In Good Company: Chapter 41

“Oh my God, you had sex,” Charlotte declares the moment our eyes meet.

A blush immediately creeps over my cheeks as my eyes dart around the dinner table at Pembroke Grill.

Jude barks out a laugh at Charlotte’s words while Cal coughs in surprise.

All I can do is stare at my best friend in horror, wondering how she could tell with just one look at me and why she decided to announce it to the entire table the moment Cal and I walked up to it. Luckily, the only people seated at the table are her and Jude right now.

“Charlotte,” I scold, my voice tight as I look around the restaurant. Everyone here used to be my coworkers; I don’t need them knowing that I’ve slept with Cal.

Charlotte narrows her eyes on me. “What? You can’t tell me I’m wrong. You have that I’ve just been fucked flush to you.”

I groan, embarrassment coursing through my veins.

“Come with me,” I demand, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her from the chair.

“Whoa,” Charlotte mutters with a laugh, thankfully letting me pull her away from a snickering Jude and a smirking Cal.

My grip on Charlotte’s wrist stays firm as I lead her to the bathrooms. I try to keep my eyes down, not wanting to get stuck talking to any former coworkers before I can lecture my best friend about what’s appropriate to yell in public and what should be discussed in private.

“Lucy, if you move any faster, you’re going to make me fall on my ass because of these heels.”

I sigh but slow down just enough to keep her steady on her feet. I have no idea if any Pembroke employees look our way or not. I keep my focus on the floor as we close the distance to the private bathrooms.

As soon as we make it there, I pull her in and slam the door shut behind us.

When I turn to Charlotte, a knowing grin is plastered on her face. “Speaking of heels, those look new and expensive.” She nods her head to the new pair of heels Cal bought me while shopping today.

“Charlotte, quick question. Has anyone ever told you about keeping some thoughts to yourself?”

Charlotte shrugs before tossing her perfectly curled hair over her shoulder. “Don’t get mad at me for stating the obvious. You’ve got it written all over you.”

I groan, my eyes closing for a moment. I wasn’t going to keep this new development a secret from Charlotte. I definitely wanted to talk about it with her, but I just thought I had more time before I had to explain how everything is strictly casual and nothing more.

“Lucy, shut the fuck up. Is that a Chanel bag?”

Charlotte closes the distance between us and carefully grabs my purse. She crouches down and pulls it closer to her face to inspect.

I can’t help but smile when Charlotte looks up at me with her jaw wide open.

“Yes, Cal might’ve bought me the shoes and the bag today,” I answer, trying to keep my voice nonchalant.

“Why are you living my dream? Good sex and a rich man spoiling you? Sign me up.”

I laugh. “Who said it was good sex? Plus, don’t pretend Jude isn’t flirting with you all the time.”

Charlotte rolls her eyes before standing up once again. “Everything about you tells me you’ve had hot, sexy, toe-curling sex. You’ve got a flush to your cheeks that won’t go away, and your lips look plumper than normal, probably from all the making out you’ve been doing. And to your second comment, Jude flirts with everyone. I’m nothing special. He would not be buying me a Chanel bag.”

I sigh, deciding that since she’s already onto me, I might as well not lie to her. “The sex with Cal is incredible. It’s new…like, today was the first time new.”

Charlotte’s perfectly lined lips spread into a smile. “Good for you for not letting your stupid ex get in the way of having mind-blowing sex with Callahan Hastings. I want to know all the juicy details. “

I bite my lip. I don’t feel guilty for sleeping with Cal, even if he is Ollie’s brother. It’s been so long since Oliver and I dated, I know he wouldn’t care, but I know if people knew that I also dated Oliver and was now sleeping with Cal, they might judge me. And if they weren’t judging me for that, they might judge me for sleeping with my boss.

I push the thoughts from my mind. Cal and I are adults who can sleep with whomever we want. No one outside of our close inner circle even needs to know. Once I’m gone after Labor Day, it won’t even matter.

“Things with Cal were too intense to let anything hold us back,” I answer honestly. “I tried fighting it as long as I could, but it was only a matter of time until things happened between us.”

Charlotte nods giddily. She grabs my hands and jumps up and down a couple of times, a beaming smile still on her lips. “I love this so much. I’m glad you finally gave in.” She points to the brand-new purse. “Looks like it’s working out for you very well.”

I laugh. The purse is the nicest thing I’ve ever owned. I still can’t wrap my mind around the price tag that came with it, but since Cal was insistent on purchasing it for me, it felt only right to use it tonight. “Yeah, we’ll see how things go. I have to remind myself to not get attached to him,” I admit with a resigned sigh. “It’s easy for me to lead with my heart instead of my head, and I can’t do that with him. I leave at the end of the summer, and we both live incredibly different lives. All we can ever be is casual.”

Charlotte lifts her eyebrows. “If you’re going to do casual, doing it with Cal seems like the perfect choice. He doesn’t seem like a total raging asshole. You, my beautifully lucky friend, have hit the jackpot.”

I let out a small laugh as I wave my hand through the air dismissively. “I am lucky, aren’t I?”

She nods excitedly. “Yes! I’m so happy I told you to accept the job with him. Can you imagine what your summer would look like if you’d made the wrong choice and turned him down?”

Her question makes me pause. Time has flown by since I started working for Cal. I haven’t really had the time to stop and think what my last summer in the Hamptons would’ve looked like if not for him.

I swallow, feelings that absolutely shouldn’t be there blooming in my chest. The summer is almost halfway over, and it’s already been the best one of my life.

“It really is crazy to think how different it would’ve been if I was still working at the Grill and cooking on the side for rude men like Laurent Hughes.”

Charlotte lets out a grunt of annoyance before turning around and stepping in front of the bathroom mirror. She fluffs her hair before rolling her eyes. “He was seated in my section two nights ago. The man really is intolerable.”

I nod before stepping next to her and looking at my reflection. A small gasp falls from my lips as I take in my appearance.

“Well, now I know how you immediately knew something had happened between me and Cal.” I’ve never been the best at makeup, but I had tried applying a nude lipstick while getting ready for tonight. I’ve had the occasional lunch with Cal and our friends here at Pembroke, but I haven’t had dinner here. Dinner at the club is different. It’s fancy. I wanted to apply a little more makeup than normal for it. But I hadn’t really thought much of it when Cal and I made out in the front seat of his car since we showed up to Pembroke a little early.

Charlotte snorts before pointing to my new purse. “Did you bring any makeup to touch things up? I can help if you did. No one else at the club will know you’re getting hot and heavy with a member. And not just any member…the Callahan Hastings.”

She wags her eyebrows playfully at her comment. In return, I give her an eye roll. Luckily, I had thrown my lipstick and some powder in my purse before leaving because I was trying to find things to fill my new bag with.

“The ‘no sex with members’ rule doesn’t apply to me since I don’t work at the club anymore,” I throw back at her as I search for my makeup.

“Oh, so I can go ahead and tell all of your former coworkers, then?”

I aim a dirty look in her direction immediately. “Charlotte! No, absolutely not. It’s none of their business. I want things with me and Cal to be private.”

She gives me a triumphant smile. “Then the ‘no sex with members’ rule does kind of apply to you.”

I smile, handing her the makeup, knowing she’ll be better at helping me clean it up than I would be. “Fine,” I begin with a laugh. “You win. Just help me get fixed up so not everyone knows about my pre-dinner make-out session?”

Charlotte grabs a paper towel and takes a step closer, the smile still on her face. She gently grabs my face and wipes at the smeared lipstick around my mouth. “I just can’t believe my best friend has Callahan Hastings falling at her feet.”

I try to hold still but roll my eyes at her words. “He’s hardly falling at my feet, Char.”

She freezes, the paper towel still pressed to my skin. “I know you don’t believe the words coming out of your mouth.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, the man is spending thousands upon thousands of dollars on you, and don’t even get me started on the way he looks at you in those cooking videos you’ve been posting. He’s a puddle at your feet.”

She throws the paper towel away before opening up the powder and gently dabbing it against my skin with a makeup sponge.

“No he isn’t,” I rush to get out. I don’t want Charlotte to make this thing between Cal and me seem like more than it is. That’ll only lead to me getting hopeful, and I can’t think that way. We’d never work anyway, and that’s okay as long as we both recognize that now, from the beginning. “It’s just a fling,” I add, trying to put as much conviction in my words as I can.

The sigh that Charlotte lets out tells me everything I need to know. She doesn’t believe me. “Whatever you say, Lucy,” she mutters with a hint of resignation in her tone.

I keep quiet as she finishes fixing my makeup. The only thing running through my head is how I don’t know if I believe me either. Things with Cal feel far too intense to only be casual, but that’s a problem I’ll deal with later.

Because no matter what, that’s all we’ll ever be…temporary.