Chapter Eleven
sophie
When I walk into the hotel suite, Maisie’s still where I left her this morning—in bed, buried underneath the blankets. All I see is wet hair mounded on top of her head in a messy bun.
“Did you even get out of bed today?” I kick off my shoes and crawl in with her.
Her eyes—still smudged with mascara—pop out of the blankets. “Barely. I went down to the pool with the girls for a few hours, but it got so hot. I couldn’t take it.”
“Are they still down there?” I say, sinking back into the mounds of pillows. It reminds me of the pillows on Seb’s office bed. His blue eyes flash through my brain. I shake my head to try to get them to disappear.
“I think,” Maisie says as she snuggles onto my shoulder. “They’ve been drinking all day. I can’t hang anymore. Do you remember in college when we could recover from a hangover in a couple hours?”
“I remember when you could. It’s always taken me at least a day.”
“Oh, sweetie,” she says, squeezing my hand, “you have to be about ready to crash. How was your meeting?”
“Well, two things. First, I got the contract, and second, wait, what was it again? Oh yeah, my new client is the baseball team. Guess who I saw today?”
She shoots up so quickly that she almost falls off the bed. “What? Did you see Seb?”
“Yes, friend. I did,” I say, throwing a pillow at her. “Why didn’t you tell me who he was?”
“Oh my God!” She has a death grip on the pillow. “I didn’t know your new client was the team. You never tell me who you’re working for—”
“And I shouldn’t have now. You can’t tell anyone else.”
She nods, her eyes wide. “So, did you talk to him? Did he recognize you?”
“Yes and yes, and he lied to the owners about knowing me so I wouldn’t get fired. One of the stipulations of the contract is that I don’t have a prior association with any of the players.”
She peers over the top of the pillow—her eyes dancing. “How do they feel about futureassociations?”
“Mae, you know I don’t have personal relationships with my clients during or after my work with them—”
“Bullshit!” She throws the pillow back at me. “Roman’s like your best friend—besides me, of course.”
“Yeah, he slipped through somehow,” I say, yawning, “but he’s the only one.”
“Well, since you’ve already made an exception for him, I vote that you make another exception for Seb. He was so sweet to you last night.”
“He was so sweet to me today. He let me take a nap in his office—”
“What?” She crawls over to me until she’s inches from my face. “A napwithhim?”
“No! Maisie! He knew I was hungover, so he told me to sleep it off—alone.”
She squeals. “Oh my God! He’s so into you. It’s the cutest thing. He asked me for your number last night. I didn’t give it to him. Did you?”
“No, he gave me his, though.” I know I shouldn’t say this next part. “He said ‘just in case I need him.’”
“Oh, you definitely need him!” She claps her hands together. “Give me your phone. We’re texting him right now.”
Her hands are swarming around my body like two large gnats. I swat them away. “We’renot doing anything. I’ll text him if I need to professionally, but other than that, I won’t.”
“Wait, do you not find him attractive?” She gasps as she puts her hands over her chest. “Soph, c’mon, he’s like a Greek God. And, he’s so sweet and gentle.”
She stops suddenly and takes a quick breath. “This isn’t about Sam, is it? Sam’s an asshole. I don’t think Seb’s like that at all. I know you have trust issues, but I think Seb’s worth the risk.”