* * *
Josie feltlike she’d swallowed a swarm of butterflies. Maybe dragonflies, given the circumstances? Or bees, because there was a definite sting somewhere deep inside her belly as she made her way downstairs to the bar. Not Swanson’s. It was gone, just another piece of her past. She swallowed the pang of nostalgia that had risen in her throat. She was about to see Dragonfly for the first time, and she could hardly breathe.
A cameraman descended the stairs ahead of her, recording every emotion that crossed her face. Would the video capture the shake of her hands? The sheen of tears in her eyes? She resisted the urge to press a hand against her belly.
The cameraman walked backward down the hallway, leading her into the bar. Josie followed, pulse quickening as she stepped over the threshold. She looked around, breath caught in her throat. Swanson’s wood-paneled walls had been stripped and refinished, painted a pale gray with aqua undertones and offset by the brick wall behind the bar. The prints she and Eve had picked out hung on the wall opposite the bar, matted a deep lilac to match the new Dragonfly logo. Overhead, strings of white lights ringed the room, making everything seem to glow in their warm light.
“What do you think?”
She turned at the sound of Eve’s voice, spotting her at the far end of the bar, and now she understood why Eve had insisted on keeping things professional—or at least semiprofessional—between them until after filming wrapped. Because just the sight of her knocked the air from Josie’s lungs, and it was a good thing she was already breathless from seeing Dragonfly, because hopefully it masked her reaction to Eve from the cameras. “I…I love it.”
Eve smiled, a wide, approving smile, the kind she only used when the cameras were rolling. “I’m glad to hear that.”
Josie preferred the small, genuine smiles she’d received in private, but right now, she didn’t much care. She spun, taking it all in, not even trying to contain her excitement, because that was what theDo Overteam wanted for their episode, after all. They wanted to see a happy customer, and right now, she was very,veryhappy.
“It’s warmer than I had expected, and it feels so modern.” She blinked back the tears hazing her vision. “I think my dad would have loved it.”
“I’m sure he would have.”
“I mean, he never would have done anything like this in a million years. There wasn’t a trendy bone in his body. This place isn’t him. It’s me. But he’d love seeing me here, now that it’s mine…if that makes sense.” She wrapped her arms around herself. “And it doesn’t really make sense, since it’s only mine because he died.”
“It makes perfect sense,” Eve said smoothly.
“It’s just…wow, I can’t quite believe this is the same place.” She walked slowly through the room, taking in the new furniture, the freshly polished floor, the sleek track lighting overhead. Nothing about it felt like the building she’d grown up in.
This space might occupy the same street address, but it was a different bar. Out of nowhere, a rush of sadness washed over her, and she wiped away a tear that ran down her cheek. She might have felt embarrassed or tried to hide it, but she knew the show loved when business owners got emotional. They wanted to see her tears.
She looked over at Eve, surprised and yetnotsurprised by the calm air of professional detachment she wore like an extra layer of clothing. Josie wasn’t hurt by it, though, because she knew that this was simply how Eve acted on camera. It was the reason Josie had been so intimidated by her when they’d first met.
Somewhere beneath that cool exterior, though, Eve stored all the warmth and passion she’d shared last night in Josie’s arms, bodies pressed together and gasping for breath. Josie looked away, forcing her attention back to the bar before her feelings showed on her face.
“That should do it,” the director called, and all around the room, red lights blinked off as the cameras stopped recording. “Break for five while we set up for the next shot.”
Josie exhaled, slow and deep, resting her hands against the bar. It was new too, a lighter-colored wood, sleek and glossy beneath her fingers.
“You did well,” Eve said, coming to stand beside her.
“Thanks. It helped that I didn’t have to fake my reaction. I really do love it.”
“Are you sure?” Eve asked quietly.
Josie nodded as fresh tears spilled over her cheeks, betraying her words. “I just need a minute.”
She turned away and went down the hall to her office. She dropped into the chair behind her desk and rested her face in her hands, gasping past the urge to cry. Even her office felt different. A hint of Eve’s perfume lingered in the air, and when Josie lifted her head, Eve’s laptop sat in front of her on the desk.
“Josie.”
She looked up to see Eve standing in the doorway. “I’m okay, really.”
“You don’t like it?” Eve asked, and Josie couldn’t tell if she was imagining something tender behind her neutral tone.
“I do. IloveDragonfly, but I miss Swanson’s too. It’s just…an adjustment, that’s all.”
“Okay,” Eve said from her position in the doorway.
“Come in and close the door,” Josie said.
Eve stiffened, jaw clenching, and Josie had to fight the urge to laugh. Oh, how she wanted to kiss that prim look right off her face, but that wasn’t even what she’d had in mind when she made her request. After a moment, Eve shut the door.
