She looked at him, green eyes thoughtful. “If byityou mean you and me, No. I probably should. That seems like the smart thing to do, but I don’t. Aren’t you going to ask me if I’m here to land a shark, or if I’m the predator?”
“That didn’t work out so well for me last time. Iamcurious why you’re here.”
“I’m not sure. Same reason as you?” She shrugged.
That didn’t help much. “To pretend you’re drinking, but really be a miserable body in a chair?”
Her smile grew. “Sounds about right. I don’t know. I guess maybe part of me hoped, if I returned to where it all started, I could do that one thing differently, to make it all right.”
“If you meet future-me while you’re here, will you ask him what I’m supposed to do next?” Justin hadn’t meant to let his uncertainty slip out.
“Talk to Antonio.”
Justin eyed her warily. How much did she know? “I’m not the one refusing to talk.”
“Never said you were. You want a different answer? Do what you wanted to do. License the tech from APPropriate Designs and make PP happen.”
He’d never phrased it to her like that. “He got to you first.”
“Got to memakes it sound sinister. He took my call. You didn’t.”
Jealousy spiked inside. Were they fucking? The thought gouged holes in his chest. Wondering if there was more made the wounds throb. “I haven’t been quite myself for a few days.”
“Welcome to the club. Talk to him.”
“You know.” Justin studied her. “You knew before. How long?”
She ducked her head and fiddled with the napkin under her glass. “How he felt? I figured it out pretty early on. It wasn’t my secret to share, though.”
The invisible divots behind his ribs pulsed in protest. How did she see something he missed for years? “That’s what’s at the heart of this, isn’t it? Too many secrets. And you can tell me to talk to him as many times as you want; he still won’t have anything to do with me.”
She frayed the edges of her napkin, shredding tiny triangles and building a pile. Silence settled between them.
Suddenly Justin wasn’t so enamored with the background noise. “How’s the job hunt going?”
She scowled. “That’s a mood killer. Um... Not well? I can’t say why no one is returning my calls, but I’ve got a pretty solid guess in some cases. I’ve never had this kind of trouble landing interviews before.”
“You’re still looking, then?”
“You put those pieces together all on your own?” She twisted her mouth and her expression relaxed.
It was perfect. The idea helped Justin ignore the churning mess inside. “Come work for me.”
“I’m not sure anyone told you, but you don’t have a job either. Or a company.” She kneweverythingthat happened.
“I have a plan, though. Or a plan to make a plan.” The rush was fading, his frustration floating back in. That wasn’t right. This was a way to regain control. He had to follow the momentum. “Are you two sleeping together?” No. Wrong question. He needed to get away from thoughts of Antonio.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but no.”
Thank God. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have asked.”
“I should go.” She pushed back from the table and stood. “I’ll think about the job.”
“Answer the phone next time I call?” It was the best he could manage.
“I will. And for the record, I nag him to call you as much as I did you to reach out to him.”
“And?” The relief inside grew.