Texting With the Enemy (Digital Dating #1) - Marika Ray Page 0,28

me, her eyes shining with emotion. “I wanted to say thank you. For everything.” She leaned in slightly.

Kiss her, kiss her, my body chanted.

“You’re welcome,” I said, barely able to form words over the buzzing in my brain. I wanted her with everything I was. I had the strange fleeting thought that maybe I was actually in love with her, that maybe I had been for a while. Before this crazy week even. Was that possible?

I stepped nearer, and her other hand found my chest, her chin tilting as she looked up at me. One of my hands slipped around her waist.

“I’ve had a lot of fun with you this week,” I said, not sure if the words were right, but having a lot of trouble thinking clearly.

She smiled and my heart lifted. “Me too,” she agreed. “This might sound strange, but you’re not who I thought you were.”

Oof. She didn’t even know how right she was. I stepped back. I couldn’t kiss her. I didn’t deserve to. Not while I was busy lying to her about Chad, and pretending to be someone I wasn’t.

“Okay, well.” I nodded toward the car, the tension in the air snapping and dropping to the dusty ground at our feet.

“Okay,” she said. And I thought maybe she sounded disappointed.

I drove El home, the silence between us reinforcing the fact that I needed to fix this Chad thing, or there’d be no possibility of a future between us. And oddly, I knew that was exactly what I wanted. But I couldn’t run the risk of ruining Mom’s opening if El was so angry she quit. It would have to wait.

10

Isabel

* * *

Me: OMG, please tell me you have five seconds to talk me off the ledge!

Ashley: What’s going on? And yes, I have exactly ten minutes before I have a meeting with a bridezilla who wants a river running down the aisle like she’s in “Crazy Rich Asians.” And of course, I’d have to have a camera floating down in a little raft to catch the angle from down below because of course she’d want that. I don’t get paid enough for this crap.

Ashley was a wedding photographer, which meant she was a professional at talking women down when they were hysterical or asking for the moon. Exactly who I needed right about now as I got dressed for the grand opening at the winery this afternoon.

Me: No cameras or rivers, I promise. Last night I had a moment, like a moment-moment, with my boss and now I’m freaking out.

Ashley: Wait. With Mr. Cunningham? The one who’s training you at the winery? What happened to Chad?

Me: Yes, Boston. I really wish this wasn’t your busy season. I have so much to fill you in on!

Me: Chad and I have been texting and honestly, he seems so much deeper than the guy I met at the festival. He compliments me and asks about my day. I really want to go on a date and see how things go, but he’s been out of town.

Ashley: Woohoo! Go El!

Ashley: Wait. But then what’s up with the moment comment about your boss?

Me: That’s the thing. We went out to dinner and it was kind of work, but it was also kind of a date. We had this moment at the end and I could have sworn he was going to kiss me.

Ashley: And did you want him to kiss you?

Me: At the time, yes. Maybe more than Mom wants a smoke.

Ashley: Wow, that badly, huh? But??

Me: But he’s my soon to be ex-boss and his mom is also my current boss. And I kind of don’t like him. Or at least I didn’t. The guy had my car delivered to my door this morning. Who does that??

Ashley: Dang! I get busy at work and suddenly my bestie has two guys on the hook!

Me: Ugh. I don’t have anyone on a hook, Ash. I just…

Ashley: Want them both?

Me: Sigh. Yes.

Ashley: Listen. Get through the opening today...I’ll try to be there, by the way...and then just see what happens. Don’t freak out about the guy situation or I’ll have to use my bridezilla voice on you.

Ashley: Eek! Gotta go. The monster has arrived…

I hurried to finish getting dressed, wondering how Ashley could be so calm about things when I’d complained about Boston to her for months after that interview disaster. I’d gone over every conversation and text message last night from both Chad and Boston, wondering what to do about it.