Mia looked her up and down before saying, “I’ll come to your office a few minutes early and we’ll get you all spiffed up. I’ve got an extra pair of shoes in my desk.”
Gwen could only imagine what kind of shoes those were, but teetering around in impossibly high heels had to be better than the pair of New Balance shoes she had mistakenly picked to wear with her dress clothes. She knew by the determined set of her friend’s shoulders that it was useless to argue. Nothing short of divine intervention was going to get her out of lunch today. “All right,” she conceded, “but you better have a miracle in your makeup bag, because I’m going to need it.”
* * *
True to her word, Mia had transformed her into someone more presentable in less than fifteen minutes. But the shoes that Mia had lent her were about a size too small, so she was grateful when they reached the restaurant. Her toes had lost feeling shortly after she had squeezed them into the too tight leather pumps. Sometimes you had to suffer for fashion and this was one of those times.
When they walked through the door, Crystal ran over, seeming surprised, but happy that Gwen had come along. “You came! When Mia told me that you’d agreed to our group lunch, I didn’t think you’d show up.” Lowering her voice, Crystal added, “Ava’s not coming, I already double-checked that.”
Gwen felt herself relax, glad for the confirmation from Crystal. After her lunch with Ava, she didn’t harbor any bad feelings toward her, but it still felt uncomfortable. Plus, these were Ava’s friends and Gwen didn’t want to barge in on that. “That’s good,” she said under her breath as the three of them walked over to the four women waiting a few feet away. Gwen recognized Suzy Merimon and Claire Danvers immediately. Anyone who worked for Danvers had seen Suzy with her gorgeous husband, Gray Merimon. She was also willing to bet that many of the females at the office had been heartbroken when their CEO Jason Danvers had married his assistant Claire. Both men were powerful and gorgeous, but also approachable and friendly.
She had also seen Crystal’s sister Ella and Suzy’s sister Beth around the office, although she’d never formally met any of them. Ella was married to Ava’s brother Declan, who had also served in the military with Dominic. Beth was married to Nick Merimon, who was the brother of Suzy’s husband, Gray. It seemed that Gwen’s family wasn’t the only one who liked to live and work together.
Before the introductions could be made, the host announced that their table was ready. They all took a seat around a large, round table. Gwen was grateful to be sitting between Mia and Crystal until she realized that it put her directly across from Suzy and Claire. They both seemed friendly but curious.
When they had ordered their drinks, Mia cleared her throat, saying, “Let me introduce you guys to Gwen.” Pointing to each woman, she said, “This is Beth, Ella, Suzy, and Claire.”
Everyone said an enthusiastic hello, allowing Gwen to relax even further until Suzy spoke up. “I’m really sorry about what happened with Mac. Sitting here with you now, I, for one, feel kind of like shit-on-a-shoe for not considering your feelings in the whole scheme of things.” As all of the other women gave her guilty looks, Gwen found herself trying to swallow a lump the size of a robin’s egg.
When no one added anything further as if waiting for her to speak, she finally cleared her throat and said, “I . . . um . . . don’t really know how to take that.” Under the table, Mia squeezed her knee in support. Gwen had no idea what she could possibly say to Suzy. She was certain that as friends, the other women had known about Ava’s attempts to win Mac when she thought she was losing him to Gwen. Sitting here now as the woman scorned, she had two choices. She could tuck her tail between her legs, make an excuse, and leave, or she could show them that she was more than okay and didn’t need anyone’s pity. Before she knew it, she found herself saying, “I’m with Dominic now—we’re sleeping together.”
Every mouth around the table dropped as her words seemed to hover larger-than-life in the air. Even Crystal and Mia, who knew about her relationship with Dominic, seemed surprised. They’d probably never expected her to announce it so abruptly to near strangers. God, why had she done that? Wouldn’t a smile of reassurance have been better than a summary of her love life? The silence was broken as Suzy started grinning. “Good for you, girl. That man has a body like a big ole tree that you just want to climb.”
Claire started fanning herself before chiming in. “If any of you mention this to Jason, I’ll swear you’re lying, but I go the long way around the office sometimes just to walk past East Coast Security’s door. Those guys are just so hot.” When everyone stared at her in shock, she wagged her finger. “Don’t you dare judge me. I’ve run into all of you at one time or another in the same area, and none of you have an office near there.”
Looking demure and innocent, Ella said, “I just drop by sometimes to say hello to Declan’s old military buddies.”
Holding a hand over her mouth, Beth let out a cough that ended up sounding like “Bullshit!”
Suzy rolled her eyes, saying, “Oh, come on, there’s nothing wrong with appreciating a fine piece of prime hottie. I guarantee our men do it. I’m more than happy with my hubby, but the day I stop noticing a hot guy is the day I give up on life.”
Crystal shook her head, looking as if she was pouting. “But look at the men you’re all married to or dating. I was married to a man who wore knee socks for years and had perpetually pale, white skin. If I’d have been married to a man who looked anything like yours, I’d have been so happy I would have never looked twice at another man.”