Page 42 of Deal with Mr. Cruel

Mae shrugged sheepishly.

Lindsay shook her head. “You’re smarter than this, Mae. He’s going to break your heart again.”

Mae didn’t say anything because she knew her friend was right. She fought back tears as she stared at the ring on her finger.

“I’m sorry.” Lindsay brought her in for a hug. “I just love you, and I don’t want you to get hurt again.”

“I know.” Mae nodded.

They hugged for a moment longer.

“Please, come to the festival,” said Mae, forcing a smile.

“No way.” Lindsay shook her head.

“It will be fun. You can bring Brad and the kids. Plus, we need to see each other more.”

Lindsay thought it over for a moment. Mae clasped her hands together and silently begged.

“Fine.” Lindsay rolled her eyes. “But I’m not guaranteeing I won’t punch him square in the face.”

“You’ll have to wait in line.” Mae laughed.

“You better get us good tickets.”

“VIP. Only the best for you.” Mae gave her friend a big hug and squeezed her. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“I’m always here for you,” Lindsay replied as she squeezed her back.

On her walk back to the office, Mae smiled to herself. As tough of a conversation as that was, she felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders. She didn’t realize how much she needed to talk to someone, especially because Nico had been avoiding her since their argument. Their rift was something she would have to tackle at another time. For now, she was ready to focus on work and the festival. Her personal life would have to take the back-burner.

She could use the distraction, anyway. Now, if only the person she needed distracting from wasn’t someone she worked with—and lived with.

Chapter 16

Jonas

Jonas took a sip of coffee as he walked beside Victoria. She checked off her to-do list maniacally. She was the best party planner in Boston and not too hard on the eyes, either. Maybe that was why she was a hot commodity. As Victoria rambled on, he smiled to himself thinking of Mae’s expression earlier. He could have sworn he saw jealousy wash over her when she spotted him and Victoria working earlier.

Even though Mae had tried to act nonchalant about it, Jonas could see right through her. Despite where they left things after spending that night together, he got a glimpse of how Mae really felt. Or at least, how he hoped she felt. In the past, Jonas would have used a woman like Victoria to his benefit to rub it in Mae’s face. But today, when he saw her watching them, the last thing he wanted to do was play games.

“It looks like we’re missing an order of champagne,” Victoria said, counting the stacked boxes in the conference room.

Stressed, Jonas rubbed his cheeks as he let out a sigh. Victoria placed her hand on his arm and gave a gentle squeeze. “I’ll take care of it,” she said reassuringly. She pulled out her phone and began typing out an email aggressively.

“You’re scary,” said Jonas jokingly.

“You have no idea.”

“I guess that’s why you’re one of the best.”

“I am the best, darling. And I always get what I want.” Victoria’s eyes narrowed in on Jonas’s lips.

“Well, let’s hope nothing else goes wrong,” said Jonas, looking at the boxes and trying to avoid Victoria’s seductive stare.

As much as everything had been planned and scheduled for months now, Jonas knew that nothing ever went one hundred percent smoothly. He hoped this missing box of champagne was the worst of his problems. This was his first time in charge of the annual festival since his dad passed, and there was so much to prove. People came from all over Boston to support the team and its charity.

“How is everything going with the auction?” asked Jonas.

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