Page 65 of About Last Night

"Janine?"

At the sound of Marie's voice, she sprang to her feet and rushed into her sister's arms.

"What's going on?" Marie asked. "I just passed Steve in the parking lot and he looked like someone had stolen his favorite toy."

"I broke our engagement."

Marie scoffed. "Is that all? Darling, men are a dime a dozen."

"And I lost my engagement ring."

Marie sucked in a sharp breath. "Oh, nowthathurts."

Janine pulled back and looked at her sister's pained expression, then laughed in blessed relief. She turned to Mannyand mouthed, "Thank you," then she and Marie strolled through the lobby arm in arm. When they passed the reservations desk where Janine had first begged her way up to room 855, she marveled at the changes in her life in a mere forty-eight hours.

She'd lost the man she thought she wanted and met the man she knew she needed. But when Derek's face swam before her, she quickly squashed the image. She wasn't about to fall into another relationship so soon after her humbling experience with Steve. No matter what sheimaginedher feelings toward Derek to be, frankly, she simply didn't trust her own judgment right now.

On the drive home, she recounted enough details to satisfy Marie, while leaving out the more sordid aspects of passing time with Derek.

"So, sis, tell me about this Stillman fellow."

Janine glanced sideways at her sister. No teasing, no innuendo, no insinuation. She frowned. Marie was definitely suspicious. "Um, he's a nice enough guy."

"Nice enough to what?" Marie asked, seemingly preoccupied with a traffic light.

"Nice enough to... say hello to if I ran into him again."

Her sister nodded, then said, "I'll call Mom and the whole fam damily when we get home. Again." She grinned. "My gift to you for getting you into this mess in the first place."

"You're the greatest," Janine said.

"I know," Marie replied with a wink.

Janine laughed, then told Marie all about Manny, and by the time they reached their apartment, she was feeling much better. She changed into her ugliest but most comfortable pajamas and holed up the rest of the day in the bedroom, with her pillow over her head to shut out the sound of the phone ringing incessantly. Marie was a saint to handle it all.

She must have napped, because when she awoke, long shadows filled the room, and she was thirsty. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she stepped on the empty box she recognized as the one that held the pink bustier and panties that Steve's assistant Sandy had given her for her bachelorette party. The getup was already in the laundry, and once clean, was bound for Marie's closet. Janine would never wear it again. She scooped up the torn box to toss it in the trash on her way to the kitchen. Preoccupied with self-remorse, Janine almost missed the little note that floated out of the box.

Curious, she picked up the tiny card and opened it with her thumb.

Sandy, for Thursday, our last wicked night together. —Steve

Janine read the note again, then once again for clarification.

Set up by his mistress. Sandy had probably thought Janine would wear the outfit sometime during her honeymoon—her revenge on Steve for marrying someone else? Perhaps. But one thing she was certain of: Steve had been with Sandy, not with the guys when she'd gone to the hotel to throw herself at him.

She should've felt betrayed. She should've felt humiliated. She should've felt manipulated. Instead, she smiled into her fingers, thinking how fitting that Steve had set events into motion that had eventually led to the breakup of his own engagement. She felt... grateful. Because Steve had inadvertently introduced her to a man shecouldlove.

From afar.

Chapter 18

ONE MONTH LATER

HONEY, I'Mhome.Derek couldn't turn in any direction in the offices of Stillman & Sons without seeing the new slogan for Phillips—make thatHannah's—Honey. Billboard designs, print ads, product labels, website-page mock-ups. He'd outdone himself, easy to admit since he knew his own limitations as an advertising man. Phillips had been bowled over by the concept of using honey for better home health and had signed an eighteen-month contract. Feeling good about the direction of the business for the first time in a long time, he'd placed an ad in the paper for a graphic artist. Four applicants would be stopping by this afternoon, and it would be good to have someone else in the office for company.

The direction of the business seemed to be back on course, but the direction of his life was another matter entirely.

He sighed and turned the page on his desk calendar. One month. One month was long enough to have purged nagging, accident-prone, virginal Janine Murphy from his mind. After all, she was a married woman. Married to a jerk, but married nonetheless. He had actually considered calling Steve to extend an olive branch, but changed his mind after acknowledging the ploy was a thinly veiled excuse to call on the off-chance Janine would answer the phone. Besides, despite their pact, Janine could've broken down and confessed what had transpired between them—after all, she might've had some explaining to doon her wedding night. If so, neither one of them would welcome his call.

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