Page 3 of Dirty Little Sins

"I'll be fine. I just need a minute to pull myself together."

Nina smirked at me. "Don't try to bullshit a bullshitter. And don't think because my husband runs this hotel that you can't confide in me. I know what it's like to start over in a new city where you don't have any friends to help you deal with a crisis. And I'm pretty good at keeping secrets as well. So let's do this. Since neither one of us can apparently sleep tonight, I'm going to go grab us some wine and we're going to sit right here and talk. I bet if you give me half a chance by the time the sun comes up we'll already be friends and I promise whatever you tell me isn't going to leave this room."

I almost wanted to laugh. Nina was making this really easy for me. No weird looks or condemning words. Just frank lay it all out there talk. Could I actually go through with that with her? Tell her everything about my last trip to Italy?

Even my best friend Harper didn't have all ofthosedetails. For the last several months it had felt too soon to open that wound and bleed again. But seeing his name on that sign all lit up for the whole world to see had twisted me up all over again and sent me rushing back to square one. If I didn't find a way to deal with this, I was not going to get through this restaurant opening and that just wasn't an option.

Maybe it was time to see someone about this. I'd considered a therapist before, but I was too afraid that would end up splashed across some entertainment website as news to actually go through with it.

My focus had to remain on this place.

I not only wanted Zia's to open on time, I wanted it to be unforgettable for every single person who walked through my doors. Maybe Nina was right. Opening up to a virtual stranger, who had a stake in my success, might be the key to managing all of this. I certainly didn't have any other brilliant ideas at three in the morning.

"Okay," I finally said. "As long as it stays between us."

Nina raised to her feet and nodded. "Of course. First rule between women is never break the code of silence."

Okay I did laugh at that as she disappeared through the doors that I knew led to the kitchen and an extensively supplied wine cellar where every bottle had been approved by me. I wasn't just picky about the food. I wanted every detail associated with the restaurant to be perfect. Did I mention I could be a little OCD about all of this?

I pressed my back against the wall as I turned to gaze out the window again, only this time making sure I couldn't see The Sinclair billboard. Maybe I couldn't unsee his name, but I could avoid it a little while longer.

"Here we go." Nina took a seat on the floor next to me and placed two glasses and a bottle of 2010 Leoville Las Cases. An exquisite red Bordeaux well known for its dark flare of drama and mystery.

I looked at it and then at her where she barely hid a smile and snorted before I could cover my mouth with my hand.

"I take it you know your wines."

She smiled, an infectious sentiment that settled me immeasurably. "I've been studying. When I first came across this one, I thought to myself then that the time for this wine would be important. Finding it tonight seems like Karma. It felt right for this moment."

"You chose well," I said taking the wine bottle from her so I could open and pour for us. I wanted to hurry up and get this going before I lost my nerve and ran from the room like a child. She handed me the corkscrew and after I swirled and sampled, I finally poured our glasses and settled back.

I wasn't sure how to start so I took a few more swallows as I contemplated what I wanted to say.

"Do you always measure your words this much before you speak?" she asked.

I laughed, although it barely came out as a chortle. "I don't usually share my personal life with strangers."

"Really? Because I think there are several tabloids who would beg to differ."

I scowled into my glass. "Those vultures. They get a lot of shit wrong, but they also manage to dig up some nuggets of truth that I have no idea how they get. It's a serious downside to putting myself out there."

"That's their job I guess. Not that I read those rags. But it's hard not to see the headlines when I'm standing in line at Target."

I turned and gave Nina a once over. It was hard to imagine this sleek, ultra cool woman dressed in silk lounging pants with a short dark kimono tied tightly around her waist standing in line at Target. Macy's maybe, but even that felt like a stretch. She shouldn't be doing any shopping at all.

"Oh don't look at me like that. I may dress designer when I'm working because I have to, but you can bet the minute I hit our suite, I'm back in denim cutoffs and t-shirts with my feet bare and my hands dirty in our rooftop garden."

"You have a rooftop garden. Here? In the hotel?"

"Sure do. Gabe built me this amazing space to do whatever I wanted with. As much as I enjoy the Vegas life, there are times I need to get back to nature and remember where I came from."

"Where's that?"

"Small town North Carolina. I used to have a café there that overlooked the lake. It was peaceful and busy and crazy all at the same time."

"You cook?" I'd gotten stuck on the first part of her explanation.

It was her turn to laugh. "Sure do. But not like you so don't get too excited. I made sandwiches and casseroles and every other Southern thing you can think of. Definitely not a four-course type situation."

---