"I'm going to take a walk," Aiden says. "You sure you don't want to come along?"
"I'm really tired. I'm just going to go to bed."
"See you at breakfast?"
"Maybe. No, actually, I think I'll just head out. I have a lot to do tomorrow."
"Wait, so this is it?" He steps closer to me. "When will I see you again?"
"I don't know. You have my number. Just text me when you're um, free."
The way he's looking at me, I can tell he gets that I'm not talking about his schedule being free. I'm talking about being free of his relationship. I don't want to see him again until he's single. Until we're both single. I can't keep seeing him and pretending we're just friends.
From his reaction, I think he feels the same. He takes several steps back, his eyes on mine. "I'll text you when I'm free."
"Goodnight, Aiden."
"Goodnight."
I race up to my room and collapse on the bed, wishing he was free right now. I want him to be mine and I don't want to wait. I've never felt like this. Ever. With anyone.
I just need to be patient. We both need to take care of things back home and then we can be together and finally tell each other how we feel.
"Where are the files for the Trystal dinner?" Bianca asks, racing around her office.
It's Sunday morning and I really wanted to sleep in but Bianca called me in a panic, saying she needed me to help her. By help, she meant keep her company. All she's doing is organizing files. She doesn't need my help with that, and it doesn't need to be done on a Sunday. She made me come in yesterday, too. As soon as I got back to New York, I returned the rental car, made a quick stop at my apartment, and then went to the office.
"I'm not sure what you mean," I say. "Is that a new client?"
She stops and turns to me, seeming annoyed. "The Trystal dinner? Roger Trystal. Celine's father. Any of this ringing a bell?"
"Oh, yes, of course. Sorry. It's just that you usually say the name of the company, not the owner."
"Yes, well, you need to know both. I'm surprised you don't, given your personal connection to them."
"Personal connection?"
"You and Celine. Aren't you two friends?"
"No, not really. We're more like acquaintances."
"Huh. That's not the impression she gave me."
"When? What did she say about me?"
"We went out for drinks and she kept bringing you up, saying she wanted to get to know you better. I just assumed that meant she was hoping you two would become better friends."
"I don't know why she'd want that. We have nothing in common."
Bianca's brows rise. "You both like Aiden."
"Aiden is just a friend," I say with a nervous laugh as I walk over to the file cabinet. "Did you print out the file or should I search the digital files?"
Bianca appears in front of me. "What's going on with you and Aiden?"
"Nothing!" I say as though I'm offended by her question. "Why would you even ask me that? You know I'm dating Tanner."
"And yet you only talk about Aiden." She puts her hand on her hip. "If something's going on with you and him, I need to know. This could screw up everything. If Celine finds out, we'll lose her father as a client and that cannot happen. Roger Trystal is very well connected. He could bring us new clients worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even Beverly is getting involved in this. She met Roger for lunch on Friday and told him she'd be personally overseeing his event. Do you understand what that means?"
As owner of the company, Beverly rarely gets involved in events, relying on Bianca and the other staff to do all the work. Beverly spends her time going to parties and meeting potential clients. I've only met her one time, the day I started here. She shook my hand, welcomed me to the company, then told me if I mess up I'm fired. She doesn't tolerate mistakes, which is why Bianca is always so nervous and frantic.
"You have nothing to worry about," I say. "There's nothing going on with Aiden and me."
"And you'd tell me if that changed?"
"Yes." I pause, wondering if I should tell her about Aiden's plan to break up with Celine. I decide not to, remembering Aiden made me promise to keep it a secret.