“‘Our office’ is more appropriate, especially since you’re about to start acquiring a few projects,” Greta pointed out with a smile.
Emily raised her brows in interest, as Greta had hoped, but she was talking to Kaelee: “Do you mind? I could go late and—”
“I’m sure M—myeditor,Greta,can be trusted, and if not, I can hail a cab just fine. You realize I have visited the city dozens of times.” Kaelee had a fake smile on as she looked at Greta and then back at Emily, and Greta felt sick that she’d lost the real version of Kaelee, the one she’d known as Lee.
“If you’re sure, I’ll call you tomorrow then to discuss any follow-ups?” Emily half asked, half declared.
“Sounds good,” Kaelee said cheerily.
They all said their goodbyes then. Once Emily and Ian left, and the rest of the team had cleared out, Greta turned to Kaelee. “What do you want to do?”
“Am I talking to Greta the editor or Marie the…” Kaelee swallowed. “I don’t know what to call you.”
“I’m the same person.”
Kaelee gave her a look. “I’m guessing that most of your authors don’t have you beg—”
“Kaelee!” Greta looked through the glass walls. “Obviously our incrediblyrecentpast makes things a little awkward. Do you want me to pass your book over to Ian or another editor? I suggested it as an option to Emily in case you want to switch editors.”
“Why?”
“If you’re uncomfortable.” Greta tried not to let a quaver into her voice. She’d just lost her friend Lee, and she might be losing a book that she was very optimistic and excited to launch. She wanted to do right by both the book and the woman, though.
Kaelee sighed. “I guess being friends with your editor is weird?”
“Not at all! I’d love to stay your friend and your editor, but… this is your decision.” Greta folded her arms over her chest. “At least I know you don’t hate me. When I emailed, you were so formal. I started thinking you were either extremely introverted or maybe…”
“Bitchy?”
“Well,yes.” Greta paused, eyes going wide as she realized that her author refused to meet her in DC so she could have sex. “You said you couldn’t meet up when I was in DC.”
“I had plans.”
“You did not. You met me for… you met me at the hotel,” Greta countered, voice dropping to a whisper at the last word.
“Meeting an editor for schmoozing? Pass. Meeting a sexy woman for a stress reliever? Yes.” Kaelee smiled in a way that tightened Greta’s body in anticipation of something that could never again happen. “I have priorities.”
“You’re terrible.” Greta laughed.
“You’ll get used to it since we’re going to be friends,” Kaelee countered. “Dinner and a show?”
“No office tour?”
“Honestly, I have no interest in that.” Kaelee paused and tilted her head. “Maybe that’s a silver lining. I’m not nervous around you now. When you were the big-shot editor who could make or break me, I was terrified.”
Greta shook her head. “I don’t know how to be your friend and your editor.”
“Too bad.” Kaelee stared her down. “Your edits were good, and I know you didn’t buy my book because I give excellent oral.”
“Stop.”
For a brief moment, Kaelee seemed to drop all her walls. “Look. I just lost something that I was willing to move outside my comfort zone to have, so I’m probably going to make smart-assed comments when there are no witnesses. It’s that or find a bottle and a woman,and as much as it pains me to say it, I don’t want anyone but the woman I just lost.”
“Oh.”
“Maybe this is just my bad luck. Maybe it’s a good thing, and now that we fucked it out of our system, we can be friends.” Kaelee’s fists were tightly curled, and her voice was drawn taut. “It’s not like we could’ve had an actual relationship, and sex with the same person always eventually gets old, so this could be for the best, right?”
“That’s definitely one way to look at it.” Greta kept her voice light, but the truth was that she didn’t think that sex with the same personalwaysbecame stale. And even if that were true, she couldn’t imagine that they were anywhere near that point.
