Chapter 103 103
Sherry leaned her head against the car window. Back to work. “Yes. I know.”
Five hours later, they were pulling up in front of her building. “Let me get your door,” he said, reaching for the handle on his own.
“No. Hold on.” She grabbed his forearm. “I feel like we should talk.” She probably should’ve brought this up during the ride, but she’d chickened out every time. Maybe this was better. At least she had an escape.
Justin shut off the radio and turned to her. “Yes. Of course.”
“I had a really wonderful weekend,” she started, already feeling remorseful about what she was about to say. It was the smart thing to do, the right thing to do. It was also the last thing she wanted to do.
“Good. I’m glad. I did, too.”
“It’s just that...” she sighed deeply. “I like you a lot, but we need to be honest with ourselves. It probably wasn’t the smartest thing in the world, considering that we have my family to contend with. I don’t see Adam changing his mind any time soon, possibly ever, and my family is really important to me. I just think it will cause a rift that won’t be good for me.
Or you, for that matter.”
“I see.” He took his sunglasses out of the holder and put them on. “Whatever you want, Sherry. You won't marry me and you don't want a relationship with me. I have accepted that. You won’t get an argument from me.”
Was he hurt? Disappointed? His voice was so cold, his tone so aloof, it was impossible to know. “Okay. Great. I guess I’ll talk to you at some point? About Sunny Side?”
He nodded, looking straight ahead through the windshield. “I’ll call you if I have any information to share.”
“Perfect.” She climbed out of the car, closed the door and didn’t look back.
This was for the best, but it felt absolutely wretched.
___________
Telling Justin “thanks, but no thanks” was the hardest thing Sherry had done in a very long time. Four days later and it felt downright stupid.
“Still nothing from, you know, him?” Rachel asked, setting a salad down on Sherry's desk. They’d taken to eating lunches together in Sherry's office since the executive dining room was no fun. Rumors of a BenTel takeover were rampant, but if it was happening, the perpetrator hadn’t come to light.
“Shhh,” Sherry admonished, leaping out of her seat and making sure her door was firmly closed.
“It’s not like I said his name.” Rachel dug into her own salad as if they were discussing the five-day forecast.
“Sorry,” Sherry whispered, heading back to her desk. “It’s just, you know. If Adam found out, he would not be happy. You’re literally the only person on the planet who knows about it.”
“I feel so privileged to have this information that could get me fired.”
“I’m sorry. I hope this isn’t bothering you to know. I just had to tell somebody or I was going to go insane. And like it or not, you’re my best friend.”
“Don’t worry. I’m very good at keeping my mouth shut.”
Sherry sighed. “To answer your question, no, I haven’t heard from him, and it’s been four days. I don’t know why, but I can’t stop thinking about him.”
Of course she couldn’t stop thinking about him. It’d been an aeon since she’d felt so alive. But she’d made the sensible decision, choosing to put her career and family at center stage. Those were things she could rely on. Those were things that couldn’t be yanked out from under her. Also she couldn't shake this feeling that there was more. She needed more from Justin than sex, and it seemed to be all they had now. He also wasn't telling her something. She didn't even know what it was but she just felt it somehow m
“Sex will do that to a person, you know,” Rachel quipped. “Especially if you’ve gone long enough without it.”
It was sex but somehow still more than sex, though. She couldn’t bring herself to utter those words, especially not to Rachel, the woman of zero filter, but it was the truth. Sherry hadn’t had that kind of connection with a man, well, ever. Perhaps it was the shared history between herself and Justin, everything she’d spent years anticipating and thinking she’d never have, but it felt even more elemental than that.
“I guess. Not much I can do about it, though. The drama of my family is too much, and he seemed all too ready to agree.”
“Men and their axes to grind. Two women would never allow it to get this bad. They’d smile to each other’s faces and do that phony nice speak, then bad-mouth them the minute the other person turned their back. It’s much more civilized if you think about it.”
Talk about uncivilized—one of Sherry's coworkers had uttered Justin's name in a meeting the day before, and Adam literally kicked the guy out of the meeting. No explanation, just an invitation to get the hell out. He’d softened his approach with her, but he was still being extraordinarily hard on everyone else.
Sherry was picking through her salad when her phone lit up. Justin's name popped up on the screen. She dropped her fork into the bowl.
“Who is it?” Holly Rachel. “You look like you just saw a ghost.”
“It’s Justin.”
“What are you waiting for?” Her voice was at a near-panic. “Answer it.”
Sherry wiped her mouth with a napkin and picked up the phone. What in the world could he be calling about? Nothing about their circumstances had changed. She stifled the hope that rose in her chest, that he was calling because he had to see her.
“Justin, hi.” She brandished her hand at Rachel to shoo her out of her office, but Rachel just sat back in her chair. Sherry bugged her eyes. “Please go,” she mouthed.
“Fine.” Rachel feigned sadness by jutting out her lower lip and begrudgingly got up from the chair.
“Is this a good time?” Justin asked. Even when he was being entirely too businesslike, his voice was so sexy that it shook her to her core.
“Yes. Of course.”
“I didn’t want to assume, since you’re at work, but it’s important and I didn’t want you to hear this from anyone else but me.”