Page 15 of The Cinderella Arrangement

The suffocating fear escalated even more. “What the hell does that mean?”

She was close to shouting now. “I’ve been waiting years for you to get help for yourself! You can’t afford groceries. You’re incapable of getting your shit together. And being alone with men makes you have panic attacks, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out why. And now you’re turning to this insanely stupid idea that will make your problems worse.”

My knuckles turned white on the head of the chair. I briefly entertained throwing the hot bowl of soup in Natalie’s face. I didn’t trust myself not to scream something I’d regret forever, so I said nothing. Natalie’s half-enraged, half-remorseful face said it all: something had broken between us. I didn’t need to hear her say all of those awful things out loud because I said them to myself every day.

I turned my back on her before she could speak and walked into the safety of my bedroom. Even though I knew she wouldn’t follow me, I still locked the door. My pinched face and red eyes reflected from my vanity. I saw myself bent at the waist, clutching the bathroom sink as he ripped down my pants. I looked into the mirror and sobbed as his naked body loomed behind me. Then I was trapped, forced to ride out the hell that was my memory until it was over.

* * *

The buzzing phone jerked me out of sleep, and I rubbed my tear-encrusted eyes. My heart jumped when I realized I had a new email. I rolled on my stomach to read it.

Hi Jessica,

Hopefullythis hasn’t reached you too late. I'dlike to schedule another meeting in Napa. I have a company outing there tomorrow. It would be greatto have a chat with you while I’m there. My driver can collect you at your apartment around 3pm. Please reply if this is acceptable.

- Luke

Does this mean I passed?

I doubted it because of his strange business-like tone. Groaning at the thought of going all the way to Napa, but thankful I didn’t have to drive; I punched out a quick email. How the background checkcomplete so quickly? Perhaps he would drive methere just to tell me I didn’t get the position.

Definitely not. He would’vesent a cordial email thanking me for a nice time and apologize for selecting another candidate.

After sending off a quick reply, I fell back on my pillows and wondered what the hell I would wear since I didn’t want to borrow anythingelse from Natalie.

He'll wear something more casual.

I checked the time. It was midnight. Only fifteen hours to go. Restless, I sprang out of bed and blinked as I flipped on the light. I slid open the closet door and rifled through my sad collection. I bit my lip. There was nothing here to impress him. My fingers lingered over a tired skirt, a frayed blouse, and returned to the cocktail dress.

I can’t wear the same thing twice.

Resolving to wait until morning, I threw myself into bed. A shopping trip might be possible, but I didn’t like spending the little money I had on clothes.

The restless thoughts haunted me for hours as my body refused to let me sleep. A burnt coffee smell drifted in from the kitchen; Natalie was getting ready for work. I gave up trying to get back to sleep and flipped on the light switch. My worry about meeting with Luke dwarfed the slight twinge of annoyance when Natalie knocked and opened my bedroom door.

She stared at all the clothes laid outand blinked. “I wanted to apologize, Jess. Last night was a mess. I’mreally sorry about all the things I said. There's been a lot of pressure on me from work.” Natalie squinted at my bed. “What are you doing?”

I wasn’t sure I was ready to forgive her, but I had noenergy to stay angry. Desperate for her advice, I waved my hand toward the clothes.

“The billionaire wants to meet me this afternoon in Napa. I’m trying to figure out what to wear.”

Natalie stepped inside and inspected the pile on the bed. She bit her lip, an unmistakable signal she was searching for something delicate to say.

“Just say it—my clothes are crap.”

She avoided my eyes as she picked up a faded blouse sleeve. “Listen, just go in my closet and pick out a dress. Whatever you want.”

I heaved a great sigh of relief. “Thanks so much. You’re a lifesaver.” Grateful we were the same size, I wasn’t worried with a full wardrobe of Natalie’s cute outfits at my disposal.

“It’s no problem.” She wearily stared into her coffee mug. “Why does he want to see you all the way over there?”

Shrugging, I hungthe clothes back in my closet. “I dunno. Well, he mentioned he had a company meeting there. He seems like a busy person.”

It was weird to be talking to her as though nothing happened. Her vicious comments rang in my head. Maybe she sensed I was still hurt because she wished me luck before she left.

I didn’t leave my bedroom until I heard the front door close. My thoughts lingered on the mysterious, handsome man I met only a day ago even though I tried to distract myself throughout the day. I tried to resist Googling him, but ended up studying his strangely brief Wikipedia page, anyway. In contrast, his father’s was very detailed and long. I scanned it to learn Luke was his only child and that his wife, Luke’s mother, died in her mid-thirties. Giacomo Pardini was an alcoholic and was dying of terminal lung cancer.

No wonder he had a reputation for partying; it was an escape. I closed the page as a small blush crept through my face.

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