Page 39 of Yours, Finally

"Don't be sorry," she said, her voice deep and heavy. "Please. It makes it worse."

I turned away to make room for her. To give her space to do as she needed to. So she wouldn't see the despair on my face.

She stopped halfway into the bathroom. Her voice came to me in a yearning whisper. "I will ask you once, after you become a VP. Just once. I hope you don't turn me down, but I will respect it if you do."

The door closed with a dooming click.

"Fuck," I said again.

I grabbed my bags and ran to the bathroom, too.

Chapter 13

Vi

A week later, Ihadn't recovered from the encounter with Jake in the executive's gym. I hadn't seen him around, either; it was likely that he had returned to working out earlier in the morning. He probably thought he was giving me space. I probably needed the space, too; we'd been so close.

But the time for regrouping was over. Gabe had proposed a double date dinner— he had used those words, too, clueless brother of mine— between him and Lina, and Jake and me. To discuss the party, allegedly, but we'd spent the whole meal chatting about life.

"I know it makes me a little evil," Lina said, "but I do love the way Essie looks at me when I'm cheering for Gabe, or the way she checks my left hand all the time."

The whole group chuckled. Jake and I had barely interacted, but the relationship we had with my brother and his partner remained unaffected by the tension between us.

The restaurant was an elegant, modern new place. The walls were a dark blue on the bottom half, but the top half was a warm muted gold, in a sort of fabric wallpaper. Tables and chairs were of dark wood, and contemporary chandeliers bathed us in a deep yellow light.

Gabe arched an eyebrow in Lina's direction. "If she looks at you when you cheer for me, it's because you keep yelling the silliest things ever."

"At this point it's part of my brand." Lina grinned. "For your next game, I plan to use animals. Something like,you go, fox!"

"What?" Gabe laughed. "Wait until I get some grays, at least!"

Servers took our empty plates away and offered coffee and dessert; we all decided to simply finish our drinks, except Lina who ordered dessert.

"That's not why Gabe's ex is looking at your left hand, though, is it?" Jake cocked his head with a sassy slant to his lips.

"No, that's not it." Lina smirked. "But my dad isn't going to retire yet, and I want a couple more years in the position before my family forgets about my job and goes up the walls planning our wedding. The way everyone is going wild for Lucía's wedding… yeah, not yet. Until then, Essie can keep guessing."

"I can't wait for your guys' wedding," I said. "One day. It's going to be amazing. I might cry."

"I might cry, too," Jake said. "Just giving you a warning."

"What? Why?" Gabe looked at us in surprise.

"Because seeing you so happy makes me emotional," I admitted.

"Me too." Jake gazed at his friends. "And because underneath all this, I'm a big softie."

Lina reached a hand and squeezed Jake's arm. "That's so sweet. If you ever get married, I bet you'll be the kind of groom who cries when he sees his bride."

Gabe's gaze softened on all of us. "We should probably talk about the party now, though. Before we all get a little emotional in the restaurant."

"The guest list is ready, right?" I asked. "Do you think you can send the invitations soon?"

Lina nodded. "It's almost ready. Now we need to send them out, and plan the flights for the people we're bringing from Chile."

"Food is also in the works. We're talking to Claire at Remington Estate to coordinate with their kitchen and other staff. How are decorations going?"

Jake shifted in his chair and his leg rubbed against mine under the table. His eyebrows twitched at the contact, and he removed the touch— moved back in his chair again.