I turn toward the parking lot when Gavin calls out.
“Hey, Meg.”
Looking over my shoulder, I pause. “Yeah?”
“Do you know why it’s not a competition?”
“Why?”
He smiles. “Because Chase has already won.”
“Hardly,” I say, chuckling.
“You asked me why Chase wouldn’t want me asking you out. It’s because he’s trying to figure out how he feels about you—just like you’re doing the same with him.”
“Again, hardly.”
He shrugs.
“Didn’t you hear a word I said?” I ask, laughing. “I’m trying not to set myself up for failure anymore. I’m trying to outgrow that specific behavior.”
He walks backward toward his truck, his hair bouncing with every step. “Suit yourself.”
“Goodbye, Gav.”
I head to my car, leaving him behind me.
If only his words would stay back there too.
CHAPTER 18
Megan
I hit the speakerphone button. “Hello?”
“Hi, Megan. It’s Dorothy from Iyala. How are you?”
I stare at the screen. Sure enough, the number printed in white is one of the Iyala Nails office numbers.What in the world do they want?
Sure, the company and I parted ways without bad blood. They gave me a glowing reference as a going-away present, and I know they were disappointed to let me go. I was disappointed to be let go but also relieved to get out of the city in a strange way. Nevertheless, it was clear that there was no room for me at Iyala. So why is she calling now?
“Hey, Dorothy,” I say, looking through the window over the sink. The sky darkens over the treetops. “How have you been?”
“Honestly, I’m a mess over here.” She chuckles. “We just finished an audit, and you know how stressful those are.”
“Yeah. I don’t miss that.”
She sighs. “I was hoping that maybe you did.”
Huh?
I spin around and rest my back against the sink for support. Surely, I misheard her.
My brain kicks into overdrive, working hard to make some sense of the vice president of operation’s sentence.“I was hoping that maybe you did.”
What does that mean?
“Our summer line didn’t hit our goal,” Dorothy says. “To be honest, it didn’t come close.”
