Page 106 of Keep Your Friends Close and Your… Work Enemy Closer?

"I suppose." Flopping down in the chair next to me, she stole a vegan caviar blini from me and inhaled it. "I'm so fucking tired. And hungry."

I shoved my plate over closer to her. "Help yourself."

"Thank you. And thanks for all your help with everything today. You were... you were... well, you were a big help." She slumped forward,cradling her head in her hand with her elbow propped on the table. "Sorry. That was lame. Just thank you."

Laughing, I resisted the urge to reach out and touch her. She was so damn close, I could smell the sweetness of her shampoo. Fucking hell. Just being around her was torture.

"You're welcome."

Her head nearly sideways, she kept nabbing stuff from the plate and eating it. She looked exhausted.

"You're welcome," I repeated. "But you deserve all the credit for this one."

"Oh, I don't know about that."

"Oh, I do know."

"So I suppose this means you're leaving, right?" she asked, changing the subject. "Going back to your real life?"

There was a note of something in her voice that was different, and I realized this was a chance to initiate some kind of plan—Plan A, I'd call it—to make her miss me.

"Yeah, next week. Monday. I just wanted to see this Venus thing through."

"Good," she nodded, swallowing. "It's about time. I'm sure you're way behind on all your CEO stuff."

I chuckled. "Yeah, all my CEO stuff awaits."

"Of course. I bet you're swamped."

All I could do was nod. "What about you? How long are you going to be Cordelia Dole?"

"I—I don't know. I don't really know the end game, honestly, and what the hell I should do."

That surprised me. Shocked me actually. She seemed like the type of person who always had a plan. "So you're just going to play this role indefinitely?"

"I guess so."

"Isn't that hard for you, though? I've been there, and I think it's fun for a little while. But then, it just gets hard."

"That's what she said."

I laughed. "I see I'm rubbing off on you."

"Nope. Not in the slightest. Never."

She lifted her head to drink some champagne, and it occurred to me then that the thing Annalise lacked was confidence in her own abilities. After seeing her working with Venus, the thought and care she put into everything she touched, there was no reason on earth she couldn't be the one in charge.

"Have you ever thought about starting your own publishing company?" I asked.

She choked on her drink, and I waited patiently for her to recover. "Excuse me? What?"

"Your. Own. Company."

"No. No fucking way. I'm not ready for that."

"Yes," I insisted. "Yes, you fucking are."

"You're hilarious. And delusional."

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