Page 51 of Hard Deal
“And then when he didn’t invite you to the ball...I was suspicious.”
“His father was going to be there. You know how difficult he’s been.” Penny frowned. “Daniel and I discussed it and we decided it would be best if I didn’t go. I wasn’t up to dealing with it, but I didn’t want to discuss Daniel’s family problems behind his back.”
“I guess I should strike ‘jumping to conclusions’ off my extracurricular activities list, huh?”
“Don’t be cute while I’m trying to be angry at you.” A smile tugged at her sister’s lip. “And you owe Daniel the apology, rather than me.”
“I do.”
Penny’s eyes darted to something offscreen. “I don’t want to do it while we’re here, though. He’s worked so hard lately and he needs the time to relax.”
“When you get back, we can do dinner and I’ll talk to him. I want to make it right.”
“I know, Immie. You’re a good person.” Penny laughed. “When you get a bee in your bonnet about something, though...you’re like a bulldog.”
“Does that mean you forgive me?”
“Always.” Penny narrowed her eyes. “And why are you calling me from the car? I thought you had another month left on your lease. You’re not living out of the Corolla, are you?”
Ever since Lainey had moved out to pursue her dream career—and to nurse a broken heart in London—Imogen was more alone than ever. She missed Lainey’s ceaseless chatter and the way she always had the music turned up loud. But the silence had given her a lot of time to think and reflect. Being left alone with her thoughts had given her the space to see how bad she’d messed up with Caleb.
You’re getting too good at that. There’s no gold star for being a screw-up.
“I needed to get some air.” She pulled the keys out of the ignition and pushed the car door open, trying to hold her phone steady with her free hand. “Figured if you were getting to sun it up all week, then so should I.”
“It’s good for the soul,” Penny agreed.
The St. Kilda boardwalk was Imogen’s happy place. There was something about the combination of sand and gentle waves rolling in, the warm planks of wood beneath her feet and the insistent squawk of seagulls that made all her problems seem less formidable. The breeze brushed against her legs, blowing sand particles around.
“I made a mistake, Pen,” she said with a sigh as she squinted out into the distance. The sun was low, but still bright like a ball of fire on the horizon. It bathed everything in amber light, making the water twinkle as it moved.
“Another one?” Penny made a tsk-ing sound. “Work related?”
“Love related. Well...” She swallowed. “Maybe not love, yet. But something that’s heading in that direction.”
Love was a hell of a word, and Imogen wasn’t sure she was ready for that. What she did know, however, was that the second she’d found out about Caleb’s resignation her whole world flipped upside down. Rumours were rife about his father firing him, but when she’d asked Gerald outright—ready to defend Caleb to her own undoing—her boss had denied it and seemed genuine.
There was a parcel sitting on the passenger seat of her car, wrapped in blue-and-yellow paper. A going-away gift. She’d bought it on her lunch break earlier that day with every intention of going to Caleb’s office after her work day wrapped up. But the second she’d made it to his door, doubt had kicked her butt and she’d turned tail like a coward.
“A man. Wow.” Her sister let out a low whistle. “I didn’t know you were seeing anyone.”
“I’m not... I wasn’t.” She found an empty spot along the boardwalk and dropped down, letting her feet go over the edge so she could bury her toes in the sand. “I don’t know what to call it.”
“Ah, so it’s friends with benefits, then?” her sister teased.
“No.” Imogen shook her head.
It wasn’t like that. Sure there were plenty of benefits, if that was what Penny wanted to call them, but what she shared with Caleb was so much more. Around him, she could be free of her own restrictions. Free of the boundaries she’d set up so tight around herself they felt like a cage. And those feelings might have come about through sex, but they weren’t because of it.
“We never labelled it.” She wriggled her toes back and forth, watching the sand rise and fall. “I kept giving myself reasons why it wouldn’t work. He’s, uhh...got a bit of a reputation.”
Penny nodded. “And you thought history would repeat itself?”
“Something like that. I try not to get involved in all the gossip at work, but you hear things. He’s charming and funny and I thought he’d eat me alive.”
“Did he?” Penny shifted and Imogen caught a glimpse of the hotel’s view—a strip of blue water, greenery and palm trees. “Or did you pull the pin because you were scared?”
“The latter,” she admitted. “I heard that he’d cheated on one of his previous girlfriends and I confronted him about it.”