Mesmerized by Audra Cole, Bella Love-Wins Read Free Book Online Page B

have to take a raincheck on that. Tomorrow?”
    “Sure. What’s up? Is everything okay?”
    “Some company ordered like three hundred bracelets. It’s my biggest order ever, and it has to go out in a couple of days. Which is great! Fantastic, actually! But my next shipment of supplies is on backorder, so now I have to go into the city to pick up some things. I’m heading out now, but thought I would at least stop by and say hi, see how your night went. Since your late night texts were less than helpful.”
    I set the coffee cup down in front of her. I stare at her as she takes a big gulp, not sure what to tell her.
    “Charity? Are you okay?” Ashley asks. “You look like hell.”
    I shake my head, trying to clear the fog. “Sorry, I’m just really tired. I couldn’t sleep last night.”
    “Did you talk to James when you got home?”
    “No, it was really late. I figured he’d be asleep. He did text though. I guess he was working late and said he would call today.”
    “Oh, okay. So then, what’s wrong?” Ashley asks. Concern shows in her eyes.
    I shake my head. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I want to say. Things are complicated.” My voice trails off.
    “Complicated how?” Ashley asks. She takes a final sip of her drink.
    “Well, something happened last night. I, uh, saw someone at the airport.”
    “Someone, who?” Her eyebrows knit together as she stares at me, as though trying to read my mind. “Not…”
    “Brandon. Brandon was there.” I confirm her unspoken suspicions.
    “Brandon was there? You can’t be serious!” she yells.
    I shush her and lower my voice. “Would I really joke about something like that? I drove him here and dropped him off at the Beverly Inn, like five blocks that way!” I gesture at the window.
    Ashley looks horrified. “You drove him here? Why on earth would you do that?”
    I quickly explain the situation, leaving out most of the details of the conversation we had on the drive. Her expression only changes to become more shocked as I go along. Not a good sign. I mean I know it was bad, but was it really this bad?
    “You kissed him!” Her chair nearly topples over, as she jumps up.
    Apparently, it is that bad…
    “Shhh!” I pull at her jacket until she sits back down again. “No, I did not kiss him! He kissed me. It was a mistake, I’ll admit. But it’s going to be okay. He’s only in town for a couple of weeks. Then he’ll go back to LA, and everything will go back to the way it was before.”
    I hope.
    Ashley considers me skeptically. “Charity, I’ve known you for like, your whole life. There’s no way you will just forget any of this ever happened and go on like normal.”
    I know she’s right, but maybe if I keep telling myself that it will all be fine, I’ll start to believe it.
    Eventually.
    “Well I have to try. What choice do I really have? It’s self-preservation, trying to keep my remaining shreds of sanity, here.” My joke falls flat.
    “What about James?” She ignores my question. “Are you going to tell him?”
    “Oh, yeah, sure. I think now would be a great time to tell him about kissing someone else, immediately after having our first really big fight. That would be perfect,” I fling back. “Of course not, Ashley. Are you out of your mind? What happened with Brandon was a mistake, a one-time thing.”
    “Ugh, I can’t believe this is happening,” Ashley says.
    “I know. My life has suddenly turned into a Lifetime movie special of the week.”
    Ashley laughs. “No kidding! Well, like you said, it’s only a couple of weeks. Besides, he’ll probably be busy with family stuff anyways. You won’t even know he’s here.”
    “Exactly.” I nod in agreement.
    The bell on the door rings again as the first groups of customers arrive. I hop up from the table and get them seated before sending Ashley off.
     
    ***
     
    The rest of the day passes quickly, and I only end up working for six hours before my boss lets me go.