Page 90 of Austen Persuaded

Viviana and Jack arrived soon after, along with Jenn Weston. As usual, I felt happy to see Jenn but also uncomfortably … wistful. If only we could be closer, I heard myself thinking. The recent rift with Viviana hadn’t helped, as I’d shied away from all our mutual friends during that period. Well, except Jack. A tall, unfamiliar woman walked alongside them.

Viviana tugged on the woman’s arm and made a beeline for us, with Jack and Jenn trailing behind. “Annie, I am so excited for you!” she exclaimed, pulling me up for a startlingly strong hug.

“Thanks,” I said as we stepped back, and I smiled politely at the newcomer. “Hi, I’m Annie. Obviously.”

Viviana gasped. “Sorry, I should lead with introductions, but I never do. Annie, this is Jane Alton.The Janefrom Duluth!”

Jane chuckled, her long blonde ponytail swaying as she leaned forward to extend a hand in greeting. “Great to meet you, Annie. And congratulations are in order, I hear. I’ve heard great things about you.”

“Same,” I said, smiling but also wondering if it was fully true. After all, Viviana had met and befriended Jane at a literary conference in Duluth in early spring when she and I weren’t speaking, so Jane might not have heard the greatest things about me initially. Still, I could mend that impression, surely. I was pretty good at charming people.

Usually.

Well, until recently.

“The Janeis a bit much though, Viv,” Jane said, eyeing our mutual friend. “I tend to reserve that for Jane Austen, don’t you?”

Viviana grinned. “I did, until I met you. Annie, Jane here is as much of an Austen fan as I am. Maybe more.”

“Doubtful that anyone could bemoreof an Austen fan than you, Vivi,” Jack said, stepping forward as he casually placed an arm across her shoulders.

“I have to agree with your man, Viv. And I still can’t believe I’m calling him your man,” Jenn said, laughing as Jane nodded. She turned to me then and smiled widely. “Congrats, girl. This is so freaking awesome for you.”

“Thanks, Jenn. And Viv, you and Jane can have all the Austen,” I said, a slight smile gracing my face. “I mean, she’s fine, but I’m all about the contemporary authors. As you’ll see from my new clients … Oh,oh, you guys, I’mgoing to be an agent!”

Everyone laughed before commencing a round of hugs and congrats again.

When Viviana came in for another hug, she whispered to me, “We’re going to return to the whole ‘she’s fine’ comment about Austen later on, Annie. For now though, let’s go get our drink on!” Laughing, we linked arms and ambled over to the bar.

The party was proceeding smoothly, with Rafael and Joel introducing me to a lot of their friends and Sofia introducing some friends and siblings she’d brought. Rainn had brought a few friends as well, whom I knew only a little. Kylan and his (likely) sister kept their distance, probably because they were constantly surrounded by a crowd of people who wanted to meet them. Or him, probably. He was basically a celebrity.

And then disaster struck.

After disappearing for a bit, Joel and Rafael returned, clad in their swim shorts, their impressive ballet physiques and matching tattoos on full display. Rafael cleared his throat, and Joel let out a shrill whistle until a hush fell over the crowd.

“Thanks for coming out, everybody, but don’t be shy. Get in the damn pool. It’s scorching out here, am I right?” Rafael wiped his brow and grinned at Joel. “But first, speech time.”

My mouth formed anOas my eyes widened.

How drunk is he?

But I didn’t have to wonder long, as he soon launched into a rambling monologue that was both sweet and hilarious and had me in tears, both of laughter and of a deeper emotion. He even had Joel bring Charlie outside for a brief appearance. The kitten took one look at the pool and hissed before darting off toward the house, back to the cozy cat house where he’d been set up in luxury for the evening.

“OK, you’re all starting to nod off. I’ll shut up. Annie, congratulations, you amazing, gorgeous, talented lady. I love you, BFF,” Rafael said with a smile as he lifted a glass to me. “Now let’s—”

“Wait, my turn!” Sofia stood abruptly. “I haven’t known Annie very long, so I’ll keep this short and sweet. Girl, you’ve been on fire since you started at the agency. Since you showed up for your dang interview. Anyone who knows me knows I’m kind of, well … competitive toward my peers. I’m a woman of color in a world that doesn’t make space for people like me, so, well, I got to make space for myself, right? But with you, Annie … I couldn’t be happier to have you as both a peer and a friend. I’m so glad you decided to change careers and landed at our agency as my assistant—and didn’t stay as an assistant for long. Though replacing you is going to be impossible. Anyway, I promised not to ramble too much, but how much booze isinthese drinks, guys? So, congratulations, Annie. You’re amazing.” She smiled warmly, and I beamed.

I wished I hadn’t been sitting so far away from Sofia and Rafael because these amazing speeches called for massive hugs in gratitude.

Sofia looked immediately at Kylan, who was seated near her. “Do you want to speak too?” He shook his head quickly. Sofia looked like she was about to speak but then apparently thought better of it and turned back to Rafael with a half-smile. “All right, guys. Proceed.”

Without warning, Rafael and Joel glanced at each other and grinned and then dove into the water, splashing nearly everyone around them.

Kylan snubbed me.

Publicly.

He refused to speak on my behalf? To congratulate me at my party? Why was he even here then? He could’ve just said something simple, gracious, polite. But to just … decline. It hurt. A lot. I wasn’t getting this promotion to impress him, yet … it hurt.

---