Big Chicas Don't Cry(54)

Something I know she hated.

Once she’d heard that I planned the firm’s annual gala, she volunteered herself to join the committee. I saw it for what it was, though—a thinly veiled attempt to dig up some dirt.

“It’s true,” Chris told her after she’d planted a kiss on his cheek as a greeting. “I decided it was time.”

She squealed like a little girl and clapped her hands. “We’re going to have so much fun.”

Chris laughed and looked over at me. When I didn’t respond, he excused himself and said he was going to get his phone from his office and would be right back.

After he was out of earshot, Dawn grabbed my arm and pulled me close.

“Is Chris still single?”

I thought of what I’d seen back in New York. “Um, I’m not sure. I don’t really keep track of his dating schedule.”

Careful, Mari.

Dawn’s love of gossip was almost as big as her love for her personal trainer’s abs. And even though she would decapitate anyone who breathed a word of her indiscretions to her councilman husband, Dawn prided herself on being the spreader of bad and scandalous news. If I showed even a glimpse of being uncomfortable talking about Chris, she’d make sure all the other women in the San Marino Ladies Lunch Auxiliary knew it by tomorrow.

It wasn’t the first comment Dawn had made about Chris. The two had met at the New Year’s Eve party at our house. She was drunk and hung on him almost all night. Even Esteban was appalled by her obvious flirting. Chris, on the other hand, took it in stride but acted like a complete gentleman—even when she “accidentally” spilled her wine on his crotch and then tried to clean it up with her bare hand.

That night, I didn’t really care either way if Chris slept with her. I just didn’t want any potential relationship to affect my relationship with Dawn or my inclusion in the auxiliary. But Chris didn’t take her bait, and she ended up going home with her oblivious husband, very drunk and very frustrated.

I pulled myself away from her and tried to focus on reading the agenda again. A few more committee members showed up, and I was relieved for the buffer.

Temporary as it was.

“I think you need to throw one of your famous cocktail parties and make sure he’s there. Eye candy is the best party dessert you can have. Way more interesting than muffins,” Dawn whispered in my ear just as Chris walked back into the room.

The rest of the meeting was uneventful, thank God. We discussed silent auction items and AV needs for the band. We also finalized the menu and approved the design of the save the date card. And since this year’s charity was a shelter for abused women and their children, the committee decided to hire a freelance writer who could interview some of the shelter’s clients and staff to include testimonials in the event’s program book.

When the meeting was over, I encouraged everyone to take a muffin or two for the road. Letty had warned me not to bring back any, since I still had two dozen more at home.

“This is going to be one of the best galas ever.” Alicia beamed at me from across the conference room table. “You always do such a great job, Marisol. You have no idea how happy I was when Esteban said you’d chair the committee again.”

“That’s very kind of you to say. But it is a committee effort.”

“Marisol is very humble,” Chris said. He’d taken the seat next to mine for the meeting. Luckily, I’d been too focused on my agenda to be distracted by him.

“I know,” Alicia continued. “That’s why we love her so much.”

“Definitely,” he responded.

“Well, I better let the agency know that we can move forward with printing the save the dates. We could even get them in the mail by early next week!”

Alicia left, and I began collecting my papers. I noticed Dawn get up, but she didn’t leave. Instead, she took out her phone and started talking to someone.

Chris leaned closer. “Alicia’s right, you know. There might be a committee planning this thing, but you are definitely the one making everything happen.”

Without looking over at him, I said, “So why did you join the committee, exactly?”

“Because it’s an important event for the firm.”

“This is our third year doing it, and neither you nor Esteban have ever sat in on a planning meeting before. So, try again.”

“Fine. I guess it’s my way of apologizing to you for how I acted in New York.”

My hand stilled for a second. “What do you mean?”

He rolled his chair even closer. “It was wrong of me to act like that, especially with Esteban around,” he said in a low voice. “It was inappropriate, and I apologize. I also shouldn’t have slept with Darcy. I was mad at you for what you said, and it was a stupid thing to do.”

That made me finally look at him. “I accept your apology about acting inappropriately,” I whispered. “But that’s it. You don’t owe me any explanation about Darcy because it’s certainly none of my business who you sleep with.”

I couldn’t help but glance at Dawn, who had ended her phone call but was now lingering in the doorway.

“Marisol . . . ,” he began.

I rolled my chair backward and stood up. “Thanks for coming today, Chris.”

As I gathered the rest of my things, I heard Dawn ask Chris if he could show her his office. I waited a minute or two and then headed for the elevator. On another day, I would’ve stopped to see Esteban. But I didn’t want to chance getting stuck in an elevator with that woman.