In some ways, it had been good for her, because she’d been too busy to think about Eve, too busy to dwell on the pain of losing her, too busy to wonder if there was a chance she’d change her mind. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Josie had imagined that when Eve walked into the bar tonight, they’d fall back into each other’s arms.
But it hadn’t happened. Eve had been nothing but cool and professional the whole time she was here, and now she was officially gone. Josie would probably never see her again. And she really wanted to go upstairs and have a good, long cry about it, but of course, she couldn’t.
“You okay?” Adam asked.
She managed a wry smile. “No, but I’ll manage.”
“That’s the spirit.” He tapped his knuckles against hers.
She bent to open the dishwasher. “You know what’s weird?”
“What?”
“Eve didn’t mention the robbery during our interview. I’d been worrying about it all afternoon because I knew the producers wanted her to play up any drama. And here’s stupid, gullible me who let myself get robbed.”
“You’re not stupid or gullible, just too trusting sometimes.”
“I let Lauren close for me, after knowing her for two weeks. That was stupid.” She began stacking clean glasses on the drying rack.
“It was,” Adam agreed. “But I love you for being such a trusting fool, and I think Eve does too.”
“What?” She nearly dropped a glass. It slipped through her fingers, and she hugged it awkwardly between her arm and her stomach before setting it on the counter.
“I may have cornered her earlier,” he admitted, looking sheepish. “I was angry with her, and I guess I wanted to pick a fight. But she didn’t give me one. Instead, I almost made her cry, and now I feel like an ass.”
“Oh, shit,” Josie breathed. “What did you say?”
“A lot of nasty stuff about the way she treated you. I thought she’d give me shit for it, and then I could really hate her. But she didn’t. She looked wrecked. She told me flat out that she had feelings for you, but that she could never be what you needed.”
Josie’s vision blurred.
“And if she hid the robbery from her producers so she wouldn’t have to embarrass you with it on TV? Well, that sounds like love to me. I don’t know what her emotional baggage is, but if it’s any consolation, I think you can assume she’s as miserable and heartbroken right now as you are.”
She choked on a laugh, swiping tears from her cheeks. “That does make me feel a little better, actually.”
“Love hurts, babe.” He pulled her in for a hug. “I’m sorry.”
“Thank you.”
A large group entered the bar, disappointed that they’d missed the camera crew but still thirsty, and she and Adam stopped chatting to mix drinks for them. From there, things stayed busy until the crowd started to thin out around two.
“I have a proposition for you,” Adam said as he expertly mixed three Midnight in Manhattans in a row.
“Oh yeah?”
“Hire me full-time, and I’ll quit my job at the bank.”
“What?” She stared at him like he’d just told her he had a date with a woman.
“This is more fun, and with tips, I could make more here than I’m making there. Doing both is wearing me out.”
“You’re already working three nights a week. How many more shifts do you want?”
“Give me two more to start. If five nights is too much, I’ll drop back to four.”
“Yeah, wow, okay.” Having Adam here five nights a week was a million times better than hiring someone new, and it would only leave her one night a week on her own. It was doable. And it would get her by until she was back on her feet again.
If only she could find a similar patch for her heart.
