“What happened? And don’t say nothing. Not when you’re usually telling me you have a man in every port.”
“I usuallydohave a man in every port. It just so happens that this time it was the same man in every port.”
“This Dimitri guy.”
“Right.”
“And where is he now?”
“Not here.” I held my hand up with a flourish. “He’ll never be here…”
I thought of the steely resolve that had crossed his features as the helicopter finally flew away. If there’d been any chance of seeing him again, an iota of hope that maybe one day our paths would cross again, I had destroyed it in that moment.
“But you want him to be?”
I couldn’t blame Archer for the question. This kind of behavior wasn’t normal for me. I didn’t lose my mind over men, and I certainly never cried into thousand-dollar bottles of wine over them.
Not until Dimitri.
“I don’t know what I want.”
“Oh, I don’t know.” Archer handed me back my glass. “I think you know exactly what you want. In fact, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that you, my friend, are in love.”
I started to laugh…hysterically. Because of course I was in love. I’d gone and fallen for the one man I couldn’t have. A man I’d been sent to spy on. A man who had paid for my body and stolen my heart.
“Is he dead?”
I whipped my head in Archer’s direction, and he shrugged.
“Well, is he?”
“Non…” At least, he wasn’t when I last saw him.Please, God, don’t let him be now.
“Then why can’t he be here?”
“Because…he could be anywhere.” Even as those words tumbled off my tongue, I knew how ridiculous they sounded. But Archer didn’t understand the complexities here. Dimitri and I had completely separate lives, heavy demands placed on the both of us. It would never work.
Or maybe that was just what I told myself to stop the ache in my chest every time I thought about the fact that wecouldbut chose not to. We had the means to travel. I could be on his doorstep in a few hours. He could be on mine.
I took a long sip of wine and shook those thoughts out of my head.“It could never work.”
“Sounds like the same thing I told you about Preston.”
“And look at you now. Living with your pretty young thing in unwedded bliss.”
“For now.” He shot me a wink, and even in my inebriated state, I read between those lines.
“Mon Dieu.Does that mean…? Are you thinking about?—”
He smiled broadly. “Soon. You’ve got great taste, so I’ll need your help finding the perfect ring.”
My jaw continued to hold court on the floor as I stared at my friend. Even with the weight sitting on my chest, I couldn’t help but return his grin. It was contagious.
“I’m so happy for you, my friend. Truly.”
“Thank you. It feels right.”
“I can’t imagine a hot twenty-something who wouldn’t.” When Archer rolled his eyes, I added, “I’m kidding, of course. I like him. And I like him for you. I also feel responsible for encouraging this pairing, so I’ll take all the credit when you get engaged.”
