Emily got home from her appointment and went to find her fiance. He was busy in his home office, but she suspected he was only hiding from her. She knocked on his door."Yes?" he said irritably."The dogs want to go for a walk," Emily said"I'm kind of busy.""They said they want to go with you.""Did they?" Byron looked up from his computer, almost smiling."Yes, it's been ages since we both walked them together, and they need to talk to both of us."Byron got ready pretty quickly which was a good sign he wanted to talk it out too so they could move past this.They walked along the beach, letting the dogs off leash to splash in the water."Okay, what did the dogs want to talk to us about?" Byron asked."About what happened," Emily began, "I realize how it must have looked like to you. You're out of town for a few days, and suddenly your fiancee is hanging out with some guy you've never met before. I get that would cause some jealousy.""Yes, exactly," Byron said. "But I rea
Byron hoped their outing wouldn't be too weird for Emily. He knew it was going to be weird for him.But he tried not to be intimidated by the idea of his current fiancee and his ex girlfriend together on an outing. He wanted to see Nova again, and she seemed cool with the three of them hanging out.Fortunately, Nova took over the conversation and handled everything with grace. Byron felt fairly dashing, walking around with a beautiful lady on each arm. Nova was showing off her figure in a flower patterned summer dress, while Emily looked cool in a white blouse and a pink skirt.They walked along the pier, and Nova chatted about funny incidents on the set of Deadly Drollery."... and here I am, covered in clown makeup, trying to order a taco!" she concluded yet another story."Let's go to the Science Museum!" Emily said on sighting the giant metallic globe perched on the famous futuristic-looking building. "Okay," Byron said, "Have you been there, Nova?"Byron could see that Emi
Byron didn't think he would see Nova again for a few weeks if not months. He feared it might even be forever. Her contract with his studio wasn't yet renewed, and if she really hated him, she would probably sign on with any other studio of her choice. She was really making a name for herself, and any movie producer would be happy to sign her on.Byron was planning some low-key world domination in his office when his receptionist rang and said in an excited voice that Nova Summers was here to see him.Byron took a breath. He had a feeling this meant trouble. She couldn't have forgiven him so quickly, which meant she was probably here to tell him off."Still the same old office," Nova said, looking around. "Not much has changed here... except you." She looked a little pale and tired, and Byron felt guilty about putting her through the emotional ringer. "Did you come here to tell me what a terrible person I am?" he asked."No. I should have trusted my instincts, but sometimes it's h
Emily got on the phone at once, rushing into the house along with the two dogs, who thought maybe this was a fun game of tag. "Yo," Carter answered in his charming way."Carter? Would you like to come over for dinner tomorrow?" she asked while the dogs panted by her side, waiting for more playtime."Um... I might have a thing tomorrow..." Carter said vaguely."Are you sure?" she asked in a sing-song voice, "Because you might miss an opportunity to meet Nova Summers.""Get out of here!" Carter cried. "Nova Summers, the hottest actress in the world, is going to be at your house tomorrow?""That's right, and she's every bit as fabulous in real life," Emily said, rolling her eyes, "So are you in?""You bet I'm in, baby."Emily was very pleased with her plan. She really did want to annoy Byron. It was one thing to have friends that one's partner might not approve of, but he insisted on seeing Nova so much, and hadn't even asked her before inviting Nova to the house. She was hardl
While the men inspected each other's motorcycles, Emily took the opportunity to talk to Nova about something else. She didn't want her to get too carried away when it came to Carter."Please don't take Carter seriously," Emily advised. "He's a bit of a clown, for lack of a better word.""I don't believe it," Nova whispered dramatically. "You want all the men to yourself, don't you? It's not enough for you that you're engaged to Byron!""That's not true," Emily protested, "I just wanted to warn you about getting too interested in Carter. I've known him ever since he was young. All he does is putter around, never having a real girlfriend or a real job.""Well, thank you for the Employment Bureau report," Nova huffed, "But I'll make up my own mind.""Suit yourself," Emily said. Everyone had a chance to sober up while Emily and Nova played with the dogs and discussed fashion news, and the men went to Byron's home gym to compete in bench pressing.They gathered in the living room fo
Emily worked overtime on her new collection to have everything prepared for Fashion Week. She hardly even saw any of her friends, so she was a little annoyed when none other than Nova Summers strode gracefully into her studio wearing an extravagant sun hat."I hope you're happy!" Nova said with no preamble. "Carter dumped me."This was shocking news considering how much Carter seemed to adore Nova. One would think a guy like him would be lucky to date a movie star, but then again, it was Carter. Emily even forgot her annoyance for the moment. "How could he?" she asked.Nova rolled her eyes. "He said something about being a lone wolf or something stupid like that.""I told you," Emily replied, "he's an idiot."Nova made a dramatic gesture with her hands. "I know, I should have listened to you." "You are way out of his league, so it's probably for the best," Emily concluded."That's true," Nova agreed, "I couldn't see it as a long-term thing anyways. He's always trying to climb m
A couple of Byron's security agents went on ahead to check out the hotel on the day of the meeting. They found nothing at all suspicious about the premises, and so Emily and Byron arrived at the appointed time.They sat down at a small table. The security agents were still around in case anything went wrong, but Emily still felt a little jittery.It was already seven, but no one had shown up."Maybe it's Quinn Faines!" Emily suggested."Yeah, you wish, naughty kid," Byron said, "Still planning to run away with him?""If I was, I wouldn't tell you," she replied.At five past seven, the bar was still mostly empty, and no one came to greet them."Maybe it's a practical joke, and they just stood us up," Byron said after another couple of minutes had passed.Just as he said it, his eyes alighted on a man who had entered the bar and was heading straight towards them.He was a good-looking man, possibly in his sixties. His hair and stylish goatee were both grey, but his skin looked h
"I'm really sorry about all of this," Emily said, "especially my part in it.""You don't have to be, really," Byron said. His driving became less rough, although Emily could tell he was tense. "My dad is the one who decided to come back after these years, uninvited. I just don't want to relive the old trauma...""Then don't," Emily said. "I know it's easy for me to say, but try not look back at the past."Byron laughed with a touch of bitterness. "You're right. I'm sure my father will just bring some new troubles into my life, so I can focus on present trauma instead.""You're such a sweet ray of sunshine! How about we get some pizza?""Sure!" Byron agreed at once. He often enjoyed caviar wrapped in the finest crepes prepared by his personal chef or making his own gourmet creations such as eggplant lasagna or sauteed scallops. But once in a while he craved fast food burgers or a good old fashioned pepperoni pizza from some humble family restaurant. It might have been temporary ins