Faking Ms. Right (Dirty Martini Running Club #1)(66)

He shook his head slightly, pressing his lips together as if trying not to laugh. “Everly, you’re the best assistant I’ve ever had. You’re amazing and I have incredible respect for you as a professional. I don’t want to lose you. But I’m also a realist, and I know you won’t work for me forever. That email you got was inevitable. You’re amazing, and everyone you come in contact with knows it. If it isn’t this opportunity, it’ll be something else. And I’m not going to hold your career back. If this turns out to be the right move for you, then I’ll be nothing but happy for you.”

Tears. I had stupid, unstoppable tears running down my face, right here in Shepherd’s office. Fighting a sudden wave of embarrassment, I swiped them away. “Wow. That was… Thank you. I don’t know what to say.”

“Come here.”

I couldn’t quite look him in the eyes as I walked around his desk. He swiveled his chair and scooped me into his lap, wrapping his arms tightly around me.

Leaning my head against his shoulder, I closed my eyes and breathed him in. He was so amazing, and I was so stupidly in love with him. For a second, I thought about telling him. Right here, in his office. Confessing to these very real feelings I had for my fake fiancé.

But I didn’t. This was such a nice moment. And what if he couldn’t say it back? I didn’t want to ruin it when things were fine.

Okay, mostly fine.

“Just promise me one thing,” he said.

I sat up and brushed more tears off my face. “What?”

“If and when you get a new job, help me find your replacement. I’m trying to be the mature professional here, but I’m actually not sure how I’d ever live without you.”

My silly little heart soared at that comment. I knew he meant at work. Of course he meant at work. He wasn’t saying he literally couldn’t live without me, or that he wanted to make this whole thing real.

Calm down, Everly.

“I promise. I’ll find you someone great.”

He touched my chin and brought his lips to mine for a soft kiss. “Thank you.”

I slid off his lap and stood, smoothing down my dress. “I should get back to work.”

“Dinner tonight?” he asked. “Anywhere you want.”

“Really? Anywhere?”

“Absolutely. What would make you happy?”

I couldn’t do dinner tonight. I had plans with my sister. But I also couldn’t resist messing with him. “There’s this taco truck that’s usually parked somewhere up in Shoreline. It’s a little bit of a drive, and they only take cash, and sometimes they don’t actually let you order, they just tell you what you’re getting. And one time I ordered a Diet Coke with my meal, and the can kind of smelled like raw meat, which probably wasn’t good. But it’s like five dollars for this huge plate of tacos, and they’re delicious.”

He stared at me, unblinking. Silent.

I laughed. “I’m kidding. Although I have been there, and it’s really good. But I can’t, I’m having dinner with my sister tonight.”

He let out a breath and shook his head. “Right. I forgot about dinner with your sister. Tomorrow?”

“I’m free tomorrow.”

He smiled again, and as usual, I got all melty inside. “Perfect. It’s a date.”

“Yes. A date.”

I turned for the door.

“Everly?”

“Yeah?” I glanced over my shoulder.

“I meant to ask, who would you be working for?”

“Cameron Whitbury.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“Why? Do you know her?”

His expression softened. “Her? Cameron’s a woman?”

“You’ve never heard of her? She’s one of the richest women in America.”

“I don’t know every wealthy person in the world.”

I grinned at him. “Were you worried some rich man was trying to take me away from you?”

He shook his head again and turned back to his laptop. “Have fun with your sister.”

“I will.”

I went back to my desk, feeling both better and worse. If I got this new job, and didn’t work here anymore… and Richard broke up with Svetlana… would I see Shepherd anymore?

But if our fake engagement ended, and I still worked here, how would I handle seeing him every day?

I opened the email again. I really was interested. Maybe it wouldn’t work out—and maybe things with Shepherd wouldn’t work out either—but I was nothing if not an optimist. I clicked reply, wrote a friendly and professional response indicating that I would love to chat about this opportunity, took a deep breath, and hit send.

With that resolved, for the moment at least, I felt a bit better. I’d see where this went. But there was another issue in my life—a big one—that still needed resolution. But I was going to put that to rest tonight.





The dinner Annie and Miranda served was amazing. No surprise there, since my sister was basically perfect. Grilled salmon with lemon and dill. Roasted vegetables with fresh herbs. A delicious Salishan Cellars chardonnay.

I was feeling a little run down and my throat tickled, making me cough. It was probably just the stress of everything lately. The party, contemplating a new job, plus the worry over how I was going to break the news to Annie that they needed to find a new potential donor. I took a drink of water to see if it would help.