“I am tasting it. I’m having a religious experience.”
“If it’s always this good,” Alex says, “I’m moving in.”
“You’re not moving in,” Lance says.
“I’ll sleep in the kitchen.”
“You absolutely will not.”
Felicity catches my eye across the table and raises her glass slightly. A quiet acknowledgment, separate from the noise. I raise mine back. She’s been oddly silent tonight, but I don’t question it.
“Oh, I forgot to tell everyone,” Roman says. “My sister’s thinking of applying to Verona University.”
“Your sister’s coming to Rosebrook?” Felicity lights up. “Finally. I need another girl on my side.”
“Hey,” Juliette says. “That’s offensive.”
“I could show her around,” Alex offers. “Give her the full Rosebrook experience.”
“You will stay away from my sister,” Roman says, his grin dropping.
“What? I’m a gentleman.”
“You eat gas station sushi and flirt with anything that moves. And you’re fucking ancient compared to her. Stay away from my sister.”
“Relax, Roman. I’ve already found mystar.” He tips his glass toward Felicity without looking at her.
“You’re reducing me to a ball of gas?” Felicity asks. “This is why no one takes you seriously.”
“No. You’re right. You’re not a star. You’re the whole sky.”
She grins. “Better.”
“Does that mean you’ll spend more time with me now that your parents banned you from volunteering at Second Circle?” Alex asks.
“What?” I blurt.That explains the quiet.
Felicity shoves Alex in the arm. “You mongrel. I said not to tell anyone about that.”
“You got fired?” Tiffany asks.
“I didn’t get fired,sweetheart, but thanks for the second degree.”
“She’d have to actually be worth hiring for someone to fire her,” Paxton says.
“You know, if you need a job, Fee, I could always use an assistant at WayMont,” Roman says.
“Um, hard pass, thanks. Listening to you spray-paint things in your office while you pretend to know how to run a company sounds like torture.”
“Pax needs a new assistant,” Alex says.
“Alex.” Paxton’s fingers tap the table. “Quiet.”
“What? Youjusttold me the other day she quit.”
“She didn’t quit,” Paxton says. “She was reassigned.”
“They quit,” Tiffany corrects, taking a sip of wine. “One of them cried.”
