She silently willed Allie to say something—anything.
As if she knew Miriam was about to break, Allie lifted a corner of her mouth into a sly smile. “How was it?”
Miriam closed her eyes and let out a dreamy sigh. She could still feel Silas’ lips against hers. “It was the best kiss of my life.”
Allie laughed. “You act like it was the first time you’ve ever kissed him.”
“It felt like it.” She opened her eyes and looked at Allie. “There was something so familiar about it, and yet it was different somehow. His mouth—”
“I’m gonna stop you right there.” Allie held up her hand. “I asked how it was, not for all the intimate details. I’d like to keep my breakfast down, if you don’t mind.”
Miriam elbowed her friend. “It’s a kiss. It’s not like I’m talking about how hard his muscles are.”
Allie made exaggerated gagging noises. “Now you’re just trying to make me sick.”
Miriam giggled.
She had said that last bit just to mess with Allie. She didn’t even get a chance to touch Silas’ muscles while they kissed, and so she couldn’t really say how they felt beneath her fingers—though she remembered. Her face heated up at the memories.
“Oh my goodness. You’re thinking about him again.”
Miriam ducked her head trying to hide her guilty smile.
“So why are you sitting here and telling me about it instead of getting more practice?” Allie waggled her brows.
Miriam’s smile fell, and her mood sobered. “Because I ended things.”
“Shut up.” Allie laughed as she bumped her shoulder into Miriam.
“No, I’m being serious. Things are over between me and Silas.”
“But you made it sound like you were getting back together.”
Miriam shrugged. “Yeah, I know.” She wasn’t entirely sure why she left out the part where she drove off. Maybe she wanted to live in that dream world for just a moment. Now that Allie knew the truth, reality was creeping back in.
Allie stared at her. “I thought you wanted Silas.”
Miriam nodded. “I do.”
“And he wants you.”
“He does.”
Allie pressed her lips together. “So you guys have an amazing kiss in the middle of the street, right?”
Miriam picked at the fabric of her sofa. “Yeah.”
“And then what?” Allie shook her head. “You said, ‘That was fun, but I’m not going to date you?’”
Miriam winced. “When you put it that way…”
Allie shifted so that she could look at Miriam head on. “How would you put it?”
Tears pooled in her eyes. “I don’t know. I just saw that stalker girl talking to Silas, and I realized that I couldn’t do it. He can tell me all day long not to be jealous, but I am the type to feel insecure next to the supermodels that hang all over him. It would always be an issue. Better to not to try again than watch our relationship die by a thousand tiny cuts.”
Allie cleared her throat. “Get up.”
She didn’t think she’d heard her friend correctly. “What?”
Allie took a deep breath and stood in front of the couch. She put her hand out to Miriam. “Come here.”
Allie pulled her off the couch and led Miriam to her bedroom. She placed her in front of the full-length mirror that hung on the back of the door. “You are just as gorgeous as any of those wannabe groupies.”
Miriam wasn’t though. She was too short, too flabby, and her freckles made her look like a little kid. Her hair never curled right, and the humidity always turned it into a frizzy mess. Even next to Allie, she felt like she was just okay.
Miriam snorted. “Whatever you say.”
“You’re prettier than those girls. You’re real.”
Miriam rolled her eyes. “That’s just a kind way of saying I have imperfections.”
“Girl. We all have imperfections. If your looks are what’s keeping you from being with Silas, we can cross that reason off the list because that’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
Miriam turned to face Allie. “That’s not the only thing.”
Allie put a hand on her hip. “What else is holding you back?”
Miriam bit her lip. It wasn’t just seeing Silas with his stalker or trying to work with Harris. There was another part of the equation. The MLS team in South Carolina had requested an interview less than twenty-four hours after she submitted her resumé. For the first time in years, she saw the possibility of being happy in another job.
She pulled up the email asking her to come to South Carolina and handed her phone over to Allie.
Miriam watched her friend’s eyes move back and forth over the screen as she read. They stopped suddenly and looked at Miriam. “Another team wants you to interview for a marketing position.”
She nodded.
“Are you going to do it?”
Miriam nodded again.
“And this is why you can’t be with Silas?”
Miriam’s shoulders sagged. “I don’t know. The problem is, I don’t know what I want anymore. Everything is so stressful right now. If I got that job with MLS, I’d be free of Harris and Silas—”
“And me.” Hurt flashed across Allie’s face.
Miriam hated the sadness in Allie’s voice. She pulled her in for a hug. “I don’t want to leave you. Maybe I should just forget about it.”
“No, you shouldn’t just forget about it.” Allie pulled out of Miriam’s embrace and forced a smile. “I was just a little caught off guard. I’ve always told you that you were good enough for bigger teams. It would be really terrible if I made you feel guilty when a chance to prove it actually came.”
Miriam laughed to herself. “They may fly me out there and find out that I’m wildly unqualified.”
“Or they’ll hire you on the spot.” She paused. “Wait. Did you say they’re going to fly you in for an interview?”
She nodded. “Monday.”
“That’s a pretty good sign.”
Miriam fought the small smile that touched her lips. She was still in shock that the general manager thought highly enough of her resumé that he was willing to go to such extremes to secure an immediate interview. “I thought so too.”
“Does Greg know?”
“Not yet. I was
