Chapter 13 #2
“Toni agreed to a tuxedo dress.” Emily laughed. “I think she’s going to ask Kaelee, too, or maybe Addie claimed her. It’s a small wedding party. I haven’t asked Kaelee just in case they didn’t say anything to her, but I assume we’ll all be there.”
Greta’s mind filled with the possibility of dancing with Kaelee, of talking to her in a social setting as a friend or editor, and she couldn’t stop the smile that came over her. Maybe the upside of their affair ending was that Greta would get to know her as a casual friend.
Then Kaelee was headed their way, and Emily’s professional expression returned.
Before Emily could say anything that involved whisking Kaelee away, Greta spoke.
“I promised Kaelee the ten-cent tour of the office, and since I was going to work from home today until our meeting was scheduled, I could walk her to the subway or put her in a cab after that.”
“You’re not coming to the cocktails at the thriller conference?”
“Ian is.” Greta waved to him, beckoning him closer.
His cheerful smile was like medicine to her mood, and she knew he could tell that there were things under the surface today. Charlie likely could, too. Greta hoped they’d assume it was just because everyone was handling Kaelee with kid gloves.
“You summoned?” Ian teased.
“Emily is headed over to the Killer Cocktails event.” Greta waited for a moment since Ian’s megawatt smile made it clear that he understood what the next part of her statement might be.
“There’s a pass for one of us to go, and that headache from earlier is threatening to flare up.
So unless Ms. Carpenter would rather you do the tour, I was thinking you could take my place. ”
“You’re lucky I plan ahead for your dastardly schedule shifts,” Ian mock grumbled. Then he turned to Emily. “Walk with me. I know I have an emergency jacket in the closet in our—in Greta’s office.”
“‘Our office’ is more appropriate, especially since you’re about to start acquiring a few projects,” Greta pointed out with a smile.
Emily raised her brows in interest, as Greta had hoped, but she was talking to Kaelee: “Do you mind? I could go late and—”
“I’m sure M—my editor, Greta, can be trusted, and if not, I can hail a cab just fine.
You realize I have visited the city dozens of times.
” Kaelee had a fake smile on as she looked at Greta and then back at Emily, and Greta felt sick that she’d lost the real version of Kaelee, the one she’d known as Lee.
“If you’re sure, I’ll call you tomorrow then to discuss any follow-ups?” Emily half asked, half declared.
“Sounds good,” Kaelee said cheerily.
They all said their goodbyes then. Once Emily and Ian left, and the rest of the team had cleared out, Greta turned to Kaelee. “What do you want to do?”
“Am I talking to Greta the editor or Marie the…” Kaelee swallowed. “I don’t know what to call you.”
“I’m the same person.”
Kaelee gave her a look. “I’m guessing that most of your authors don’t have you beg—”
“Kaelee!” Greta looked through the glass walls. “Obviously our incredibly recent past makes things a little awkward. Do you want me to pass your book over to Ian or another editor? I suggested it as an option to Emily in case you want to switch editors.”
“Why?”
“If you’re uncomfortable.” Greta tried not to let a quaver into her voice. She’d just lost her friend Lee, and she might be losing a book that she was very optimistic and excited to launch. She wanted to do right by both the book and the woman, though.
Kaelee sighed. “I guess being friends with your editor is weird?”
“Not at all! I’d love to stay your friend and your editor, but … this is your decision.” Greta folded her arms over her chest. “At least I know you don’t hate me. When I emailed, you were so formal. I started thinking you were either extremely introverted or maybe…”
“Bitchy?”
“Well, yes.” Greta paused, eyes going wide as she realized that her author refused to meet her in DC so she could have sex. “You said you couldn’t meet up when I was in DC.”
“I had plans.”
“You did not. You met me for … you met me at the hotel,” Greta countered, voice dropping to a whisper at the last word.
“Meeting an editor for schmoozing? Pass. Meeting a sexy woman for a stress reliever? Yes.” Kaelee smiled in a way that tightened Greta’s body in anticipation of something that could never again happen. “I have priorities.”
“You’re terrible.” Greta laughed.
“You’ll get used to it since we’re going to be friends,” Kaelee countered. “Dinner and a show?”
“No office tour?”
“Honestly, I have no interest in that.” Kaelee paused and tilted her head. “Maybe that’s a silver lining. I’m not nervous around you now. When you were the big-shot editor who could make or break me, I was terrified.”
Greta shook her head. “I don’t know how to be your friend and your editor.”
“Too bad.” Kaelee stared her down. “Your edits were good, and I know you didn’t buy my book because I give excellent oral.”
“Stop.”
For a brief moment, Kaelee seemed to drop all her walls.
“Look. I just lost something that I was willing to move outside my comfort zone to have, so I’m probably going to make smart-assed comments when there are no witnesses.
It’s that or find a bottle and a woman, and as much as it pains me to say it, I don’t want anyone but the woman I just lost.”
“Oh.”
“Maybe this is just my bad luck. Maybe it’s a good thing, and now that we fucked it out of our system, we can be friends.
” Kaelee’s fists were tightly curled, and her voice was drawn taut.
“It’s not like we could’ve had an actual relationship, and sex with the same person always eventually gets old, so this could be for the best, right? ”
“That’s definitely one way to look at it.” Greta kept her voice light, but the truth was that she didn’t think that sex with the same person always became stale. And even if that were true, she couldn’t imagine that they were anywhere near that point.
“Would you like to get ice cream and go for a walk in Central Park?” Kaelee blurted out.
Greta smiled. “I would. Let me get my bag and switch into walking shoes. Come to my office…?”
Somehow every sentence felt potentially dangerous right now. She didn’t know Kaelee Carpenter, author, and what she knew of Lee was sexual and flirtatious. Navigating a new dynamic felt fraught.
Kaelee trailed behind her, silent and tense.
“Everyone here thought you were incredibly shy,” Greta offered as she opened the door to her office.
“I’m not. I was nervous, though.” Kaelee walked over to the window, staring down at the city.
“I remember you mentioning that about your meeting.”
Kaelee glanced over at her. “You’re kind of a dream editor, and I was intimidated.”
“No need. Seriously, I bought the book because it’s good.
As an editor, the success of a book reflects on me, so I want you to succeed beyond your dreams.” Greta pulled off her boots and slipped on tennis shoes.
Business women in skirts and sneakers was a common enough sight here that she no longer felt awkward about the pairing.
She certainly could walk all over in heels, but right now, this felt like a better choice.
Not sexy. Not anything but casual. “And honestly, I like you as a person. Charlie did, too. So do Ian and Emily. You make people want to invest in supporting you, Kaelee.”
“Thank you,” Kaelee said, sounding a little shy. “I really do want this, the career, the book to flourish. That’s all true. I know you hear a lot from Toni about how she wants to teach—”
“She likes the writing life, too,” Greta said firmly.
“I think so, too, but this? This whole career? It’s a dream I was afraid to own. I don’t want to fuck it up.” Kaelee looked so vulnerable in that instant that Greta wanted nothing more than to hug her.
“I believe you’ll have it,” Greta offered. “There are no guarantees in this business, but you wrote a damn good book. That’s where the rest starts.”
Kaelee nodded and then she gestured for Greta to walk in front of her.
It was familiar and new all at once, and Greta’s heart tightened a bit over both parts.
She reminded herself that it was not atypical to walk out of the building with an author.
Hell, they were supposed to go to lunch together.
There was nothing here to raise brows or spark whispers, but as they left the office, Greta was careful to keep an exaggerated amount of space between them.
The reality was that it was less about appearances and more about Greta’s overwhelming urge to touch Kaelee.