Brazen Bossman: A Hero Club Novel, стр. 68
“And what if I do go hear him out? I show up, opening myself up to hurting even more than I already am, just to have him laugh in my face and tell me he was just using me to score a business deal. He doesn’t want to even talk to me. He hasn’t even reached out.”
“He’s giving you space,” she says matter-of-factly. “Trust me. Men are stupid, stubborn, and infuriating. Women are complex, equally as stubborn, and frustrating. When you left the house in the Hamptons, you told him you were done. He’s listening to you, and giving you exactly what you wanted. Could that be because he’s a dick who never wanted you? I guess that’s possible, but not likely.” She pauses to toss back more of her drink. “My guess is he is giving you space because he respects your decision as a human, a woman, a colleague, and someone he cares for, even if it’s killing him. You need concrete reasons for his choices. If for nothing else except closure.”
“Wow,” I say simply. “Wow.” I lean back in my chair, letting her words marinate in my brain.
“I’m assuming those are wows of clarity and not annoyance.”
“Yes.” I take a sip of my cocktail and prop my elbow on the bar, using my hand to support my chin. “You’re right.”
“Say it again, but slower. I have an incredibly frustrating husband who never lets me be right, so I want to savor this.” She closes her eyes and sighs happily. “Yeah, that’s good feeling.”
I shake my head and giggle. “I don’t know if I overreacted given the circumstances, but I didn’t act like someone who deserved the trust he put in me the night before.”
“So that means you’re going to go to him, right?”
“Right. I’m not going to rekindle or even expect anything. I’m going to let him tell his side so I have answers and can move on, in either direction, from there.”
“Exactly. Just have a conversation. You have a lot of giant life changes coming from this, so you owe it to yourself to exit or enter the next stage of your life with all the answers you can have.”
I check the time on my phone. “Holy hell. How is it already eight o’clock?”
“Time passes when you’re in therapy?” She laughs. “That’s a great idea. Tipsy therapy.”
“Remember me when you hit it big with that idea. I was a key player in the discovery after all.”
She pulls her credit card from her bag and slides it across the bar to settle the tab.
“Really, I can pay for mine,” I tell her.
“Oh, don’t worry. Graham, that’s my husband, is treating us both tonight. He’s babysitting our kids and covering drinks. Honestly, I think he’s just trying to get laid.”
We stand and make our way through the crowded bar and out to the sidewalk.
“Thank you again, for talking me through this, Soraya. I needed it, especially from a third party.”
“Anytime, and just because you’re settling your drama doesn’t mean I want to stop hearing from you.” She laughs and pulls a business card from her purse, using the bar exterior to press it against, scribbling her email address on the back before handing it to me.
“Tig’s Tattoo and Piercings,” I say, reading the front.
“Friends of mine, and a great place if you’re ever looking for ink or holes.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” I slip it into my bag.
“Well, I better go. I’m betting the little ones have their dad covered in makeup and glitter by now.”
“Uh oh. Yeah, you may want to go save him. I think I’m going to head to see Nathanial while I still have the nerve.” Just saying the words out loud makes me want to lose all of my drinks right here on the sidewalk.
“You’ve got this, and let me know how that goes, all right?”
“Okay. It was nice finally meeting you, Soraya,” I say.
“Likewise, Piper.” She gives me a wave before turning on her heels and heading back down the sidewalk toward a waiting SUV.
I take a few seconds to decipher exactly where I am and which trains I need to take to get to his penthouse. When I finally formulate a plan, my cell phone rings.
It’s my mother.
“Mom.” I answer. “Hi. What’s up?”
“Piper, I need you to come to the restaurant. Are you close?”
“Uh, well, I’m in the Village, so not really, and I was actually heading somewhere else and…”
“It’s important. I need you to get here as soon as you can, okay?”
I change my direction and walk the other way, so I can hop the appropriate train to Brooklyn.
“I’ll be there soon. Are you all right?”
“Everything is fine, but we need to have this conversation face-to-face.”
“I’m on my way, but Mom…”
The line clicks, going dead. She hung up on me.
What the hell?
***
After what feels like the longest commute in history, I’m finally stepping into Kingston’s, which is just winding down from a dinner service.
Casey is at the hostess stand, putting menus together when she looks up to see me. “Hi, Piper.”
“Hi. Where is my mom? Is she okay?”
“She’s in the back, I think, and yeah, she seems perfectly fine… why?”
I peek around her and just see a few occupied tables that seem to be nearing the end of their meals.
“No reason. She just seemed off is all. I’m going to go find her.”
I slip around Casey and head through the dining area and into the kitchen.
“Ma?” I call out for her.
Benjamin pokes his head out from around the corner. “She’s waiting for you in the office.”
“Is she okay?”
“Seems to be. Why?”
“She called and said it was important and I needed to get down here quickly.”
“You know her. She’s cool calm and collected with a side of over the fucking top.”
Boy, isn’t that the truth?
I knock on the office door once before pushing it open, finding her behind