office. I burst into Kat's office without knocking but halted in her doorway when I caught sight of her.
Even in all our years of mascara-running, puffy-eyed, runny-nosed crying sessions over boys and the like, at that moment, Kat looked the worst I had ever seen her. Her normally voluminous, wavy hair hung limp around her pale face. Her eyes were so swollen from weeping that I wasn't sure if she could even see me standing there. She looked eons older than the bright-eyed, goofy girl I'd had lunch with yesterday afternoon.
Kat looked up slowly from her desk full of crumpled tissues. Her waterlogged eyes barely registered me at first. "Amelia?" she said hoarsely. When her eyes met mine, I could tell she knew that I knew. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you." Her face crumpled and she broke down, sobbing.
Seeing my best friend in so much pain made me heartsick. I hurried around the desk and hugged her fiercely. "It's okay, honey. It's going to be okay." I didn't know what else to say.
"I was going to tell you," she choked out. I eased around her desk and grabbed a bottle of water from her mini-fridge, then grabbed her box of Kleenex and guided her over to the green leather couch along the far wall of her office. Bottle and fresh tissue in hand, she curled up on the couch and filled me in on the details of her marriage to Parker Deering.
It's no secret that Parker was kind of a cheapskate. Rather than paying for a second room in Vegas, he decided to save money by bunking with Kat in the room that she and I were to share. What started out as an innocent work trip became a weeklong affair fueled by too many free cocktails from the casino. She and Parker had partied a little too hard, and one thing lead to another—by the end of the first night they were pushing the twin hotel beds together. They agreed to a one-week, no-strings-attached fling—just while they were in Vegas. By the end of the third day, Kat decided to blow off the rest of the conference, and they spent the remainder of the trip together, partying on the Strip, attending all the best shows, and getting wet and wild in their Venetian Jacuzzi.
Between sniffles, Kat told me about how the last night in Vegas was a complete blur. She vaguely remembered flashes of a poker game at one of the casinos, bottomless margaritas, an Elvis impersonator, and a chapel. She overslept on the day of their departure and awoke in a panic with a killer hangover. Stumbling out of the hotel bed, she tripped over Parker's pants and kicked a folded piece of paper out of his back pocket. She picked it up and unfolded it to discover that it was their marriage certificate.
"What about a ring?" I asked, interrupting her story. "If you guys really got married, wouldn't he have given you a wedding ring?"
Kat dabbed at her eyes with her Kleenex. She reached a trembling hand down to her neck. "You mean this?" she asked, pulling at the long gold chain that dipped below her shirt collar. The necklace emerged from the depths of her neckline, and I gasped in awe. Hanging from the chain was one of the most gorgeous rings I had ever seen. The band was an elegant gold inlaid with a stunning pattern of alternating diamonds and blue sapphires. It was absolutely breathtaking.
"It was on my left ring finger when I woke up that morning." Kat gave a small sigh as she gazed down at the wedding ring dangling around her neck. "Parker couldn't remember anything from the night before either, but there was a receipt in his wallet. He'd bought it from a jewelry store in Caesar's Palace. Cost most of his remaining inheritance."
I let out a low whistle. "That's crazy."
Kat shrugged. "It gets weirder. He also had a bloody nose and black eye, but neither of us could remember how he got them. I called a cab and went with him to the hospital to get checked out." She looked at me guiltily. "That's the real reason we missed our flight."
I recalled how sick and miserable I'd been when I drove down to Hartsfield
Even in all our years of mascara-running, puffy-eyed, runny-nosed crying sessions over boys and the like, at that moment, Kat looked the worst I had ever seen her. Her normally voluminous, wavy hair hung limp around her pale face. Her eyes were so swollen from weeping that I wasn't sure if she could even see me standing there. She looked eons older than the bright-eyed, goofy girl I'd had lunch with yesterday afternoon.
Kat looked up slowly from her desk full of crumpled tissues. Her waterlogged eyes barely registered me at first. "Amelia?" she said hoarsely. When her eyes met mine, I could tell she knew that I knew. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you." Her face crumpled and she broke down, sobbing.
Seeing my best friend in so much pain made me heartsick. I hurried around the desk and hugged her fiercely. "It's okay, honey. It's going to be okay." I didn't know what else to say.
"I was going to tell you," she choked out. I eased around her desk and grabbed a bottle of water from her mini-fridge, then grabbed her box of Kleenex and guided her over to the green leather couch along the far wall of her office. Bottle and fresh tissue in hand, she curled up on the couch and filled me in on the details of her marriage to Parker Deering.
It's no secret that Parker was kind of a cheapskate. Rather than paying for a second room in Vegas, he decided to save money by bunking with Kat in the room that she and I were to share. What started out as an innocent work trip became a weeklong affair fueled by too many free cocktails from the casino. She and Parker had partied a little too hard, and one thing lead to another—by the end of the first night they were pushing the twin hotel beds together. They agreed to a one-week, no-strings-attached fling—just while they were in Vegas. By the end of the third day, Kat decided to blow off the rest of the conference, and they spent the remainder of the trip together, partying on the Strip, attending all the best shows, and getting wet and wild in their Venetian Jacuzzi.
Between sniffles, Kat told me about how the last night in Vegas was a complete blur. She vaguely remembered flashes of a poker game at one of the casinos, bottomless margaritas, an Elvis impersonator, and a chapel. She overslept on the day of their departure and awoke in a panic with a killer hangover. Stumbling out of the hotel bed, she tripped over Parker's pants and kicked a folded piece of paper out of his back pocket. She picked it up and unfolded it to discover that it was their marriage certificate.
"What about a ring?" I asked, interrupting her story. "If you guys really got married, wouldn't he have given you a wedding ring?"
Kat dabbed at her eyes with her Kleenex. She reached a trembling hand down to her neck. "You mean this?" she asked, pulling at the long gold chain that dipped below her shirt collar. The necklace emerged from the depths of her neckline, and I gasped in awe. Hanging from the chain was one of the most gorgeous rings I had ever seen. The band was an elegant gold inlaid with a stunning pattern of alternating diamonds and blue sapphires. It was absolutely breathtaking.
"It was on my left ring finger when I woke up that morning." Kat gave a small sigh as she gazed down at the wedding ring dangling around her neck. "Parker couldn't remember anything from the night before either, but there was a receipt in his wallet. He'd bought it from a jewelry store in Caesar's Palace. Cost most of his remaining inheritance."
I let out a low whistle. "That's crazy."
Kat shrugged. "It gets weirder. He also had a bloody nose and black eye, but neither of us could remember how he got them. I called a cab and went with him to the hospital to get checked out." She looked at me guiltily. "That's the real reason we missed our flight."
I recalled how sick and miserable I'd been when I drove down to Hartsfield
Similar Books
