Friendship on Fire(36)

She slipped out of her clothes, hung them on a hanger to be taken to the cleaners, and ran a warm shower. She had to be at the show the next morning at seven thirty, and she’d get no sleep if she didn’t relax. She pushed away the unsettling feeling in her stomach, writing it off as too much alcohol, and stepped into the shower hoping Josh would come home and join her.

At one forty-five she climbed into bed, chewing on the possibilities that something worse had happened. With no additional texts from Josh and knowing he’d texted nine-one-one to Mia and Simone, her stomach was doing somersaults. We have 2 talk.





Chapter Twenty-Seven


THE ROOM FELT like it was closing in on him. Josh’s chest constricted, and he broke out in a sweat. What the fuck is going on? It wasn’t the room and it wasn’t a heart attack, Josh realized, but the shattering of his heart. He sat behind his desk with his head buried in his hands, rehashing the last few hours and Claudia’s accusations that Riley had stolen the design for Max’s dress from her. Riley? A design thief? Any way he cut it, it would be her word against Riley’s unless he could prove that Claudia was lying.

The last thing he wanted to do was upset Riley with Claudia’s obscene accusation. He wanted to prove Claudia wrong here and now and go home to Riley without this shit hanging over their heads. He’d get to the bottom of this chaos if it took all night.

He knew a nine-one-one text would raise all sorts of questions, but tonight, with exhaustion and anger taking over his rational mind, he didn’t care. He hoped that one of the staff could verify that Riley had been designing Max’s dress while she was at work, or that she’d shared her designs with them. Anything to prove that Riley wasn’t the one who had stolen the design. Why would she? She had Josh. Her design skills were flawless. She had it all. Why would she risk everything? Why would she risk our love?





CLAY AND K.T. had been no help at all. Both came into the office looking like they’d just rolled out of bed, with worry etched into their faces. Neither had witnessed Riley doing any work other than JBD work, though Clay claimed to have seen Claudia designing through lunch on several occasions. They’d left the office with a firm directive that what they’d discussed not leave the safety of his office.

Mia and Simone flew through the front doors and into his office. Having had another hour to think without Claudia in his face, he realized that he should have spoken to Riley before speaking to the staff, but it was too late for that now.

“We’re here, boss. What’s up?”

He lifted his frustrated gaze to meet Mia’s voice. “Have a seat, ladies.” He stood and paced.

“What is it?” Simone asked, shooting a worried look at Mia.

“There’s been an accusation raised about Riley’s wedding gown design,” he began. “Do either of you know anything about this?”

The surprise in their eyes only frustrated him more. Surely someone would have seen Claudia rifling through Riley’s things, or Riley poring over her sketches.

“What do you mean, an accusation?” Simone asked.

“She’s been accused of stealing the design,” Josh admitted through a clenched jaw.

“We just spent the evening with Riley, and she sure doesn’t seem like someone who would steal a design,” Simone said.

“This has to be Cruella, right?” Mia shot to her feet. When Josh didn’t answer, she continued. “Damn it, Josh. That woman will do anything to get ahead. How can you even trust a word she says?”

“Don’t you think the same thoughts have already run through my head?” He sat on the edge of his desk and let out a long sigh. “She has proof, Mia. I was hoping that Riley had shared her designs with one of you, or that you’d at least seen her working on them. I’ve seen sketches in her apartment, but they were already drawn. I didn’t see her working on them. ”

Mia shook her head. “I haven’t, but that’s not surprising. I can’t imagine that she’d let everyone here know she was doing something other than straight JBD work.”

“Good point,” Josh said, chewing on the tiny nugget of hope.

“But then again,” Simone added, “we have seen Claudia working on new designs. Remember, Mia? She showed us that pantsuit, the one with the thick belt and flared legs.”

Shit. Shitshitshit.

“I still don’t believe it.” Mia crossed her arms and paced. “What kind of proof does she have?”

Josh knew that he shouldn’t divulge the details of the accusation or the proof that Claudia had presented, but his nerves were so tightly wound and anger strangled any patience that he might once have possessed. He was scrounging for something to prove Riley’s innocence. One small shred of evidence, that’s all he needed.

“Drawings. Scanned, dated, and recorded,” he answered.

“Shit.” Mia sat back down on the couch, her elbows on her knees. “What are you going to do?”

“What can I do? This is a serious accusation. I have to talk to Riley and hear her side of it.” Josh tried to ignore the piercing pain shooting through his stomach.

“She’ll quit. Hell, I’d quit even if I hadn’t stolen the ideas. Just being accused of something so heinous would piss me off,” Simone said. “You’d better be sure before you take that leap. From what I witnessed today, Riley could sell a double bed to the pope. She’s got more people skills in her pinky than Claudia has in her entire body. She’ll have no trouble getting another job, especially if she really did design that dress.”

Tell me something I don’t know.

Josh ran his hand through his hair, thinking, buying time before going home. No matter how many ways he turned the accusation, he didn’t have a lick of evidence supporting Riley’s efforts.

“Not a word of this to anyone outside these four walls. Got it?”



AFTER TALKING WITH the staff, Josh felt as if a giant hand had crashed through his chest and ripped out his heart. He stepped from the office into the cold night air, and instead of climbing into a cab or calling Jay to pick him up, he walked, crushing his anger with each determined step. Could I have been wrong about Riley? Were there red flags I overlooked because of my feelings for her? He walked by Savannah’s apartment, where his intimate relationship with Riley had first begun. He stopped in front of Savannah’s building, wishing he could go back to the nights when he and Riley had lain in each other’s arms without this mess on their shoulders.

By the time he reached the Dakota, he felt like he’d been through a war. His muscles ached, and his emotions were frayed so badly that he didn’t trust himself to deal with this mess rationally until he’d had time to sleep and process the facts. Inside the dark apartment, he removed his shoes by the door, feeling the warmth of Riley’s presence around him, and walked soft footed to the bedroom. The pit of his stomach sank at the sight of Riley tucked peacefully into his bed. Her beautiful hair fanned from her head like a halo. He swallowed past the lump in his throat. He couldn’t accuse her of something so wrong. This has to be a mistake.





Chapter Twenty-Eight


RILEY AWOKE TO the alarm at six o’clock and reached across the empty bed. She bolted out of bed, hurrying into the hall wearing Josh’s T-shirt and her underwear.

“Josh?” she called as she walked down the hall. She found him asleep on the couch in the living room. He stirred when she sat beside him, and when she kissed his forehead, he blinked awake.

“Hey,” she whispered. “Missed you last night. Why’d you sleep out here?”

He scrubbed his face with his hand. “Hi. I didn’t want to wake you.” He pushed himself up to a sitting position.

“Please don’t ever worry about that. I’d always rather be next to you. Why didn’t you at least sleep in the guest room?” she asked.

“It felt too far away.”

She kissed his cheek and felt him stiffen against her lips. “What’s wrong?” She searched his downcast eyes. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.

Josh cleared his throat. “Let me get some coffee.” He pushed to his feet and started for the kitchen.

Riley was on his heels. “Why didn’t you return my texts last night? Did something happen with Claudia? I know you texted Mia and Simone. I was with them last night when the texts came through.”

Josh didn’t respond. He put both hands on the counter and leaned over it.

“You’re missing your morning run,” she said. Shit, this has got to be bad.

“I know,” he whispered.

She touched his back, hating the way he pulled away just slightly but enough to send a very strong message. “Josh? Have I done something?”

When he turned, his eyes were filled with love. Relieved, she took a step toward him. He looked away, and in that flash of an instant, she saw his eyes narrow, then close, stopping her in her tracks.

“Josh?” The hair on the back of her neck prickled. Oh my God, what did I do?

“Riley, let’s sit down.”

She moved robotically to a chair. He sat across from her, but he felt a million miles away. Her mouth went dry, and she thought she might be sick as she waited for him to speak.