Shut up.
At eleven on the dot,she checked on the lunch order. On Drusilla’s movies, Patricia liked to work right through until the script was hashed out. But those were short, one-hour television specials. Stepmother may not need to eat to sustain life, but the rest of the world did. And heaven help her, she knew Beau would be starving by the time lunch arrived.
She just couldn’t get the image of him holding Rubi out of her head. There was no need for that during a first read-through.
Of course it didn’t matter to Beau and Rubi—they’d probably kissed hundreds of actors and actresses. According toAtlanta Entertainment News, Beau’s off-screen stats were better than his onscreen ones. Cindy squeezed her eyes shut.
For all Beau’s reputation as a playboy, she hadn’t seen him like that on Saturday. He was just Beau, all funny and playful. And he wasBeau—said with a breathy sigh and a hand over her heart. “Are all men this complicated?” she muttered.
“Most of us are simple creatures,” Tomás answered from the other side of the cubicle wall.
Cindy rolled her eyes. “Just talking to myself.”
“Well, tell yourself there are other people trying to work here.” Tomás stood so he could see over the wall.
Cindy tried to smile but couldn’t get her cheeks to work.
“Sounds like it’s going well in there.” Tomás jerked his head towards the general area of the conference room.
“You think?” Cindy wrenched open a lower file drawer.
“What’s wrong?” Tomás disappeared for a moment and reappeared in her cubicle entrance.
“Nothing.” Cindy slammed the drawer shut. She loved Tomás like the uncle she’d never had, but she wanted to be alone. “Everything is just as it should be.” She’d gotten exactly what she knew was coming. Beau went back to his movie star life, and she was back to getting by. If she knew it was coming, why did it have to hurt so badly?
Daphne beeped through Cindy’s phone. “Cindy, honey, lunch is here.”
“I’ll be right in.” Cindy stood.
Tomás gave her a brief hug. “I’m sorry.”
Cindy bit her lip. “It is what it is.”
“Which is another way of saying ‘it sucks but there’s nothing I can do about it.’”
She chuckled. “Pretty much.”
“I wish I could say life would get better, peanut.” Tomás’s shoulders lifted.
Cindy squeezed his arm. Tomás had real problems. NotI’ve fallen for a guy I can’t havetroubles. “How’s Candice?”
“She has scans this week.”
“She’s going to be okay.” Cindy patted his arm. “We’re all praying for her.” The whole office worried about Candice.
“Thanks.” He lifted his chin. “It is what it is.”
Cindy nodded, her perspective shifting. Tomás’s sister was fighting for her life and Tomás carried that weight andhewas worried about Cindy’s heart.
She pulled herself together and made her way to the lobby, where the catering company had set up four tables with burgundy linens. The scent of fried chicken, dilly potato salad, and baked beans filled the lobby.
The staff, in their crisp white coats and black pants, bustled about arranging food and paper goods. The manager smiled at Cindy.
She returned his smile. “Roberto, it smells delicious.” Real food was a treat for a Knight. Patricia assumed everyone in the house liked living on a liquid diet, though Cindy had found a stash of chocolate in Natalie’s closet. Oddly, it made her like her stepsister just a hair more than she disliked Drusilla.
“Thanks, chica. I need a signature for the credit card.”
“Sure.” Cindy did not want to go back in the conference room where Beau looked at Rubi like she was his heart’s desire. But Patricia was the only one authorized to sign for expenses. “I’ll just take this …” She trailed off, not really knowing what to say or think or feel.
