A Reclusive Heart (Hollywood Hearts #2)(2)

“It’s your party. Go nuts. I, on the other hand am going home to my liquor cabinet and bed,” Nick said, pushing away from the bar.

“Going home alone?” Rick asked, sounding surprised.

Nick gestured lazily to the crowd. “All these women are looking for Mr.

Right.”

Rick looked thoughtful for a moment. “You never know it could be you.”

Nick gave him a wink. “I have no plans to change my name from Mr. Wrong anytime soon.”

******

“Don’t puke, don’t puke, don’t puke,” Jamie said, pressing her forehead against the faux leather covering of her steering wheel.

She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. This was no big deal, nothing whatsoever. This was just a job, a new job, the start of her new life. Nothing to worry about. It was just a brand new stage in her life because ofHer stomach flipped over just thinking about her ex-almost boyfriend. Oh no, make that her new brother-in-law, and her ever loving sister Caitlyn. That fun little surprise was the reason why she was here. She needed this desperately. This was going to be the start of the new Jamie.

Not that she hated herself. She didn’t. She just wasn’t particularly in love with herself. She was too boring, too shy, too plain and on top of that she was pretty darn sure that she was the world’s biggest pushover. Everyone knew she didn’t have a backbone and had no qualms about taking advantage of that little fault.

No more. That was the old Jamie. The new Jamie was going to start saying no. She was going to take charge of her life. It was the main reason she sold her internet publishing company and took this job. She wanted, no, needed to get out in the world and this was the perfect opportunity. This job would force her out of her shell and into the world.

“I’m good,” she mumbled to herself, not really sounding all too confident, but it was a start. She pushed her glasses back up her nose and did her best not to vomit.

Taking one last fortifying breath, she grabbed her oversized purse, the one that really should be called a bag, and opened her door. After catching the small heel of her shoe on the floor mat and fighting her way to freedom she opened her car door and stood up.

Satisfied that she hadn’t vomited or passed out, she closed her door, hit the alarm and took a step forward only to come to a halt and stumble backwards into the car.

“What the….”

She turned around and frowned. Of course this would happen. She somehow managed to shut her bag in the car. Her cheeks burned as the sound of laughter reached her ears. She didn’t need to look back to know that they were laughing at her.

Keeping her eyes and face averted so that no one would be able to identify her later and point and laugh at her, she disarmed the car alarm and removed her bag. This time when she closed the car door she made sure to remain a safe distance away.

Clutching the purse strap tightly in her hands she headed for the front entrance of Rerum Publishing House, praying nothing else went wrong. She kept her breathing even as she walked up the sidewalk, into the lobby and to the elevator. She stepped inside, pressed the button for the fifth floor and exhaled slowly. Several people in the elevator threw her curious looks, but she ignored them.

She ran her sweaty palms down the front of her charcoal gray wool skirt and frowned as she inwardly groaned. Why hadn’t she taken the time yesterday to try on her clothes? Oh, that’s right, because Caitlyn and her little trio came into the store. She’d been forced to grab the first suit off the rack that looked like it would fit, pay up, and get the heck out of there before they spotted her.

It was either that or endure the fake looks of pity, rude comments, and Caitlyn’s “little” stories about how Jamie never could keep any man’s attention once they met Caitlyn. So yeah, she ran for it and apparently bought a suit at least four sizes too big.

The elevator dinged and people looked at her expectantly. It took a moment before she realized they were at the fifth floor. With an embarrassed flush and a murmured apology she hefted her bag, er purse, and stepped out of the elevator into a beehive.

“Excuse me,” a woman in a much better suit than hers said in a crisp voice as she rushed past Jamie.

Another murmured apology came from Jamie before she stepped back against the wall. She stayed there watching the chaos for several minutes before she broke out into a sweat.

Oh god, she couldn’t do this.

She hurried the three feet back to the elevator and hit the call button, and then pressed it again and again. Where was it? She pushed her glasses back up her nose to get a better look at the elevator lights. It was on the ninth floor and she didn’t have time to wait here.

Clutching her bag tightly to her body and averting her eyes to the floor, she turned and followed the Exit signs to the stairwell. Halfway there she spotted signs for the restrooms. After taking a quick glance up to confirm their location she took another deep breath and scurried quickly through the swarm of people. She didn’t release that breath until she was in the bathroom safely locked in the end stall.

After placing five paper barriers on the toilet she carefully sat down, dropped her bag between her feet, and cradled her head in her hands. This had been such a huge mistake. She should have kept her company and resigned herself to being the strange woman with twenty cats that all the kids would point and laugh at in twenty years. The fact that she didn’t like cats shouldn’t factor into her decision.