In a bizarre twist of fate, Soph's ex greeted me when I stopped by Becca's centre less than a week after I'd also become her ex. Publicly, anyway. Now she was single, would he try it on? He might be with Becca, but let's face it: she was hard work.

"Hey, man. Becca's just finishing up a call." Mike shook my hand.

"All good. I'm early."

I wasn't early, but I also wasn't surprised that Becca wanted to make me wait. Not that I could say that to her boyfriend.

"How's the PhD going?" I asked him.

His eyes sparked with interest. "Great! Yeah, really great. Few more months and I should be done."

"Congrats, man. I'll buy you a drink when the time comes."

He waved off my offer with a low chuckle. "Few more hurdles to jump before then."

I slipped off my jacket and draped it over a random armchair. Today's agenda included a review of the interior layout. Good job, too, because the current design left a lot to be desired. Mismatched seating. Empty spaces. Bare walls.

At least it didn't look like a building site anymore.

"Feels like it's coming together, right?" Mike said, glancing around the room.

"Definitely." I shoved my hands into my pockets. "She's doing a great job."

"I know she appreciates your involvement. She might not show it sometimes, but it's only because she's bogged down in it all."

"I'm not doing it for recognition, so it's all good. I truly believe in the cause. I love what she's doing."

None of that was a lie. What I did find odd, though, was Mike suggesting Becca's cooler attitude towards me stemmed from stress and not hostility. Did he still not know?

While we waited for Becca, we continued to chat. I liked him. He was a nice guy, even if he was Soph's ex. Plus, he treated me like a normal human being. Couldn't imagine Soph would be too thrilled if we became close friends, but I didn't often meet people who I instantly clicked with. We'd enjoyed each other's company at Gabby's party last year, and that easy familiarity had returned almost instantly.

Pity he seemed to know nothing about how I'd treated his girlfriend last year.

*

Becca and I sat down beside one another at a table in the back room. An iPad was propped up against a stack of books, a 3D render of the building's interior loaded on the screen.

"I'm sorry about you and Sophia."

I doubted that very much.

"Thanks." I slid the tablet closer to inspect the computer-generated design.

"If it's any consolation, she's always had a thing for Aaron Holland and that's probably the only reason it happened. It's not a reflection on you."

Talk about a sneaky stab in the heart. She knew exactly how to play this. Exactly what to say to get in my head. Unfortunately for her, this break-up was as real as her sincerity.

"Speaking of having a thing for people, does Mike know about us?"

Those deceptive eyes flared. She wasn't the only one who could fire shots.

"No." She leaned back in her plastic seat and crossed her arms over her chest. Red-painted fingertips drummed against her biceps. "Only Sophia and Gabby know about that."

"But he's your boyfriend."

"Did you tell Soph all the details?" She cocked an eyebrow at me, like that somehow proved a point.

"She knows enough. I wasn't disrespectful enough to give her a play-by-play."

A tiny scoff shot from her mouth. "Think we established you were not respectful towards me."

"I was actually talking about disrespecting Soph. Not you."

Pink tainted her cheeks, and a small pang of guilt zapped through me. That was a cheap shot.

"You should be grateful I don't want to go spreading it around," Becca then said. "It's not exactly my proudest moment."

"I didn't mean it like that. I just find it awkward that he doesn't know. Especially if he's going to be hanging around here."

She rolled her eyes and snatched the tablet from my limp hands. "Trust me, he'll care more about the fact you've slept with his ex."

"I'm sure that's not true."

I hoped it wasn't true.

"He was crazy about her you know." She tapped at the screen to zoom in. "First love and all that. It never goes away. Or so I hear..."

"I can see the way he looks at you. He's crazy about you."

I was reassuring myself as much as her. This could be mind games again.

"And I've seen the way he looks at Soph when she's all over his timeline. The one that got away."

A thread of patience snapped in me. Imagining Mike looking at Soph's photos stirred a jealous rage that I'd tried hard to ignore. I didn't want to believe he was like that. Becca was just stirring the pot. Trying to get a reaction from me. Succeeding in it.

"I know what you're doing and it's really crappy of you so stop it."

Becca's shoulders flexed in mild indifference. "I'm just being transparent."

"That's not what you're doing and you know it."

"Maybe you should have more confidence in yourself. You are Teddy Stone, after all. Then again, she's never given a shit about that, has she?"

I pulled one foot up onto my thigh to stop my leg from bouncing. Showing weakness in front of this devil was not an option.

"Me being Teddy Stone is what caused us to break up. Why don't you concentrate on your own relationship if it's really that much of an issue?"

"That much of an issue? She has taken three guys from me—"

"Am I one of those three?"

Her freckled cheeks flushed with heat. It was a low blow. A desperate snipe to get her to shut up. When she said nothing in return, the familiar guilt crept back in.

"Let's just focus on business, shall we?" I tipped my chin towards the tablet.

"Don't tell Mike."

It almost sounded like a plea. Becca would never plead with me, though, and her fierce eyes seared through any potential vulnerability.

"It's not my place to tell him," I said.

"I mean it, Ed. He buddies up to people. It's what he does. I don't want some misplaced guilt during cosy drinks resulting in you telling him."

"Relax, will you? I'm not here to stir up your relationship."

She stabbed the tablet screen and then pushed a strand of red hair behind her ear. For the one millionth time, I wished I'd never invited her back to my suite that night.

*

"I need you to pack tonight, ready for an early morning flight tomorrow."

Helen breezed through the conference room door and tossed a Manila file onto the table in front of me.

"Read these on the plane. I'll test you when we—"

"Hang on." I held up one hand and reached for the envelope with the other. "Flight? Where are we going?"

"I'm bringing our US trip forward. I've scored you a last-minute seat on a panel show being filmed in New York. Brief is in the file."

"Helen, I'm in no fit state to do a panel show—"

"Hence the notes." She flicked her wrist towards the file. "You were begging me for a panel show appearance several weeks back. This is a huge one. They're trying to replicate a British format, and having a big British star on there will give them a boost. Lionel Hennessy is hosting."

I scrubbed a hand over my jaw. We couldn't back out of a Hennessy gig. It was bad form. Maybe it would help keep the heat away from Soph too if I could distract everyone with this newer side to me.

Soph.

I glanced at my watch. Could I sneak in a quick trip to see her tonight? I'd have to be transparent with Jeremy, but I could be creative with my excuse. Wanting to warn her about the interview. A courtesy visit ahead of my appearances on US TV. A late-night booty call.

I'd think of something. I didn't have time to be sneaky about this; I absolutely had to see her before I left.

"Problem?" Helen folded her arms.

"No." I rose from my chair. "I'll make a start on packing. What time do we leave?"

"Five."

Great. It would be a fleeting visit to Soph's. Maybe that was for the best. Short and sweet.

*

It took three attempts to get through to her. That should have been the first indication of impending disappointment.

When she finally answered, the background noise was the second clue.

"Sorry," she said, "I'm out with Mac and Gab. Needed to find somewhere quiet to answer the phone."

Our versions of quiet clearly differed.

"My US trip has been pushed forward a week. I leave tomorrow morning. Can I see you tonight?"

The chatter in the background only accentuated her silence. Then, it faded away with the sound of a slamming door.

"Did I hear you right?" she asked. It was dead silent now. Apparently she'd moved somewhere else. "Tomorrow morning? Then what? You come back sooner?"

"No. I'm still away until mid-May."

Silence. Almost as deafening as the noisy bar she'd been in. I wandered towards the window. London glittered beneath my feet, miles upon miles of lights. Where was Soph right now? Five minutes away? Two hours?

"Fuck, Ed..." A strained sigh. "I can't ditch my friends. That's a shitty move."

"They'd understand."

Mac probably wouldn't, but who cared about his opinion? Gabby would be cool with it.

"I thought we had another week." The sadness in her voice crushed my heart.

"Could you come see me over there?" I suggested. "It's east coast. Time it with some travel blogging?"

"And I just happen to be in the same city as you?" Sarcasm dripped from her tone.

She was upset. Fair enough—I had sprung this on her. The change of plans didn't thrill me, either, but at least I was trying to offer solutions. In a switch of tactic, I kept my mouth shut.

"Maybe we just come clean to Helen and Mark," she said eventually. "Let's be realistic. If we want to see each other, they're going to find out. You literally can't do anything without Helen breathing down your neck or Security monitoring your movements."

"Actually, Jeremy's not as intense as Mark." I skipped past the Helen comment. Her breathing down my neck was the reason I wanted to keep this relationship away from her.

"Not as intense? What's that supposed to mean? He's still protecting you, right?"

"Yeah, of course. I just meant... You know how Mark is. Jeremy walks an extra pace behind, that's all."

Metaphorically speaking, anyway. She didn't need to know that Jeremy was easier to mould than Mark. They might have worked together for years, but the chief's rigidness hadn't rubbed off onto everyone. Another reason why I'd wanted Soph to take Mark.

"I'm sorry," I said. "It sucks. Maybe this will help longer term. By the time I'm back, the heat will be off us and we'll be able to see each other more easily."

"If you say so."

I swallowed down my instinct to bite back. She was hankering for a fight, I could tell. Her go-to approach to dealing with unwanted emotions.

"I love you." I rested my head against the glass and stared out across the city's skyline. She'd be there somewhere.

"I love you, too." A pause, just long enough for me to wonder if she'd hung up. Then, "Better brush up on your phone sex. It needs to be especially dirty if we're lasting an extra week."

***

Thank you for reading :) xx

***

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