A Cosmic Kind of Love(8)

Or his hotness.

And that was one hella sexy astronaut.

Which was why he was so familiar to me. I’d obviously come across him in passing.

I’d watched three of Christopher’s video letters to Darcy before I forced myself to focus on work.

There was also more than a slight chance that I’d downloaded all the videos to my computer.

Feeling sneaky and guilty, I covered it with a benign smile. “Great! They have vastly different tastes, but I think there are ways to bring those tastes together. I’ve got some ideas to pitch to them today at our lunch.”

“Hit me with them.” Lia settled down on the velvet occasion chair in my office. My boss had collaborated with one of Manhattan’s best interior designers to turn our small offices into chic spaces that exuded our style and attention to detail.

I nodded, throwing Christopher’s gorgeous face from my mind.

I replied, “Uh . . . well . . . Matthias would like a rock band while Darcy hates that idea and would prefer a string quartet. Easiest solution I can think of is to have a string quartet play instrumental versions of Matthias’s favorite rock songs.”

“Perfect, I love it. What else?”



* * *





“Well, I like it,” Matthias said in his mellifluous French accent.

Darcy looked at her fiancé. Her brow puckered in thought before turning to me.

I tried not to squirm.

Since I’d arrived at our lunch meeting on Sixth Avenue, I’d felt shifty. The Italian restaurant was a ten-minute walk from our offices on West Nineteenth Street, and it was not uncommon to see celebrity faces at the cool spot. It did not surprise me this was where Darcy Hawthorne wanted to meet for lunch. The Hawthornes had been a big deal in East Coast society for more than a hundred years. Darcy’s family owned one of the world’s biggest hotel chains. Most people had expected her to go into the family business, but not only had she studied law, she was an environmental lawyer trying to make a difference in the world. And despite all her family’s gazillions, her legs that went on forever and ever, and the fact that she liked to dine in overpriced restaurants, a person couldn’t help but admire the heck out of her.

Besides, she was nice.

Well . . . usually.

Now she had me pinned to my chair with her gray eyes as I nervously awaited her opinion on my music compromise. Her long, thick blond hair was pulled back in a sleek ponytail. Darcy wore flared black high-waist pants and a stunning silk blouse with oversized sleeves. She was so chic, and despite the nontraditional business attire, she also looked like a twenty-first-century professional who could bludgeon my reputation to death with her six-inch heels.

Suddenly she grinned. Her smile was a revelation. It was the first thing I noticed about her when we met—Darcy Hawthorne had the sweetest, warmest smile, completely incongruous to her intimidating looks.

I wondered if her smile had attracted Christopher.

And Matthias, of course.

I relaxed. “You like?”

“Yes.” Darcy nodded, turning that smile on Matthias as she curled her hand around his on the table. “I think it’s the perfect compromise. It’ll surprise my mother when the violinist plays the opening notes to Nirvana’s ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit.’?” Her eyes filled with laughter. “But I’m actually looking forward to that moment.”

We all chuckled, and I continued to share more of my thoughts about how we could bring their two personalities together for the engagement party.

It was going well until Darcy commented, “These suggestions are near perfect. You took the ideas we sent you and came up with a plan we just couldn’t imagine. You’re wonderful.”

Guilt consumed me at the reminder that Darcy had sent me a link to her cloud account that allowed me access to not only her engagement inspiration boards but also those videos from her ex-boyfriend.

“Are you okay?” She leaned toward me. “You look . . . oh God, is it something you ate?” She looked down at her own empty salad plate in concern.

“No, I’m fine. I . . .” I wanted to blurt out the truth. That I’d watched private videos meant only for her.

But a little voice in my head stopped me.

That voice belonged to my boss.

“I just remembered that the musicians I wanted to hire for your party might not be available,” I lied, my cheeks unbearably hot.

“Oh no.” Darcy looked stricken, making me feel awful.

“It’s all right, mon ange.” Matthias slipped his arm around her shoulders, drawing her into his side. “We will find others.”

“Don’t worry.” I hurried to assure them. “It was just a thought. I could be wrong. I will check that and let you know ASAP.”

By the time we finished lunch, the lie between us had drained me. The right thing to do would have been to tell the truth. However, as I pondered my dilemma, I realized that Christopher hadn’t really spoken intimately about their relationship in his video letters. The three I’d watched so far were really about what he was doing on the space station. I’d never thought space would be interesting, and I didn’t know if it was the superhot astronaut explaining his mission or that his enthusiasm was so infectious.

I think it was both.

Definitely both.

Okay, maybe more of the former than the latter, but still.