“He didn’t hurt me,” Rhiannon snapped, even though she knew the snap was unfair.
Katrina’s eyes softened. “Of course.”
“I am not easy to hurt. I am a stone cold bitch when it comes to men. No rose-colored glasses here.”
Katrina toyed with her phone. “Rhiannon . . . you’re not that much of a cynic. I think you’re actually kind of a romantic.”
Rhiannon gasped, like her best friend had stabbed her. “You shut your beautiful perfect mouth.”
Katrina did not shut her delightful mouth. Oh no, she kept going. “You watch holiday movies every year. You try to hide it, but I see you crying.”
“Find me the empty soul who doesn’t get emotional over While You Were Sleeping.”
Katrina rolled her eyes. “You send gifts to everyone who sends their success story in to Crush. Wedding and engagement and civil union and housewarming and baby gifts.”
“I send branded gifts. I want that kid to be sucking on their Crush rattle from birth, damn it, so it knows from whence it came. That’s business. It’s almost automated.”
Anyone else might be intimidated by her rising voice, but Katrina wasn’t anyone else. She cleared her throat. “Is it business to send a personalized note of congratulations with the gift?”
“You’re not allowed to talk to Lakshmi anymore.”
“You were more upset than I’ve seen you over a guy when you came back from Cayucos. You may have had one night with him, but you liked him, and he betrayed you, extenuating circumstances or not. It’s normal to have been hurt. It’s normal to want to know what happened, and to be relieved when you find out it wasn’t about you.”
The sympathy in Katrina’s demeanor should have warmed Rhiannon, but it made her want to claw her skin off. There was nobody in the world who knew as much about her life as Katrina did, and most days, that was fine. She needed one confidante who could be there for her 100 percent.
But being vulnerable wasn’t easy for her. Her sense of vulnerability was compounded by the layer of shame she felt over bolting from the party. And again from the interview.
Weakness. Weakness on top of weakness. “I was fine. I’m fine now.” Rhiannon picked up their plates and utensils and carried them to the sink. She rinsed them off and put them in the dishwasher.
“I know your rules when it comes to guys, and I know why you have those rules in place. Sometimes rules don’t apply to every situation.”
After a couple of moments of silence, Katrina blew out a breath. “Okay. I’ll be in my office if you want to talk.”
Rhiannon finished putting away the dishes and carefully washed her hands. A romantic? Hurt? Her? No.
So why did you run away from him?
Because she’d wanted to. She didn’t have to explain herself to anyone! No one would blame her for running away from a zombie, five-time orgasm deliverer or not.
Rhiannon had about a million other things to do, but she found herself wandering down the hallway to Katrina’s office. She hovered in the doorway. The light bounced off Katrina’s shiny light brown hair when she lifted her head from the gold wire spread out over her desk. “Fine. I was hurt.”
Katrina sat back in her chair. Her workroom was in another corner of the house, but she tinkered with metal and stones wherever inspiration struck her. “I know.”
“You would have talked to him? Given him a chance to explain?” Rhiannon asked. Her throat felt rough, the words pulled out of her.
“Probably.” Katrina tipped her head at the armchair opposite her.
Rhiannon came in and perched on the edge of it. “Why? You know the stats, as well as I do.”
Katrina squinted at her. “Imagine I went out with a date one night. It was really good. We made plans for a second date. And then, before I could go on that date, I had a panic attack, one of my incapacitating ones, and I stood him up. For whatever reason, I couldn’t immediately contact him, but I managed to track him down after a few months. Should he hear me out? Should he give me the benefit of the doubt?”
Rhiannon ran her tongue over her teeth. Katrina knew very well what Rhiannon would say to that, but then again, she was always on Katrina’s side. “Okay. I see where you’re going with this.”
“Sometimes, good people make mistakes. It costs you nothing to hear someone out.”