“Good. Thank you. I think we’re calling it a night when Alicia gets back.”
He nodded. “That’s too bad.”
I didn’t disagree.
“Have you heard from Camilla?” he asked. “She’s home from her trip now, yes?”
I stared, stunned for no good reason. I found his attention to the details, especially regarding things that mattered to me, intoxicating. His genuine interest and concern tugged at something deep in my heart. “She’s good.”
“No engagement?”
I shook my head.
“Do you think she’s disappointed?”
The question took me aback. I hadn’t given this concern a single thought, but I wondered if she was disappointed. Her longtime boyfriend had taken her on a major romantic vacation. She must’ve expected a proposal as much as I had. How did she feel when it didn’t come? “I don’t know,” I admitted.
Lucas slid onto Alicia’s chair and watched me. “How are you holding up? You seem tired when you come in most mornings.” He lifted a palm. “Your work is magnificent, but your energy is low sometimes. I don’t want to cross a line, but I wonder—”
“What?” I asked, when he didn’t continue.
“About your divorce,” he said. His tone was soft and his expression sheepish. “How are you really doing?”
I briefly considered refreshing my smile, offering a canned response, and telling him I was fine. Instead, I finished the wine in my glass and sighed. “Not great,” I said frankly. “My husband is a bad guy. He was emotionally abusive, manipulative, and neglectful for the entirety of our marriage. I’m not convinced he ever loved me, or that I’m lovable, and I haven’t loved him in a very long time. To me, the divorce feels like a formality, but he’s turned it into a quiet war. We were arguably wealthy six months ago, but today I live in the home I grew up in, and he’s filed for bankruptcy.”
Alicia appeared, cell phone to her ear, a wide smile on her face, and I knew she was talking with Cameron.
I stood, a little wobbly from the wine. “I should go,” I said, knowing I’d overshared, and blaming the wine.
I wanted him to know everything I’d told him, because Alicia was right. I had feelings for Lucas that an employee shouldn’t have for her boss. So it was best for both of us if he saw me clearly as the train wreck I was.
“Hey.” Lucas rose and cleared the space between us in one long stride. His voice was low and gravelly.
Alicia stopped short, several feet away.
Lucas moved so close, I felt the heat of his body on mine.
I arched my back for a better look into his soulful eyes. “Yeah?”
“You aren’t unlovable.” Each word reverberated in my core.
He took the bill from our table and put it in his shirt pocket, then turned to Alicia. “It was nice meeting you,” he said. “I hope you’ll both have a nice night.”
He held my gaze a moment longer, then walked away.
Chapter Nineteen
My DNA test arrived more quickly than anticipated, and I opened it with eager hands.
I read the instructions twice before collecting my sample and returning it to the mailbox with silent prayers. Did I have family out there? I’d wished for siblings and cousins as a child. Wanted big family reunions and holiday get-togethers with family crowded around the table. But Mom and Dad were only children, and their parents had passed while I was young. If not for Camilla, I’d be afloat, genetically speaking, and I didn’t realize how much I wanted an anchor until the possibility became real.
Camilla texted consistently following her return from the Maldives and visited often on her way to the yoga studio. It wasn’t until a text arrived as I clocked in at Chez Margot that I grew concerned.
Camilla: Dinner at the club?
I grimaced at the four seemingly innocuous words. My last visit to the country club didn’t end well, and I didn’t want a repeat. I couldn’t think of a good reason for Camilla to request a meeting at the club, unless this was a family affair and she’d chosen neutral ground. I steeled my nerves and drummed up enough faux enthusiasm to respond appropriately.
Me: Of course!
