DECEMBER
Chapter 5
Maya toyed with the hem of her skirt, her sweaty palm resting against her thigh. The room was so silent it was making her crazy. She turned her head toward the sound of deep breathing beside her and caught Amy’s eyes. Amy winked. Maya tried to smile at her, but her lips didn’t seem capable of twisting into that particular shape at the moment.
Melissa Mancini sat at the desk across from them in a strange glass-enclosed office swiping through the pictures on Maya’s tablet. She made no sound. Her facial expression remained hard as a rock, and Maya’s stomach churned.
Amy reached over and put her hand over Maya’s. Maya took another deep breath. It was supposed to be Julia accompanying her to this meeting. But Julia had to go out of town for a conference, so Maya had asked Amy to come with her instead. And she was glad. Amy was way chiller than Julia, and her presence was having a calming effect on Maya.
After a virtual eternity, Melissa looked up and smiled. She held the tablet out to Maya, who managed to lean forward and grab it. She clutched the electronic device in her hand, ready to bolt the minute Melissa gave her the bad news.
Melissa delayed the inevitable by looking away from Maya and Amy and focusing on the laptop that sat to one side of her massive desk. She clicked away at it as Maya looked to Amy and mouthed, “Should we leave?”
Amy shook her head, but her blue eyes were huge and looked as uncertain as Maya felt.
“How does August sound?” Melissa asked, calling their attention back.
“Um. What?” Maya asked.
“For your show. That’s my next opening.”
“Um…I…Um,” Maya stuttered inanely.
“August is perfect.” Amy jumped in, saving Maya from her tongue-tied humiliation.
“Yes,” Maya managed to squeak out.
“Great.” Melissa stood and walked around her desk. She held her hand out to Maya. “I am really looking forward to showcasing your work at my gallery. I think we can sell quite a few pieces for you.”
The shock of actually being chosen had not yet worn off by the time Amy had driven herself and Maya to their favorite pub for a drink and greasy dinner of fish and chips. Maya remained quiet and stiff, still processing everything that had occurred.
Amy’s enthusiasm, on the other hand, was through the roof. All through dinner, Amy gushed about Maya’s art and analyzed every detail of the meeting with Melissa, pinpointing every facial movement or vague comment Amy was certain meant Melissa was completely in love with Maya’s work.
It wasn’t until their plates had been cleared and they were lounging at the table with a second cocktail that Maya was able to change the subject. “Tell me about your love life, Amy?”
Amy jumped, clearly startled at the question. “What?”
Maya shrugged. “I was just curious. We’ve known each other for a couple years now and I’ve never heard about a significant other. I’m not even sure what gender of person you’re into.”
Amy blinked several times, her face otherwise unmoving.
Maya shifted in her chair. “I’m sorry. I sometimes have trouble with the whole social norms thing. I didn’t mean to be—”
“No, it’s okay.” Amy sat up straighter and pushed a lock of errant blonde hair behind her ear. “It just caught me by surprise is all. It’s been a while since I’ve discussed this with anyone outside my family.”
“You don’t have to—”
“No. I want to talk about it.” Amy smiled. “I really do.”
Maya settled back in her chair and took a sip of her fruity drink.
“The thing is.” Amy leaned forward, almost as if she were about to reveal some secret.
Maya thought perhaps Amy was about to come out to her. So she leaned forward as well, an encouraging smile on her face.
“Until recently, I wasn’t interested in anyone at all,” Amy confessed.
Maya couldn’t help her surprise. “What do you mean?”
Amy shrugged and took a drink of her bright red blended margarita. “You know, like asexual. That’s what I thought I was.”
Maya nodded. “Okay. So I admit the only knowledge I have about that is what I looked up online once. Otherwise, I’m pretty clueless about the whole thing.”
“I’ve done some research. Talked to some people about it.” Amy looked down at the table. “But it turns out, that’s not me.”
“No?” Maya reached a hand out, putting it over Amy’s.
Amy’s eyes shot back up and blue ones met green. “I have a crush on a guy.”
“You say it like it’s a tragedy,” Maya said lightly.
“It’s just…unexpected, you know. I’m thirty years old.”
Maya gave Amy’s hand a squeeze. “So what? If you want something, go after it. At any age. Isn’t that what we were just doing for me at that gallery?”
Amy smiled. “Yeah. It was.”
“So. Is this guy single?”
Amy nodded.
Maya smiled. “Want advice?”
“Actually. What I’d rather have is stories.” Amy’s face lit up with excitement.
“What do you mean?” Maya moved her hand from Amy’s and took another drink, peering at her friend over the glass as Amy chewed on her lip.
“The thing is, I have zero experience with men. And I think what would help me most is to know a little bit about…experiences with men. Does that make sense?”
Maya chuckled. “Yeah. You want to know about my love life.”
Amy nodded enthusiastically.
“Well, turnabout is fair play, I suppose. I’ll tell you the whole story.”
Over another two drinks Maya told Amy about her three high school boyfriends. She amused them both with stories of bumbling first kisses and her lost virginity the summer before college. She told Amy about the break-up with that boyfriend when they both, at separate schools hours away, discovered the new variety of people they could spend time with.
Maya talked openly about her first broken heart. A relationship with a boy named Josh she’d fallen hard for in her junior year of college. She admitted the hurt might have been less because she’d been in love with Josh and more because he’d cheated on her.
“So, you don’t think you loved him?” Amy tilted her head, her wide eyes genuine and innocent.
“I did at the time. But then I met someone else. It was an even shorter…relationship. But the feelings were far more intense. And my heart was broken much worse.” Maya’s urge to be open and honest with Amy warred with her desire to keep Everett’s identity a secret.
“What happened there?” Amy leaned forward, hand propping up her chin, slightly glazed look in her eyes from the alcohol.
“Same thing as with Josh, pretty much. Only worse.” Maya polished off her last drink. “After that I swore off men for a while. Then I started dating again about three years ago. But I haven’t had much luck. I went on a few blind dates. Was set up by a friend once, and met a hot guy at the bar that I hung out with for a few weeks.” She shrugged. “A little fun. Nothing serious.”
“Do you want that? Serious?”
“No.” The conviction in Maya’s voice was clear. “I don’t need that kind of complication right now. I need to focus on my art career.”
“I know what you mean,” Amy said, her mouth turning down. “But sometimes it’s hard not to get distracted.”
Maya couldn’t help but agree.
****
Everett’s open-door policy meant he didn’t have a secretary who screened his visitors. His executive assistant, Mark, actually sat several dozen feet away, closer to Carlos’ office than his.
Everett’s little office sat off the hallway leading to the conference rooms, window overlooking the factory floor, and the bathrooms. The office was well marked and invited anyone to knock on its tall, cherry wood door anytime.
Everett never tried to predict who might be on the other side on the rare occasions he kept the door closed and had to move across his office to open it. So he was rarely shocked. But this time, he nearly fell over.
“Maya.”
She looked him up and down, her gaze sweeping him from his running shoes up to his dark jeans then to his white button-up shirt. Finally, her green eyes met his darker ones. “Can I come in?”
“Of course.” He nearly tripped over his own feet getting out of the doorway to let her in.
Sweeping past him, Maya planted herself in the center of his office, not bothering to sit in either of the chairs opposite his desk or the couch along one wall. Instead, she stood straight, put her hands on her hips, and turned to glare at him.
She looked like his best dream come true. It didn’t matter that she still wore the boxy uniform shirt required on the factory floor. It hid most of her curves. But beneath the waist, her jeans tapered down over round hips and slim legs. Rolled up sleeves gave him a peek of her tanned arms. Slender but strong hands, calloused and perfect, were balled up at her sides. He wanted to feel them against his chest.
“Pay attention, Everett.”
His gaze snapped back up to her face. “Sorry.” The apology was lame. But he had nothing else to give.
A heavy sigh escaped her. “We have Christmas coming up.”
Having no idea where this conversation was going, Everett simply nodded.
My parents are having you and your mother over Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.”
“That’s what my mom said, yes. I don’t have to come if you’re uncomfortable.”
Maya’s brow furrowed. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not going to ask you to not spend Christmas with your mother.”
“I could at least not spend the night.”
She let out a heavy breath. “No. You can’t do that. It’s all part of the thing. We do Christmas Eve together. Then everyone wakes up Christmas morning and we have cinnamon rolls. Then we open presents, play games, and have dinner in the middle of the afternoon. It’s a whole…” She waved her hand in the air. “…thing. You have to do it or it will break my mother’s heart. Besides she already has the sleeping arrangements figured out. She even has a freaking chart written out on the whiteboard in the kitchen. Not coming is not an option.”
“Okay.” The word came out slowly. Everett was considered by many to have a brilliant business mind. But Maya made his head spin.
“We have to get along.”
Everett took a step toward her. “That won’t be hard for me.”
Maya held his gaze, her expression hard. She glanced at the open door over his shoulder. “Close it.”
Everett flipped the door closed with his foot and took another step toward her. “Better?”
Maya let out a hard breath and dropped her arms to her sides. “I know. I’m the one who’s pissed off.”
“Not without reason.”
Her face softened. “Thank you for that.”
Everett nodded. He wouldn’t deny her anything, including her justified anger at him.
“So.” She held her hand out to him. “Truce.”
“Of course.” He shook her hand and held onto it, running his thumb over her knuckles.
She looked down at their joined hands. “You’re being creepy right now, Ev.”
Everett took another step. Their hands fell down between them as their bodies drew within a few feet of each other. “I don’t care. Call me Ev again.”
Maya didn’t move. He expected her to rip her hand back, to step away, maybe even to punch him. He deserved it. He was being a creep.
“You really want me the way it seems like you do?” she asked, her head cocked to one side like a curious puppy.
The question surprised him. His mouth went dry. For a second he floundered around in his brain for a response. Ultimately, the truth seemed like the only option. “Yes.”
She took her hand back, but the motion was slow and gentle. “Huh.”
Everett chuckled. “That’s all you’ve got to say?”
Maya smiled. “I guess so.” She stepped away from Everett and moved toward the door, her body still turned in his direction. “It might make it a little easier to be nice to you.”
“Yeah?” He might have sounded like a pathetic little kid. But he didn’t really care. If Maya was softening toward him, that meant everything.
“Maybe.” She turned and walked out the door.
Everett slumped onto his desk, a ridiculous smile on his face.
****
Everett rarely looked at himself in the mirror. He knew what clothing combinations worked and which didn’t. His hair, kept short, required little maintenance. And he didn’t need to gaze at his own face, he knew what it looked like.
But now he was staring into the full length on the back of his bathroom door, trying to decide if he had managed to strike the perfect balance of holiday dressy and casual with the dark jeans he wore to work and a polo that pulled nicely on his well-developed biceps.
Everett blew out his breath and ran a hand across the back of his neck. This was all Maya’s fault. If he weren’t going to be spending the next twenty-four hours in her presence, he wouldn’t give two shits.
In defeat, he turned away from his reflection and headed into the bedroom to retrieve his overnight bag. Half bent at the waist, he was reaching for the bag, which sat on the floor beside his bed, when his phone rang. Everett abandoned his task and grabbed the phone from where it lay on the bed.
“Evans.”
“Hey, Everett.” The all-too familiar voice sent a chill up his spine.
The name came out of his lips on a huff. “Elias.”
“Don’t hang up,” his former best friend said on a fast breath.
Everett lowered himself down to sit on the edge of the bed. “Are you alone?” It was the easiest way to ask if Rebecca was in the room, listening in on this conversation.
“Yes. Going to South Miami in separate cars. I’m leaving from the club in Miami Beach now.”
Elias was heading to Everett’s ex-almost-mother-in-law’s house for the holidays. The knowledge was more weird than stinging.
“You back to fencing?” Everett had felt guilty when Elias gave up his sports career to work with him on building the business. He was sure Elias could have been headed to the Olympics. A few years later, Everett would come to feel that his guilt was wasted on a lousy friend who’d tried to take everything from him.
“Yeah. I’m back at it,” Elias said.
“Good.” The silence made Everett’s chest tight. Why was he having this awkward conversation? He and Elias hadn’t spoken directly to each other in three years, since Elias had run off with Everett’s fiancée and sued him for a piece of the company. “What do you want, Elias?”
“I want to talk.” Elias’s voice was low. He sounded vulnerable. Everett knew that tone. He’d been through everything with this man. They’d been inseparable from the age of six until it all fell apart three years ago.
“Look, man. If you’re having trouble with Rebecca or some shit, I’m the last person—”
“No. I didn’t call for that. I just miss you.”
Everett had no idea what to say to that. So he waited, his breath held, chest tight.
“I’m sorry, Everett. I really am.”
Everett let out his breath. “Don’t be. It was a shit situation. And I played my part, too.” He had long ago come to realize he’d been a crappy fiancé to Rebecca, which included putting off the wedding for nearly four years. It didn’t justify what Rebecca and Elias had done to him. But it didn’t really matter now anyway. Elias’ part in all that was done and over with. “But in the end…I don’t know. I guess I dodged a bullet, thanks to you.”
“I’d laugh at that, but I don’t want to risk pissing you off,” Elias said, his tone serious.
Everett chuckled. “Fair enough.”
“I want to talk again.” That vulnerability was back. An image of Elias crying in Everett’s arms the night Elias’ mother passed away flashed through Everett’s head, and he almost gave in.
“Look. I can’t right now. It’s not that I can’t forgive you. I think I can. I think I have. But at the moment, I’m pretty pissed at your girlfriend. Maybe more than I was before.”
Elias didn’t ask why. He didn’t say a word. They had once been so close. That tie was still there in some ways, despite everything they’d been through. Elias left the statement sitting there knowing Everett would say more.
“Here’s the thing. Seven years ago, I had a chance with someone. And I let it go because of Rebecca. And now I want this girl back. But she won’t forgive me for choosing Rebecca over her. So, now I have some fresh shit with Rebecca right now. And I just need a little time to stew. You know?”
Elias’ tone was knowing. “Yeah. I do know.”
Everett’s head spun. A new set of questions popped into his mind. Had Elias had a thing for Rebecca all those years ago, too? Is that why things had turned out the way they did? Had that fateful proposal hurt everyone?
“Tell you what,” Elias said, interrupting Everett’s thoughts. “How about, if you feel like talking—about this girl, or whatever—you just call me, anytime. I’ll make sure to be alone.”
“I appreciate the offer.”
“It stands.”
Everett smiled to himself. He could not deny he missed his friend. “Merry Christmas, E.”
“Merry Christmas.”