Page 26 of In Love and War
It took a second for it to click as my mind reeled around the whiskey fog, clumsily putting the pieces together. And then it hit me in one massive wave.
“No notes? Does that mean what I think it means?” I was genuinely excited. “Wow, Zac, eitherI’mamazing, or you’ve gone soft.” I grinned at him, giddy, as my voice raised an octave. “Which is it?”
I loved winning. Especially against him.
“You’re doing a really good job,” he admitted, still not looking at me.
I wasn’t expecting him to give me a genuine compliment; it caught me completely off guard.
“Oh boy. Youhavegone soft.” I reverted back to teasing him, not entirely sure how else to react. “Does this mean I get access to the Emerson folder? I did put it on my vision board, but it usually takes a bit longer…”
He chuckled, throwing a glance my way. Why did I used to think he didn’t have a sense of humor?
“No access to the folder until I figure out your diabolical plan, Amelia. I know there is one.”
He was right about this part. The planning had started the second I left my father’s office after getting fired. The details of it had changed over the years, but the end goal had always remained the same: Zackary Evans must go down.
It was the only way to take back what he’d stolen from me. It wasn’t just a job; it was promised time with my father. I owed it to my childhood self to fight for her.
The reminder was a little too sobering for my liking, so I ordered another drink while Zac nursed his beer.
It worked. I relaxed again, and the conversation was back to a pleasant back-and-forth.
“I’m really sorry to interrupt.” Eloise was back already, her voice laced with a bit of annoyance this time around, and she looked directly at me instead of Zac. “But we are doing last call. Is there anything else I can get you before we settle the tab?”
Last call?
I looked at my phone. 11:56.
Holy shit.How long had we been talking?
“No, I think we are okay, thank you,” Zac answered, glancing at his watch.
I watched as she checked on one other table before taking a bill over to Margaret. The bar had really thinned out since I’d last looked.
When did everyone decide to leave?
“Come on, I barely had anything to drink. I’ll drive you home,” Zac offered as he got up and put his blazer back on.
“Oh, um, no, that’s okay. I was just going to take a cab.” My head was spinning a little bit, and I was still confused over the time. When I’d looked last it had been 7:30…
“Amelia, I’m not letting you get into a cab by yourself at midnight. Let’s go.”
The alcohol was getting in the way of my desire to keep arguing, so I stood up, maybe a little too quickly because the motion made the spinning worse.
“Wait, you forgot your… thing.” I pointed to the piece of folded paper sitting on the table. It had been staring at me all night.
He quickly flicked it open with two of his fingers and peeked inside. I couldn’t fully decipher his expression, but he threw it back onto the table, shrugging at me as if it wasn’t anything important.
For reasons I wasn’t willing to admit to myself, I wanted so badly to know what was written on there. Too bad it had landed upside down so I couldn’t sneak a glance.
I put on my coat, grabbed my bag, and followed him, saying goodbye to the few people left on our way out. He led us down the street over to a black Maserati, going around the car to open the door for me.
I stood there, staring at him in disbelief.
“What?” he asked, looking around as if something else was the problem.
“Did you just open the car door for me?”
