Page 76 of Be With Me
“When is it?”
“Friday, seven p.m. Some fancy private club called The Golden Circle.”
I sat up straight. No. No way.
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. Is there a problem?”
I pressed my palm against my forehead. “Can I skip it?”
“It’s kind of a big deal to be invited. There will be people there you should network with. We want you to go, Mia.”
I sucked in a breath and then exhaled. “All right. I’ll be there.”
“I’ll send you the details shortly. Talk soon.” She hung up.
I groaned and banged my forehead against my desk.
So much for never seeing him again.
CHAPTER22
ROM
It was just yesterday that I first heard about the update to the guest list. The president of the club, in his infinite wisdom, had decided to invite the two frontrunners for the mayoral race to this damn dinner.
Of course, Mayor Wilson couldn’t make it—useless bastard. He was down with pneumonia. As if Morales needed any more luck with his campaign. Then the president found out Morales was also unavailable, but naturally, his daughter was coming in his place.
She hadn’t even arrived, and I was already on edge.
Well, we were all adults. We could survive an evening together in the same room.
Cosimo signaled for another whiskey, his eyes flicking over the attendees in their ridiculous outfits. "I don’t know how you do it," he muttered.
I propped my elbows behind me on the bar. Above us, blown-glass planets and stars were suspended from the high ceiling. On each of the high-top tables scattered around the room were towers of merengues. “Do what?"
"Pretend like you're one of them."
I huffed, swirling the amber liquid in my own glass. "I don’t have to pretend to be one of them. In fact, the reason they can’t resist me is because I’m not. I’m like a rare fucking peacock parading around, luring them in."
Cosimo scoffed. "A peacock with poisonous claws." He took a slow sip of his drink, and then his posture shifted. "Look. It’s her."
I took my time before turning toward the entrance. I already knew exactly who he meant.
Cosimo, along with the rest of the family, thought I was still working Mia. I hadn’t let him in on the truth, and I wasn’t planning to. I had no idea how to explain what had occurred between us.
How could I explain something I didn’t understand?
My gaze finally landed on its target, and my fists clenched.
She was in a sleek, shimmering dress. The fabric caught the light like stardust. It was pink and silver—probably some cosmic connection to Venus or whatever the hell her horoscope said. I still didn’t fully understand what the fuck a moon sign was.
She paused at the threshold, scanning the room.
She was alone.
I waited until her eyes found me.
