Page 64 of Electric Blue Love
“Speaking of, I wanted to ask about a summer intern. I know Nancy usually assigns them based on skills and need, but I had someone specific in mind from the pool. I’ve already run it by her and she says I’m on the list to be assigned one.”
“Fine by me,” he said as he passed the resumes back. “Headed to Connecticut tomorrow?”
“Yeah, I’m going to check in with Mr. Sterling tomorrow afternoon before the reception.”
“Good for him,” he said on a laugh. Mr. Harrison was well aware of Allen’s turnover rate with wives. “And good for you. Maybe a forced night out will be good for you. Have a little fun and cause a little trouble.”
I left his office without another word, pondering the kind of fun and trouble I was looking to get into this weekend. All my ideas were 8B-specific.
As I was packing up my office, Leika sent a text.
Leika: Drinks? I’m already at our usual spot.
Me: Be there in twenty.
As I walked to the bar my mind drifted to Bianca, as it had all week. I hadn’t heard from her much since Sunday. I’d been trying to give her space to make up her own mind on what she wanted, but I knew she had to give JC Engineering an answer, maybe already had, and that made me anxious beyond words. Had I factored into her decision at all? Maybe it was selfish to hope that I was at least a consideration. I hadn’t given her much of a reason to and I understood her desire to help her family. But Bianca belonged in New York. To New York. She lit it up and it litherup.
Leika waited at our usual bar. Same booth, same drinks, but Leika didn’t wear her usual bubbly, happy smile.
“Court,” she said sternly by way of greeting.
She stood, and I gave her a hug. “Uh-oh. What did I do?”
“I was about to ask you the same thing.”
We sat, and I poured a drink and eyed her warily over the pitcher.
“Bianca,” she finally said throwing her arms up. “She hasn’t returned any of my texts since Friday night. What.did.you.do?”
I was sure the culpability was written all over my face. Confirmed when Leika shrieked, “Oh my God, tell me you didn’t sleep with her?!”
“What? I thought you liked Bianca?” I’d been expecting Leika to be thrilled when or if she found out that Bianca and I were more than friends. I thought she’d be ecstatic that I’d finally found someone decent. She’d been after me about settling down with a nice girl for as long as I could remember.
“I do and so do you, which is exactly the problem.”
Trying to wrap my brain around her logic, I scrunched my eyes together and took a long pull from the glass.
“You’re gonna have to explain that to me because I’m not getting it,” I finally said after I swallowed down the light beer Leika always insisted on ordering.
She let out a sigh like it was beyond obvious and I was being thick-headed. Maybe she was right, but I was still lost.
“You’re treating her just like all the others you disposed of so quickly. Bianca is not a wham-bam-thank you ma’am girl.”
Laughter exploded from my chest. “Seriously?”
She rolled her eyes and took a drink from her glass.
“I’m not treating her like the others. I brought her here, I introduced her to you, I spent an entire day with her. When’s the last time I went on a day date?”
When was the last time I’d been on any date that wasn’t solely a payment for sex later?
Her posture relaxed, but a sad expression crossed Leika’s face. “I know. I know you’re trying, but you need to get yourself together first. You’re barreling down head first without any consideration for how your shit is going to impact her. Are you still going to Connecticut this weekend? Does she know?”
My chest tightened and the darkness that had lifted since I’d met Bianca descended on me. “Some of it.”
“She needs to know. All of it. All of you. You can’t start a relationship with someone like Bianca until she understands your past and the impacts it has on you now. Doing it this way where you let her fall in love with you and then she finds out pieces of the story later is going to end terribly for both of you. She’ll feel betrayed that you weren’t open and honest and then when she runs scared you’ll feel aban…” Her words trailed off, but the blow didn’t hurt any less.
Abandoned. She was going to say abandoned.
