A Sip of You(45)

“I’m not going to hold my breath.”

“This isn’t over.” Then he hung up.

I threw my phone down on the couch and buried my face in my hands. Half of me was so fucking pissed at him. Who was he to tell me I couldn’t call things off? This was my relationship as much as his. He couldn’t call all the shots. But as soon as I got really good and mad, I burst into tears. I didn’t want it to be over. I didn’t want to tell William goodbye.

God, I was a complete basket case. I was glad Beckett wasn’t awake because if he saw me now he’d make me eat more dessert, and I didn’t think my waistline could handle it.

Finally, I got it together, washed my face, and pulled my hair back into a ponytail. I’d dropped everything on the floor when I came in the night before, so I started unpacking. There wasn’t much to put away, but I needed to charge my laptop. I brought my bag to my desk, plugged my laptop in, and noticed a stack of paper in the printer. I couldn’t remember printing anything, and when I lifted the sheets, I realized they weren’t mine.

Beckett had printed several copies of his résumé. He hadn’t said anything about looking for a job. I put them back and finished unpacking, and when Beckett came out of the bedroom, hair sticking straight up, I brought him coffee and the résumés. “What’s up? Are you applying for a job or something?”

He didn’t answer right away—no whimsical quip, which was unusual—and I got a sick feeling in my stomach. I’d thought he was the one person I could always trust and believe in. “What are you not telling me?”

“It’s nothing, Cat. Well, it is something, something that could be really big. The problem is I can’t talk about it.”

“Seems to be a common theme right now,” I muttered.

“Legally, I can’t talk about it. I had to sign a nondisclosure agreement and everything.”

“And that includes me?”

“Yeah. But I’ll be able to tell you soon, okay? You’ll be the first one.” He rose and put his hands on my arm. “I promise.”

“Okay. Great.” But it wasn’t great. What the hell was going on? Now even Beckett was keeping secrets from me? We’d always shared everything.

“Look at this!” Beckett said, staring out the window. “You know what this is?”

I joined him. “Snow?”

“A snow day.”

“What’s a snow day?”

“A day when we don’t do any work. We gotta go play in the snow.”

It was as good an idea as any, especially given that I’d just kind of broken up with my boyfriend over the phone. I needed a distraction.

I dressed warmly and put Laird’s leash on. Right before we went out, I grabbed my Leica and a few rolls of film. The three of us tromped around the neighborhood. I took pictures of the icy landscape while Laird made it his personal mission to pee on every buried fire hydrant, bush, and tree stump. Beckett and I built a snowman, made snow angels, and had a snowball fight with a couple of kids who lived across the street. We laughed at the lawn chairs that were already starting to line the streets as people began digging out and claiming parking spaces. I was glad I paid for a parking space for my Volvo, but I’d be shoveling it out soon enough too.

After lunch, we went back out and walked through Lincoln Park down to the lake. I took pictures of everything—the gunmetal grey sky with hints of sun peeking through, the snow on the frozen water, a fallen branch covered with intricate ice crystals, a pair of cross-country skiers whooshing quietly across the snowy drifts.

As I snapped photos, Beckett talked. Apparently, he’d seen Alec a few times while I was in Napa. “Are things getting serious?” I asked.

“Things are progressing.”

I lowered my camera and gave him a look. “Progressing? What does that mean?”

“I really like him, Cat. I think—no, I know I’m falling for him.”

I felt my frozen face break into a huge grin. “Really?”

“I might even be in love. I’m not sure yet. Is that weird? Not to know?”

“Not at all.” I could definitely relate. “You’ll know soon.” I gave him an impulsive hug. “Beckett, I’m so happy for you. I really like Alec. I think you two will be good together.”

“We are.”

“I’m sorry I blabbed so long last night that you didn’t get a chance to tell me about things with Alec. I’ve been a sucky best friend lately. It’s all Cat, this and Cat, that.”

“It’s not every day I get to rub elbows with the girlfriends of the über-rich. I forgive you. Did you hear from William yet?”