"Did you get her latte?" Bianca asks.
"Yeah, it's in the conference room." I get up with the laptop and walk to the door, waiting for Bianca. "You really think you'll be friends with Celine?"
"Absolutely! Haven't you noticed how similar we are? We have the same taste in clothes, we both drink way too much wine, and we can't stand not being busy. I think I might have found my twin," she says with a laugh. "Let's go."
I follow her to the conference room and take a seat at the table, setting the laptop down. "What if she doesn't like the options we gave her? We're running out of caterers."
"I'm not worried about it," Bianca says, straightening each chair at the table so they're all perfectly aligned. The woman wears me out just watching her. She can never relax. And she's right when she says Celine is the same way, which is why it doesn't make sense she's dating Aiden. He was perfectly content to sit back and relax during our two hour dinner at the inn. His girlfriend would've been going nuts. She would've been yelling at Tom for not having the food out faster.
"Bianca, seriously, we don't have anyone else to call. If she doesn't like any of the options we gave her, what are we going to do?"
"Trust me, she'll pick one." Bianca stares at the window behind me. "There's a smudge on that window. It's driving me crazy." She races out of the room and comes back with a paper towel and bottle of window cleaner.
"But what if she doesn't?" I ask as Bianca cleans the barely noticeable smudge on the window. "What are we going to do?"
"Celine turned down everyone on our first list to prove a point." Bianca tosses the paper towel in the trash. "She's telling us who's in charge. It's a power move. I do it all the time. Once she's sure we understand she's the one calling the shots, she'll pick someone from the list. It's as simple as that."
"She doesn't need to prove she's in charge. She's the client. She's paying the bill. She gets to make the decisions."
"It doesn't work that way. Businesses like ours try to make the client think they're in charge when they're really not. It's easier for us that way. Only smart clients who can see through our bullshit get what they really want. I knew Celine was one of those people from the moment we met. It's why I gave her the B-list caterers first. I saved the A list for this second round, knowing what she'd do." Bianca smiles. "Just wait. You'll see what I mean when she gets here." She holds up the window cleaner. "I have to get rid of this. I'll be right back."
While she's gone Celine shows up, wearing a red wool coat over her black dress. Her blond hair is sleek and straight, and big round sunglasses cover her eyes.
"Sophie," she says as she walks in the room. "I didn't know you'd be joining us."
"I sit in on most of Bianca's meetings." I shove my chair back and stand up. "Can I take your coat?"
"I'll keep it for now," she says, removing her sunglasses. "There's a chill in the air."
"I got you a latte," I say, bringing it to her.
"No, thank you. I already had one."
I set it down. "Bianca will be back in a minute."
Celine steps closer to me. "Have you spoken with Aiden?"
Her question takes me by surprise. When she was here for our initial meeting, she didn't even mention Aiden and now she's asking if I talked to him? Why would she think we're talking? Does she think something's going on with us?
"Only by text," I say. "He said he'd be at court next Friday."
He also invited me to ride with him since we have court the same day. I haven't answered him yet but I'd like to take him up on the offer. It'd save me the cost of having to rent a car.
"Did he tell you I'd be coming along?" Celine smiles. Actually, it's more like a smirk, like she's making it clear Aiden is hers. I wonder if he told her he'd offered me a ride and that's why she decided to tag along. Aiden said she refused to leave the city, and now she's suddenly okay with it?
"He didn't mention you were coming."
"I wasn't going to, but he talked me into it. That little town sounds adorable, and that inn he stayed at sounds so romantic. It'll be nice for us to get away."
"You're staying at the inn? I thought they were out of rooms."
"I was able to get one for the night. I can be very persuasive. Will you be staying there as well?"
"Yes. I decided to stay for the weekend."
She nods, eyeing me with suspicion. Why is she acting this way? Does she really think I'm a threat?
"How's it going with Tanner?" she asks, taking her coat off.
"I haven't seen him this week. We've both been busy with work."
"But you've talked to him, I assume."
"Not really. I haven't had time. We've texted a little."
She tilts her head. "Are you thinking of breaking it off with him?"
She definitely thinks I'm a threat. If she didn't, she wouldn't keep asking me these questions. For such a confident woman, she's making herself look very insecure right now. Her relationship with Aiden can't be that great if she's this concerned about it.
"I don't know what's going to happen with Tanner and me," I tell her. "I'm still getting to know him."
"I realize he can be a bit annoying with all his lectures about the environment but he's really a good catch. He makes decent money, and he's very good-looking, don't you think?"
"Yeah, he is." I glance at the door, wondering what's taking Bianca so long.
Just then,
