Page 37 of Slow Burn (The Boston Beauties)

Now that I knew Jessa was alive, I felt so horrible that I was keeping it from Zoe and even Amber. I hoped when they finally found out, they wouldn't hate me and understood why it had to be kept a secret, just like I understood why the Cahills found out before I did.

I brought a box of donuts, stopping by the reception and giving Trish first dibs. ‘Thanks, Drew,’ she smiled, taking a powdered one and using a tissue. ‘I didn’t see that you have a meeting with Steve.’

‘I’m just dropping in to see the girls,’ I winked at her.

‘You know where to find them,’ she smiled at me, sitting back down.

Yeah, I knew all too well. ‘Looking out the window, gawking at my men across the way?’ I laughed.

‘You know it.’

I walked into the office to find Amber and Zoe chatting over a document at the table in the middle of the office while two interns were working away at their own desks. There were two new guys in the office, and it still shocked me to see someone other than Jessa sitting at her desk.

‘Hiya,’ I knocked and walked in, causing everyone to look up. ‘I come with sweets.’

Zoe’s eyes lit up, and I wasn’t sure if it was due to the sugary carbs, from seeing me, or maybe both.

Over the past year, we’d grown close in a confidant, sibling kind of way. I made a point to spend time with her, call her, text with her and support her in whatever she needed. Turned out, we actually got on really well and enjoyed each other's company. I even liked her boyfriend John, and he often hung out with us when his schedule permitted.

Amber reached in and picked out a glazed donut, eyeing it in admiration. ‘Drew, you can’t keep doing this,’ Amber moaned. ‘Leah just told me she’s moving away once her husband is done with basic training.’

I remembered Leah from last summer; she was a quiet girl who Jessa had really liked, even the yoga she instructed. I also knew from chatting with Amber that Leah had started a side business while finishing up school this past year doing personal training and yoga.

Zoe turned back around to face Amber with a shocked look. ‘She can’t do that, what will happen to Happy Hour Yoga?’

‘Happy Hour Yoga?’ one of the new guys questioned, looking up from his computer. ‘What’s that?’

‘The name is as advertised,’ I laughed, handing him the box of donuts.

‘Basically, it’s yoga, wine and socializing,’ Amber beamed. ‘It’s the best thing ever and my favorite part of the week.’

‘You need to get out more, chick,’ I teased her.

‘She’s going to come to the auction next week,’ Zoe smiled. ‘I’m trying to set her up, but she’s being SOOO picky, tell her to put herself out there and stop being such a snob.’

One of the guys behind me sounded like he was choking on his donut. I turned to make sure he was ok, took the box and placed it back in front of the girls.

‘What has John done to you?’ Amber joked. When I had first met Zoe, she had no interest in being in a relationship. She had quite the reputation and played the field better than a linebacker. After randomly hooking up with John, something sparked and they had been together for over a year now, and have lived together most of that time.

‘More of a matter of what hasn’t he done…’ a smile crept across her face. ‘That man has a magical...’

‘I’m just going to stop you right there,’ Amber put her hand up as I heard a gasp from behind me and looked to see one of the young guys with eyes wide and his mouth hung open in shock. After working alongside Zoe all summer, I would have thought the interns would be used to Zoe’s mouth by now.

‘You take your time, nothing wrong with being single,’ I encouraged Amber, trying to change the subject from Zoe’s sex life during office hours. While also hoping that Zoe would get my hint. She hadn’t tried to set me up, per se, but she often mentioned girls in a way that suggested they might be a good fit for me, that we’d have things in common, or just describing physical attributes. It was these times that I felt the guilt of keeping Jessa’s secret more than ever.

‘See, there’s nothing wrong with taking your sister as my date,’ Amber stated.

I raised my eyebrow. ‘I finally get to meet your sister?’ I asked. Zoe spoke a lot about her sister, so much that I practically felt as if I knew her. It wasn’t in a way that I thought she would be trying to hook me up with her, but with Zoe, I could never be sure

‘Yeah, she’s donating her time for the auction. It’s a great way to promote her social marketing brand and someone will get a lot from her.’ Zoe always got dreamy when she spoke about her sister. ‘Win-win.’

When Zoe had asked me to enter into the silent auction, I first thought she wanted to auctionmeoff. But when she clarified that she wanted either a consultation, design, landscaping or both, I was happy to oblige, so long as the work wasn’t too exhaustive. I was told that I could use it as a tax write-off, and Steve was more than fine with that. The work would have to wait until October, as I was booked solid until then, and that was with a crew of four men working with me now.

‘Has Breton confirmed if he was able to get the time off?’ Amber asked.

I shrugged, ‘He hasn’t said yet. His job has him going all over, last minute, I don’t think he will know until a few days out.’

The charity ball and auction were being held out on the Cape in a few weeks. Amber was part of the organizing committee, and she was responsible for a lot, as Cahill Global was a large supporter of the first annual ball. While not technically in their job description, both Zoe and Amber had been wrangled in to help with the black tie event.

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