.
By the time he was done chatting with her, he felt confident she’d be okay. He left her to finish up her episode ofBridgertonand filled in his gym log for the day. As he was about to leave, he saw he’d missed a text from Rosie.
Rosie: Thanks for the cocoa. I’m glad we got to talk. I’m planning to come to the gym on Thursday after work. Will you be there?
A simple question, but it made his heart swell with happiness.
Drew: I’ll make sure of it. See you then.
Rosie: See you. Good night, Drew.
Drew: Night, Rosie.
As he set down the phone, the warmth built up inside of him, like a tiny, glowing sun. Even if he and Rosie were onlypretendingto date, their friendship felt very real. Not that he’d dare wade in too much further. While he was grateful they could offer each other support and encouragement, anything more was a risk he wasn’t willing to take.
Nine
28 Days UntilChristmas
Rosie stumbled into work, cursing the fact that it was still dark out. At this hour, none of the nearby coffee shops were open, so she’d been forced to brew a cup at home. If she had time later, she’d replenish it with a latte from Alma’s.
With four weeks to go until Christmas, Charlie had suggested they get started on decorating the hotel. Though no one was excited about arriving at work before sunrise, they’d all agreed to come in extra early.
Upon reaching the front desk, Rosie was pleased to see the night shift clerks had already started decorating. Clad in Santa hats, they were busy arranging twinkling lights and garlands around the check-in area, as well as setting up signs advertising the hotel’s upcoming events, including the festive weeknight happy hours and the family Saturdays.
