Page 63 of The CEO's Sweetheart Deal
"Yet here you are. Is there something up at Rooted Pantry? If you–"
"No.” She folds her arms. " This isn’t about work. Look, I'm not your biggest fan. Not after everything that's happened. But since you mentioned Rooted Pantry, I did want to thank you for reversing the layoffs."
"You already thanked me when you accepted your position back," I remind her.
"Yeah, well…" she shrugs. "It bears repeating. Especially since I know how hard you had to fight the board."
I study her face, searching for the real reason behind this late-night visit. Could it be…? "Why are you really here, Sydney?"
She glances around, as if ensuring we're alone, then fixes me with a direct stare. "Alice."
Just her name sends a jolt through me. "What about her?" I try my best to act chill and like I haven’t been obsessing over the woman who's haunted my every waking moment.
"She's not over you."
Four simple words, yet they hit me with the force of a physical blow. I have to resist the urge to grab Sydney's shoulders and demand details.
"Did she say that?" I ask, no longer caring if I look unhinged.
"Not in so many words," Sydney admits. "Actually, she insists she's completely done with you. That's how I know she's not."
"That… doesn't make sense."
"It does if you know the parts of her I do," she counters. "When she truly doesn't care about something, she doesn't waste energy denying it. But you?" She gestures vaguely in my direction. "She can't go ten minutes without bringing up how completely over you she is."
Hope stirs in my chest, a dangerous, fragile thing that I try to temper. "Even if that's true, she won't talk to me. She won't answer my calls, my emails. She's blocked me on every platform."
"Because she's hurt," Sydney says, as if explaining something obvious to a child. "And stubborn. And terrified of being hurt by you again."
"I never meant to hurt her," I say softly. "Not back then, and certainly not now."
"Yet somehow, you managed to do it spectacularly both times." There's no malice in her tone, just a statement of fact that stings all the more for its truth.
I run a hand through my hair, frustration welling up. "What am I supposed to do? Hm? Camp outside her place? She's made it pretty clear she doesn't want to see me."
"She's at Get Fresh now," Sydney says, watching my reaction carefully. "Did you know that?"
I nod grimly. "I heard." The news had felt like a knife to the gut. Not just that Alice had left Rooted Pantry —thatI'd expected — but that she'd gone straight to our biggest competitor. It felt deliberate, personal. A way to hurt me like I'd hurt her.
"She almost burned down her kitchen trying to destroy old photos of you two from college," Sydney continues.
This stops me short. "What?"
"Yeah. Her plan was to set fire to them in some melodramatic ceremony, only to get distracted and nearly burn the place down." A small smile plays at her lips.
I don't know what to say to this revelation. The image of Alice sitting alone, angry enough to try destroying our shared past, yet unable to follow through — it breaks my heart and gives me hope in equal measure.
"Why are you telling me this?" I finally ask. "I thought you were on her side."
"I am on her side. Always. But that's why I'm here." She takes a deep breath. "Look, I've never seen her as happy as she was when you two were in San Diego. Or as devastated as she was after."
"I'm sorry?—"
"I'm not finished," she cuts me off. "You hurt her. Badly. Twice. And normally, I'd be the first one telling her to move on and never look back. But…" she hesitates.
"But?" I prompt, barely breathing.
"But I think you two might actually be good for each other. When you're not being idiots, that is." She fiddles with the zipper of her jacket. "And I don't want her to look back years from now and regret what happened. Regret not giving you another chance."
