“Please tell me it was that he’s a son of a bitch.”
Her smile was bigger this time. “That was my third thought. My second one was nothing was wrong with me. Tariq is who he is. He isn’t going to change, and I realized I couldn’t love the man he is. I tried.”
She laid the document down on my desk and signed beside the sticky tab pointing to the signature line. When it was done, she handed it to me, letting out a breath. A sigh of relief?
“Just my opinion,” I said, “but it doesn’t sound like he ever deserved you.”
A soft laugh bubbled out of her. “That’s what Julius keeps telling me.”
“He’s a smart guy.” I saw the opportunity and seized on it. “How’s the divorce going to affect your friendship with him?”
She contemplated for a moment. “He was Tariq’s boy before we met, but . . . I dunno. We talk a lot now. Ever since Tariq got traded and we came to Chicago, Julius has been there for me.” Was it the afternoon sunlight coming through my window that lit her eyes, or the thought of him? “He’s like my friend now.”
It was good to hear, but I didn’t want him to be friend-zoned forever. Could I plant the idea in her head? Maybe she just needed a nudge to see Julius in a new light. The question pushed past my lips before I could reel it in. “You ever wonder if he’ll be interested in more?”
Her breath caught and warm color splashed on her pretty face. Her eyes shifted away, shy. Holy shit.
She knew.
Courtney’s voice was soft. “I married his best friend. He’ll never make a move.”
“Then, I guess if you’re interested, you’ll have to do it. When you’re ready.”
Her eyes widened. “I doubt I can compete with the girls at his club.”
I tried to be nonchalant, but my pulse quickened. “His wine club?”
“Yes.” She seemed to scrutinize me just as much as I did her. Gauging each other’s response. Did she know what Julius really did? Was she trying to figure out if I knew?
“It’s funny,” she said, “how he owns the club. Julius doesn’t even like wine.”
Oh, she definitely knew. But how? Tariq acted like she didn’t.
“That is funny,” I said. “It’s also strange how he got his start there. I wouldn’t think a wine club would need such heavy security.” The meaning was clear on my face. “How’d you hear about the kind of wine they sell there?”
“Another player’s wife. She, uh, goes to the club with her husband.” A blush washed over her face. “Anyway, when she told me it pretends to be an exclusive wine club, and what part of town it’s in . . . It wasn’t hard to put together.”
“You haven’t talked about it with Julius, though?”
Courtney shook her head slowly. “Yeah . . . I don’t know how to start that conversation. I guess I’ll wait for him to tell me.”
Would he, though? It didn’t sound like she knew Tariq was visiting the club, and although she seemed to accept what Julius did, it might be a different story if she found out everything.
Both our gazes sank down to the divorce papers on my desk.
“Is that it?” she asked quietly.
“I’ll file these with the judge and let you know when it’s official.” When she stood, I rose from my desk. “I’ll be in touch.”
I escorted her to the front, passing by the main conference room where both my parents were seated with a team of attorneys. My father’s gaze tracked me the entire way. If I had followed exactly in his footsteps, right now I’d be thinking about the nice paycheck heading my direction. There’d been a lot of billable hours, thanks to Tariq’s stalling. Instead I was thinking about Julius and Courtney, and if they’d be able to develop their relationship into more.
I was becoming less and less like my parents every day. I’d fled Chicago, hoping the distance would prevent me from turning into them, but it was back here where I felt like I’d truly broken free.
Courtney gave me a soft smile as she slipped on her coat. “Thank you, Mr. McCreary.”
She was friends with Julius, as was I, and I genuinely hoped to see her again. “It’s Kyle, and you’re welcome.”
My phone chimed with a text message and I glanced at it as she stepped into the elevator. A single line of text from Ruby.