“Yeah, but when you know, you know. And you have that knowing look in your eyes. Even if your mouth won’t say it just yet.”
I opened my mouth to respond but I had nothing. I ignored the whispers at the back of my mind that my sister might be right.
Was Brutus the one?
Could I trust myself and this budding relationship to believe in such a thing?
* * *
I slippedon my pair of sunglasses as I exited the restaurant. My shop’s location was only a few blocks from the restaurant, and it was a beautiful late summer day, so I chose to walk there.
On the way, I got lost in thinking about the conversation over lunch. Carlene and Sharise had put into words so many things I was feeling. Yes, I was wary of Brutus’ job. Both the potential danger and the fact that he had to put in so many hours were worrisome to me. But the truth was, a part of me did have a fear of putting myself out there.
Heartbreak at a young age tended to stick with you. It did for me, at least. And while I was old enough to recognize that not all relationships ended in heartache, and even that the ending of my relationships in the past turned out to be a good thing, it didn’t mean that my emotions followed logic.
“Mia?” a voice from my past grabbed my attention.
I looked over my shoulder and had to fight to keep my face neutral when I saw Vincent Davis. My former co-worker.
“I thought that was you,” he said, coming up to me with a big grin on his face like we were old friends.
“Vincent, how are you?” I asked just to be friendly. I intentionally kept walking, hoping he would get the hint that I was in a rush.
“I’m great. Work is going well. Ever since you left, I’ve been able to make some great headway with the team,” he sounded cheerful, but I knew a dig when I heard one.
“Wonderful,” I murmured and picked up my pace. “I’m on my way to—”
“Speaking of work,” he interrupted. “I have been trying to get in contact with you about the Champion account.”
My shoulders slumped. I was on the verge of telling Vincent that he couldn’t contact me because I’d blocked his number.
“Vince, I don’t work for Corsica Pharmaceuticals any longer. I have no information to tell you about any accounts you may or may not have.”
His phony smile dropped. He moved to stand in front of me, blocking my ability to keep walking.
“Listen, Mia, I know our last conversation didn’t end too well.”
“Because I hung up on you for being a pompous ass.” I was done biting my tongue. I didn’t owe Vincent or my former employer a damn thing. “If you’ll excuse me.”
I made a move to go around him, and the jerk side-stepped, getting in my way.
“Look,” he said through gritted teeth. He even glanced around us as if making sure he wasn’t drawing any unwanted attention.
The hairs on the back of my neck stood up.
“I don’t know what crawled up your butt, but this is fucking important. My career could be on the line here.”
“Am I supposed to give a shit aboutyourjob?”
He blew out a breath. “Don’t let your petty jealousy get in the way of doing the right thing here.”
“Jealousy?” My voice went up a couple of octaves.
“Yes, everyone at the job knows the only reason you quit was because I got the managerial job you wanted. Quitting demonstrates a lack of character, in my opinion, but—”
I let out a laugh. “That’s fucking hilarious, coming from you. I’m not enduring this conversation anymore. If you have any questions about your job, I suggest you speak to someone on your team. Because as I said, I don’t work for Corsica anymore. You and I are no longer co-workers, and we damn sure aren’t friends. Therefore, we have nothing to talk about. Move out of my way.”
I didn’t wait for him to move. Instead, I brushed past him, and that was when he caught me by the elbow. He squeezed.
