“Perfect. We’re having a yoga night at the winery in two weeks. You should come. And invite my brother.”
“Oh, we’ve already had a discussion about yoga. He’s not too fond of the exercise.”
Laney bounces her eyebrows up and down. “Oh, I’m aware. But I have a feeling that if he knows you’ll be there, he might be more likely to participate.”
“Should I be scared that you want me to manipulate him into this?” The question is meant to be a joke, but part of me is a bit concerned.
Laney grins. “No. I mean no harm. Honestly, I just want you to feel welcome here. The fact that you have a thing going on with my brother just makes it more fun.”
“There’s no ‘thing,’ Laney. We agreed to just be neighborly.”
“That’s perfect. Neighbors can be friends too.”
Oh, God. I should never have said anything about Rhonan to Laney. What if she goes and tells him that I was talking about him. Or…
Laney taps the brush on the edge of one of the bowls. “Hey, I’ve got to go mix up a bit more color. Your hair is soaking it up. I’ll be right back, okay?”
“Okay.” My eyes trail her as she walks away, but I’m still nervous about our conversation. I don’t have much time to stew on it, though, because my phone vibrates in my purse. I lean forward to pull it out, and when I do, my stomach drops.
A number I recognize flashes on the screen, like a car accident I can’t seem to turn my gaze from even though I should.
I don’t press ignore. I just let it ring until finally the phone screen tells me I have a missed call.
I’m frozen for a moment until my rational brain kicks in again, and that’s when I turn to my settings and make sure that my location is turned off.
You’re safe, Vienna. You’re fine.
No one knows you’re here.
Let’s just hope it stays that way.
***
“Vienna! I’m so surprised to see you out here tonight!” Harriet Thompson kisses both of my cheeks before releasing me from her grasp. Her makeup is caked on so thick that it looks like frosting. Although, after I saw myself in the mirror tonight, I shouldn’t really judge.
Forcing a smile, I say, “Well, I couldn’t hide away forever.”Even though I seriously want to, I think to myself.
A cold hand grasps my waist, making my entire body tense up. “This woman could never hide from me,” Cole interjects from my right, plastering on the smile I’ve cursed myself for falling for in the first place. His grip on me tightens as he continues. “In fact, I have a feeling you’ll be seeing a lot more of her from now on.”
Harriet nods in my direction. “Well, that would be lovely.”
“She told me she wants to get more involved in the foundations now, so that when we have children, she’ll feel okay stepping away knowing she’s contributed to my career in some capacity.”
Harriet reaches for my hand as the skin around her eyes crinkles. “We can always use more help with the foundations.”
Clenching my teeth together, my smile mirrors Cole’s. “Just…glad I can be of use.”
When Harriet releases me, another woman calls for her across the ballroom. “I’ve got to run, but I’ll be in touch this week so we can start collaborating.”
“Sounds great.”
Cole waits for Harriet to get far enough away before the entire tone in his voice changes. “I told you to stay near me.”
I straighten my spine while keeping my perfected smile intact. “She came up to me. What was I supposed to do? Run away from her and across the room to you?”
He lifts his scotch to his lips, taking a sip. “You knew that the whole point of you being here was to show everyone that—”
“I know. Appearances are everything,” I finish for him, echoing the same sentence that he’s used so many times in our relationship to get me to see his perspective that I’ve lost count.
