Room-maid(66)

I felt rather than saw Delia and Shay just behind me, one at each shoulder like they were my royal bodyguards ready to protect me. I went to the coat check and I heard Delia saying that she’d ordered another Uber and it was on its way.

Brad ran over and said, “You’re still wearing my bracelet. That has to mean something.”

I’d forgotten that I’d put it on. The only thing it meant was that I didn’t have any other bracelets to accessorize my outfit. I yanked the bracelet off my arm and threw it on the floor at his feet.

“All it means is that I’m an idiot and I deserve so much better than you.”

Shay got our coats and Delia put her arm around me, taking me out the door. As I walked outside I heard him yell, “What are my parents going to say?”

That was so not my problem.

Fortunately, he stayed in the club and our Uber arrived a minute later. Shay and Delia took me to a quieter bar but I only sipped at the martini they put into my hands. What I wanted was to go home and crawl into bed. I felt embarrassed that tonight had happened and how my friends didn’t seem to know how to act around me. I wanted to tell them I was fine. That I’d been over him for a long time and that I was ashamed I’d put up with him and his lying, cheating ways for so long.

Tonight I was mostly mad at myself and there was no way they’d be able to talk me down from it. “Guys, I really just want to go home. Thank you for all the support. All of it. You are the best friends anyone could ask for and I adore you. You mean the world to me but I sort of just want this day to be over.”

Thankfully they understood and got an Uber to take me back home. They made me promise to call, said they would be there when I was ready to talk.

When I got inside my apartment, what I saw was such a sharp contrast to how I was feeling that it startled me.

Loud music was playing and Tyler was gleefully dancing around the room with Pigeon yipping at his heels and bouncing along with him. He was so adorable. I drank in the sight of him and his happiness. It was like a soothing balm for my soul.

He came to a stop when he saw me. His expression was excited, giddy. “Madison! You’re home! I was hoping I’d get the chance to celebrate with you!”

I saw an open bottle of champagne on the coffee table. “It looks like you’re a little drunk.”

“Little bit,” he agreed. “Care to join me?”

He grabbed my hand and spun me around, then unexpectedly circled me back into his arms so that I crashed against his chest. My body hummed with awareness, my skin heated in response to being pressed flush against him.

“Hi,” he said, and that tension was back. This didn’t feel like some friendly hug. It felt like more.

But I distrusted myself too much to see things clearly. I coughed and moved away from him, not entirely believing that my shaky limbs could accomplish the task. “What are you celebrating?” My voice sounded a little too bright and fake.

He grabbed his phone and turned off the music. “I got the promotion!”

“That’s amazing! Congratulations!” I was genuinely delighted for him.

“Thank you. I’ve had to sacrifice a lot to get here and do things that I’m not . . .” He trailed off. The light in his eyes dimmed and his voice sounded distant, like his body was here but his mind was somewhere else. The entire mood had changed and I wanted to bring him back to being happy Tyler.

“How did you find out today?” His office wasn’t open.

My question seemed to do the trick, and that gleam was back. “My boss is in London and he’d put in the request but upper management had to sign off on it and with the time difference . . . they sent the email late afternoon and didn’t get it until the following morning and then he had meetings but he wanted me to know as soon as possible. He emailed me this morning but I hadn’t checked my email until an hour ago. Hey, have a drink. Let me get you a glass.”

He came back with an empty champagne flute and filled it two-thirds of the way. “To you,” I said, clinking my glass against his. “In celebration, I won’t cook for you.”

“Aw, that’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever done for me.”

Shaking my head, I proceeded to down the entire contents in a single gulp.

Letting out a low whistle he said, “Wow. That was kind of impressive.”

“Pour me another,” I said, holding my glass out to him.

He did so but asked, “Is everything okay?”

Was I so transparent? Here I thought I’d been hiding it well. “I don’t want to bring you down. You seem really happy. And you should be. I know you worked hard.”

“You helped me with this. I think bringing in those new clients is what pushed me over the edge. I kind of owe you. And I hope you know that you can talk to me.” He put his hand lightly on my wrist and led me over to the couch so that we were sitting down. I stared at his hand, wondering how such a simple touch could make me feel like the champagne bubbles were fizzing in my blood. He asked, “What’s going on?”

“I broke up with my boyfriend tonight.” I took another big gulp of champagne. I was starting to feel the effects. My head felt a little light, my body warmer than usual. “It’s the man my parents picked out. The one I’m supposed to marry. And so I’ve put up with him and his crap for a long time. He would lie to me and cheat on me and my parents demanded I take him back. Then when they cast me off, he was nowhere to be found. I needed his support and he disappeared. Recently he came back, saying he was committed to me and wanted another chance. Tonight I saw him in a club making out with another woman.”