Page 27 of Winning Back Persephone

"I know," I told him. "I miss her too. But she'll be back really soon." Especially if our attempt at dating went well. I sat down on the sofa and patted for him to come up with me.

His large eyes looked a little sad, but I knew a few scratches would help. He jumped up and settled beside me, pushing his body against my leg. I scratched him behind the ears, getting happy rumbles in response.

I picked up my phone to check my emails, surprised when I found one from Jinx waiting for me, announcing that I had a match and they wanted to set up a date with this mystery person.

A mixture of feelings travelled through me. In theory, this was exactly what I'd been trying to achieve when I'd signed up for my Jinx membership, but clicking accept didn't feel right. Not after spending a night with Persephone in my arms again. It wasn't even the sex that had me so sure, it was how easy it had been to have her around. And then we'd agreed to try dating.And really, that was all I needed to know how to respond to the Jinx email.

"Am I being a fool, Cebby?"

He let out a sigh and stretched out his paws, not seeming to have a single clue what I was talking about. Which was fair, he was a dog, what did he know about matters of the heart?

I looked back over the email and hit thedeclinebutton. If I went on the date Jinx had set up for me, it wouldn't just be doing me and Persephone a disservice, but the person I was supposed to go on a date with too. They didn't sign up to go on a date with me when I was deeply in love with someone else.

I sighed and leaned back on the sofa. The real question was what I was going to do about it. Dinner had gone well. Very well, in fact. Better than I'd ever imagined it going. The only thing I intended to happen while Persephone was here was that we would talk and potentially reconnect. I hadn't intended for us to end up in bed together, or to wake up with her in my arms. But now it had, there was no denying what I wanted. I just had to make sure that our attempts at dating ended up with my wife back, especially after breakfast and finally having someone to talk to about my cereal conundrum. I could talk to Persephone about anything, and there was no one else I could say that about.

My screen lit up with another email, and I took a deep breath, expecting it to be my contact in the Jinx matchmaking department asking if there was a problem.

But it wasn't an email at all. A message popped up on my screen from the person I most wanted one from.

I hit send without thinking about whether it was the right thing to say. That was just how it was with Persephone. We'd known one another so long that there really wasn't any thinking when it came to the two of us.

My heart constricted. I hadn't expected her to invite me to that. I'd been to plenty of her launch events before, but this one was different. It was the first happening since we ended things.

I took a deep breath. How could I say no to a response like that? More to the point, I didn'twantto say no to her. I wanted to support her, and this was just one of the ways I could do that.

Her response came so quickly that it was hard not to imagine her sitting and looking at her phone, just like I was.

A box popped up on my screen, and I realised it was an official invitation to the event. I clicked on it, effectively adding it to my calendar. I didn't recognise the venue, but I was sure it would be a good one. Persephone knew how to pick just the right places for her business launches, it was one of the ways she always managed to make them a success.

The black tie dress code wasn't an issue, but I couldn't turn up empty-handed, which meant that I had about a day to sort out a launch gift for my wife. One that made it clear that was a position I wanted her to take again, so long as she wanted it too.

Chapter 15

PERSEPHONE

The nerves attacking my stomach were making it hard to focus on the final walkthrough of the event space, but I suppressed them the best I could. I'd have thought that after launching multiple successful businesses, I would be used to this part of the process, but if anything, it got worse with time, not better. It would be fine once people started arriving, then I'd be too busy to worry about things like whether my new business would be a flop, or if people would hate the handbags. I'd gotten good responses from the people I'd shown them to, but those people knewme, they understood the design choices I'd made because they came from a personal place. Strangers might not get that.

I closed my eyes and counted to ten. It was fine. People were going to love them. And if they didn't, then it was fine. I'd just move onto the next thing, whatever that was.

The creak of a door caught my attention, and I turned in that direction, not expecting anyone for another ten minutes. My breath caught in my throat for a very different reason when I noticed Hades walking in with a plant in his hands.

"You're early," I said.

"I know." He approached, coming to stand beside me but not reaching out to touch me.

That was all wrong.

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