He opened the door and left to hunt for shoes. Stacy began to follow him, but I reached out and grabbed her forearm.
“You said you could prove it.” I hoped my whisper wasn’t as shaky as it sounded to my own ears. Was I actually doing this? Giving in to my doubts about Celia and Hudson? This was not a healthy move. It could very well be the beginning of spiraling into a loss of control. Or maybe I’d already lost control, because against my better judgment, I couldn’t keep myself from asking. “Can you really?”
“Yes. Not here, but—”
“Give me your phone.”
She pulled her phone from her pocket, and I entered my number in before handing it back to her. “You can text me.” It was a bad idea—inviting doubts with whatever so-called evidence Stacy had to share.
But on the other hand, my mind could make up a pretty hefty dose of horrible things that Stacy might produce to prove a more-than-friends relationship between Celia and Hudson. The real proof was probably much less malignant.
At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
We arrived at the restaurant a few minutes after eight. This time Hudson waited for Jordan to let us out of the limo, for appearances perhaps. I’d never been to this restaurant and knew nothing about it, hadn’t even caught the name. I only knew we were back Uptown. We rode the elevator hand-in-hand to the top floor in silence. I was quiet because I was nervous—nervous to interact with Sophia again, especially if she wasn’t aware I was crashing her birthday party.
I couldn’t say why Hudson was quiet. Perhaps he was nervous too.
“Mr. Pierce,” the host said, recognizing Hudson. “Your party is already seated. Right this way.”
We followed him into the restaurant toward windows that overlooked the city, the tree cover of Central Park the highlight of the view. The Pierce family was spread over two tables pressed together. I scanned the faces as the host set up an extra place setting for me, the unexpected guest. Chandler, Hudson’s teenage brother, and Sophia, her face expressionless. Next was Jack, Hudson’s father, a real charmer. It surprised me that he was sitting next to his wife since he openly detested her. Across from them were Mira and Adam.
That should have been everyone, but near me, their backs toward me so I hadn’t spotted them at first, were Warren and Madge Werner. And Celia.
I tensed, so many warring thoughts in my head, emotions so strong that they spread through my body. Hudson hadn’t invited me, hadn’t wanted me at this social function, but Celia had been on the guest list all along. Was that the true reason he hadn’t told me about Sophia’s birthday? Both of us had agreed not to see her. Yeah, I had gone back on that deal, but at least there wasn’t a chance that I was going to jump her. At least I hadn’t almost been engaged to the woman. Had he not invited me to this dinner because of that silly agreement, or was it because he wanted to be alone with her? Well, alone as in without me, anyway.
And Celia, whom I had confided in and bonded with just that afternoon, hadn’t mentioned the dinner either.
My eyes flew from the blonde to the man standing next to me. His face was even. This was why he’d been quiet. He knew I’d be upset.
I was.
I couldn’t take it. I had to bolt. Through gritted teeth, I hissed, “I thought you said this was family only.”
Then I turned and walked away.
Chapter Eleven
Before I was out of earshot, I heard Hudson defending my departure. “She left something in the car. Excuse us a moment.”
Fuck, he was coming after me.
The sure way to lose him was to head for the bathroom, not that I put it past Hudson to follow me in, but I didn’t know where it was located, and I’d already made it past the host’s desk. My eyes scanned the hallway. There were the elevators, which would require waiting for a car, and a door to the stairs.
I took the stairs, and, realizing fifty flights down in heels was maybe not a good idea, I went up.
The breeze hit my face as I stepped onto the roof, the heavy door slamming behind me. I kept walking.
The roof was practically abandoned, so I knew the sound of the door shutting behind me was Hudson. Still I kept on, rushing through the gardens and leisure seating arranged across the building top, trying to find a spot where I could be alone, where I could breathe, where I could sort out my paranoia from the legitimacy of the situation.
At the corner wall, I stopped. I leaned over the edge of the cement enclosure, gulping in huge lungfuls of air. Deep breathing was the only thing keeping me from breaking down into sobs.
His footsteps were quiet behind me, but I still heard them, as if I was hyper-attuned to his movements. He stopped before he got to me, reaching out to me with speech instead of his body. “The Werners are practically family.”