Chapter 14

“Are you still fucking your boss?” Eslie asked casually, but her smirk gave away just how much she was dying to get a reaction.

I almost dropped my fork. “Girl, stop!” I hissed, eyes darting around the café as though the whole world had just heard her.

She leaned across the table, chin resting on her palm, her smile stretching wider. “Oh, don’t ‘girl, stop’ me. You can’t just waltz in here, all glowy skin and messy hair, and expect me not to notice. You’ve got that… ‘I was absolutely wrecked last night’ look.”

My face burned, and I shoved a fry in my mouth to keep from answering.

“What?” she pressed, tilting her head, her grin turning wicked. “It’s not everyday people get back shots from a freaking CEO.”

My hand shot out, smacking her arm. “ESLIE!”

She laughed so loudly half the café turned to look. My stomach twisted in secondhand embarrassment, but she was too far gone to care.

Then, stupidly, under my breath, I mumbled, “It isn’t?”

Her laughter cut off like a record scratch. Her eyes widened until I thought they’d pop out of her head. She leaned so far across the table that our foreheads almost touched.

“Wait. What?” she squealed, grabbing my wrist.

I stared at the crumbs on my plate. “Nothing.”

“NOTHING?!” She practically screamed, drawing another round of stares. This time, she didn’t even notice. She slammed her palms flat on the table, almost knocking over my drink. “You’re actually—oh my God—you sleep with him everyday?!”

“Keep your voice down!” I begged, tugging at her sleeve.

“Rielle!” she whisper-shouted now, like lowering the volume even a notch made it better. “You have to tell me everything.”

Her excitement was childlike, but her eyes were sharp, calculating, taking in every twitch of my lips, every flicker in my gaze. She knew me too well to be brushed off.

I buried my face in my hands. “There’s nothing to tell.”

Eslie pried my hands off my cheeks with surprising strength. “Don’t even try that. You’re glowing. And don’t say it’s moisturizer. No serum in the world gives you that ‘fucked six ways to Sunday’ glow.”

“Eslie!” I groaned again, dragging out her name.

She leaned back, crossing her arms like she’d just cracked the world’s juiciest mystery. Her grin softened into a smug little smirk. “Yout life is literally one big show! To think Dante is his business partner? Pheww.”

I slumped in my seat, defeated. “It’s complicated.”

“It’s always complicated with men like him.” She picked up another fry, pointed it at me like a warning finger. “But I need answers. Is he good? Like… actually good? Or is he one of those guys who just lies there, looking pretty and calling it a day?”

My mouth fell open. “Eslie!”

“What?!” she shot back, unbothered by my horror. “I’m asking the questions everyone else is too scared to ask. The man looks like he was chiseled by Greek gods — but the hot ones are usually selfish. That’s a fact.”

I rubbed my temples, muttering, “Why am I even friends with you?”

“Because I’m the only one who tells you the truth,” she said with a satisfied nod. “Now spill. Or at least give me something.”

I hesitated, staring at the latte sweating on the table. What could I even say? That he made me feel alive and dead all at once? That he was fire and I was addicted to the burn? That every time he touched me, I swore I’d never let him again, only to crawl right back?

Instead, I gave her a weak shrug. “He’s… intense.”

Her brows shot up, curiosity sharpening like a knife. “Intense how?”

I shook my head, cheeks heating. “I’m not doing this with you.”

“You are doing this with me,” she argued, leaning in close again. “You don’t get to dangle ‘I’m sleeping with my CEO’ and then shut me out. Not happening.”

I let out a groan, half-frustrated, half-laughing. “You’re ridiculous.”

She smiled triumphantly, sipping her iced tea like she’d just won a prize. Then, softer, she tilted her head. “Okay, but real talk. Does he… make you happy?”

That caught me off guard. The teasing, I could handle. But the question, laced with genuine concern, cut deeper than I wanted to admit.

I opened my mouth, then shut it again. The truth sat heavy on my tongue, unspoken.

Eslie watched me, her grin fading into something gentler. “Rielle…”

I forced a smile, shrugging it off. “I told you. It’s complicated.”

She sighed, but let it go — for now.