Lachlan slipped car keys from the pocket of his faded jeans and gave them a twirl around his finger. “Maybe now we’re even.”
Good riddance, I thought. I couldn’t wait to see the last of Lachlan. “Thanks for stopping by the office. Have a nice weekend.”
“And thankyoufor the warm welcome into town. Always great to see old friends.” He gave the edge of his stocking cap a tug as if tipping a hat. “I’ll see you around.”
“Don’t count on it.”
Lachlan stepped out of the elevator, only to turn back and leave me with that familiar frat boy grin. “Oh, I’d almost guarantee it.”
ChapterFive
OLIVIA
Of courseI saw Lachlan Hayes that next Friday night.
Hands gripping the armrests, I turned in my airplane seat at takeoff and glared. I’d boarded American Airlines flight 2069 with an eight o’clock landing time in Hell and Misery.
“Seriously, Hattie?” I turned to my sister, who had gamely forsaken a seat by her beloved fiancé Miller to fill up a row with me and our youngest sister, Rosie. “You couldn’t have mentioned that Miller not only knew Lachlan, but that Lachlan would be joining us for your engagement celebration weekend?”
“It might’ve slipped my mind.” She raised up in her own seat and waggled her fingers toward Miller a few rows back. “You try planning a wedding in five months. Never mind. I knowyoucould pull it off in a week. But my brain is nothing but a list of things to buy, things to stress over, and things I plan on doing on my honeymoon.”
“That’s exactly how I feel about the bookstore grand opening,” Rosie said. “Minus the honeymoon business.”
Rosie had spent most of the year renovating an old building, turning it into her dream of a bookshop. Upon our return from Vegas, we’d celebrate the grand opening with a party, and we couldn’t wait.
The seat leather squeaked as Rosie turned to face me. “What exactly is the big deal, Olivia? You act like Lachlan insulted your family, took all your worldly possessions, and kicked puppies in your presence. Is there more to the story you’re not telling us?”
Hold out your cups, ladies, because I’m about to pour some serious tea.“The nameLachlan Hayesshould sound very familiar to you because I only cursed it out loud every day of my junior year of college. Your husband’s BFF back there is the guy who got me kicked out of Ozark University.”
Rosie stole another peek behind her. “Him? The incredibly tall guy with the pretty green eyes and so much facial hair he could be a fire hazard?”
“Yes, him. Lachlan.” His name left my lips with two syllables, seven letters, and a profusion of loathing.
“I think he’s cute,” Hattie said. “In a gamer-nerd sort of way. And Miller thinks the world of him.”
Clearly my future brother-in-law had terrible instincts because Lachlan was trouble with a capital T. “He was a party boy without one care for anyone else, and he probably still is. Do guys like that ever change? No, I don’t think so.”
“Everyone can change.” Hattie was our resident therapist, but right now I didn’t need her sage optimism.
“The wild boys grow into the best romantic heroes,” Rosie said.
“Yeah,” I snipped. “In the novels we read for book club. Not in real life.” Had the altitude gotten to my sisters? “Need I remind you Lachlan stole and wrecked an Italian diplomat’s boat, then got all of us in the international program expelled from the university? And to make matters worse, I lost my summer internship with Fitz and Freeman. Only the country’s top PR firm.”
“Thatwasa rough summer.” Rosie patted my hand with sisterly sympathy. “But it’s water under the bridge.”
“Like the waters of Venice, which I didn’t get to see because I got kicked out of the country.”
“When we get back home, make an appointment with me,” said Hattie. “We need to work on this residual bitterness.”
I had gotten past bitter. But I’d never gotten over the pulsing urge to wrap my hands around Lachlan’s throat and squeeze. “If Celeste hadn’t stepped in, offered me another internship, and convinced Wesley University to accept me without the loss of one single credit, there’s no telling what would’ve become of me.”
“You would’ve overachieved somewhere else.” Hattie pushed a few buttons on her in-flight media screen until it came to life with a carousel of movie offerings. “Can we just have a nice weekend without you getting arrested for murder? Your ticket for Cirque du Soleil is nonrefundable.”
That was really asking a lot. “I can be civil, but if he trashes the hotel room and you have to pick up the tab, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” The plane wobbledand my gag reflex engaged. “He’s so obnoxious, and I don’t understand why this blast from my past is suddenly living in Sugar Creek and going on our trip. I was looking forward to this weekend getaway.”
“No, you weren’t.” Hattie pulled out her earbuds and plugged them in. “You’re completely flipping out about missing work time. Look at her, Rosie. She has the shakes.”
I stopped jangling my leg and forced my body to still. “You know I’d happily drop everything for you in a heartbeat.” I didn’t need to mention that’s essentially what I’d done. I couldn’t recall the last time I hadn’t worked late into the weekend. And maybe I had felt a little jittery at the thought of powering off my phone until the plane landed. But I would survive. Perhaps the time would give me the mental space I needed to come up with a mega client for our firm. I’d already struck out twice with my preliminary ideas, and time was ticking. Just a dream job on the line. No big deal.
