Page 120 of Ask Me Something

Chapter Twenty-Five

The upside of having to meet with Vanessa down in Charlotte instead of up in New York was that I got to spend more time with Brian during the week. Currently, we were in his bed on a Wednesday night, and I was enjoying the feel of his strong hands caressing my back. The lull of the air conditioner trying to keep up with the unusually hot May night was making me sleepy.

“I know dealing with Vanessa isn’t your favorite thing, but I really like that you’re in my bed during the week,” he murmured, both of us tangled up there after a bath together had made its way to the bed.

I’d given up on idea of needing space from Brian the night before seeing Vanessa. No amount of mental preparation or separation from him could change the fact that the woman was horrible to deal with. And if I was being honest, our two-week rule no longer seemed to be enough time with him as it was, so I now took all opportunities to see him. “Mm, I like that, too. I’m going downstairs to get some water. You want anything?”

“You, back in my bed.”

My belly fluttered at the thought. We were insatiable even after all these months.

“You got it.” I didn’t know when I’d gotten over the hesitancy of walking around him naked, but I proceeded nude to the kitchen. Brian was certainly good for my sexual confidence, I mused, slugging back the water bottle and then parading sexily back into the bedroom where he was now sitting up.

I could tell instantly by his posture and pale face that something was wrong.

“What is it?” I asked, bracing myself for bad news.

“Juliette called. She’s getting on a plane to Florida to stay with her sister as we speak. Things with her husband, Rob aren’t good. She thinks he may be cheating on her and addicted to prescription drugs.”

I was completely shocked. “Oh my God. Do you think I should I call her?”

“She’s boarding any minute and until she has proof, I don’t think she wants people to know. Which I guess I should’ve thought about before telling you.”

I tried not to take it personally. Brian would move hell and earth to help Juliette and was definitely the person she should be confiding in. But she was my friend too and knowing that she was hurting and I couldn’t reach out was tough. “So what’s the plan?”

“Tomorrow I’m hiring a private investigator. I’d mentioned it to her a couple weeks back, so I have some candidates. It’s tricky though with Rob being a police officer, but we’ll sort it out.”

“Let me know if I can help in any way. Do you think she’s ready for a divorce if he is cheating?”

He nodded. “Yeah and I should probably call Mark too and see if he has any suggestions for divorce attorneys in case it comes to that.”

Good idea, I thought. We settled down in bed needing to get some sleep.

He sat up suddenly. “Shit, Sasha. Vanessa’s meeting is tomorrow. Maybe we can reschedule. I’d hate to put off doing this for Juliette. I told her I was on it first thing in the morning.”

“No, you go and do whatever you need to, and I’ll explain there was a family emergency to Vanessa. I’m confident she’ll understand. We’re only finalizing the details for phase two. This should go smoothly considering she was happy with phase one’s magazine advertisements. And Juliette is more important.”

He looked reluctant. “It’s not that I don’t think you’d do a great job, but are you sure you’re up for it on your own?”

I smiled, trying to convey false confidence. “Of course. It’s my job and the proposal is sound. You said so yourself.”

He breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay. Good.”

What was the worst that could happen?

* * *

It washard to concentrate on business while knowing that Brian was helping Juliette navigate her own personal hell. I found myself checking my phone, waiting for him to indicate how things were going. The best action I could take to support both Juliette and Brian at the moment was to take care of Vanessa so neither of them were impacted. That’s what I set my mind to do.

Tryon Pharmaceuticals was proving to be my most challenging client in my ten years of working in advertising. Not only was Vanessa difficult to please in general, but she obviously had an issue working with me in particular. The fact that she was keen on leering at my boyfriend in front of me didn’t help, either.

Huh, I’d mentally referred to him as my boyfriend.

With ten minutes to spare, I donned my headphones and blasted my music, closing myself away in my temporary office. I let today’s selection of “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten take over my mind. Afterwards, I put on my best client-facing smile and went into the conference room ready to do battle. Uh, that is, ready to meet with my client.

“Nice to see you again, Vanessa,” I welcomed.

Her eyes scanned the room. “Where’s Brian?”

---