Stay Peachy

Chapter Seventeen - Uh oh

I slump at my desk, dropping my bag onto the floor. The events of the Gala had put me out of commission the whole weekend. Choosing to rot on the couch at home instead.

"I'd stay away from the media today." Sofie warned and I raised an eyebrow.

"How so?" I say and start to look on my phone. "You can't say that and expect me not to look."

"No really don't." Sierra grabbed my phone out of my hand and crossed her arms. "You will go back into one of those things where you sit in the kitchen and cry and then I have to come and sit with you because I have nothing better to do." She placed my phone in a drawer in her desk.

"I don't do that!" I lied while eyeing up my phone. I just need an opening so I can grab it.

"Eden, you need to trust us." Sofie put a pencil behind her ear while focussing on another custom suit for our boss. We go back to work.

Zack mopes around as usual feeling guilty about what must be on the internet. It'll be something about Julia. It always is.

I bolt upright when the boss comes in.

"Eden."

"Yes Mr. Blanchet?" I lean over my desk and smile at him sweetly.

"Can you get me a list of who we're working with for the next event?" I nodded. The Gala wasn't the only thing that we had to sit in for this month. "And I want you and Sierra to do something for me." We glance to each other. 

After sorting out our tasks, the two of us walk into Mr Blanchet's office. "Sir you wanted us?" Sierra said, her voice slightly gravelled from smoking.

"Yes. I need you two to go and meet with a law firm in the city. They agreed to meet us here so we can talk about the next steps for our company. I need, you, Sierra to talk finance and I need Eden to be there in my place. I'm currently indisposed." He laid the plan out and we nodded. I always found it entertaining when he tells us that he cannot be bothered. Makes him a lot more relatable.

"When do we leave?" I ask.

"After lunch." He clears his throat and searches his desktop for something, "Eden can you go and sort what I asked you to, I need to talk to Sierra privately." I nodded and left hearing him switch to French.

When she came back into the office I slid over to her desk. "What was he talking about?" She slumped into her chair and raised an eyebrow at me.

"Ce ne sont pas tes affaires." She smirked and I slapped her knee.

"In fact it is my business, you better tell me while we're going to this agency." I searched her eyes as we sat in silence, taking in each other's features.

Sierra and I had grown only closer. Every day bringing us together that I could definitely call her a friend now. If not lover, friend will do.

My bliss was interrupted as she frowns, looking as if she was holding something back. "She's married." Was all she said and I furrow my eyebrows.

"What? Who?" Fear slowly engulfed me as realisation dawned on me.

"You know who. Don't make me say her name." Sierra not hiding her distaste for Julia. I followed her figure with my eyes as she made her way into the staff kitchen and I spun around to see Zack asleep on the couch accompanying us on his day off, and Sofie dozing off next to him, her head resting on his shoulder.

Pushing off of my chair I followed Sierra into the kitchen. We stood in silence facing each other. "It's been over three months since you left her."

"Yeah, I left her."

"Eden she was engaged to be married and disappeared on you for months at a time! You at least kept trying. You fought for it to work."

"Why are you lecturing me about this?" I let my eyes shut as I sorted my thoughts.

"Because whenever I bring her up you still have that wounded puppy dog look. I can't stand it."

"But-"

"No buts Eden! You just did what she did to you... with a better reason." She moved closer to me and I moved back in rhythm. "You need to let her go."

"Why are you so worked up?" I questioned before my back hit a counter edge. She stood in front of me. "It has nothing to do with you Sierra?"

"I don't know," she murmured, distracted as she looked down into my eyes. "I don't know." She sighed and pushed away from me.

I pressed my lips into a line and stared at the ground. I'm not a good person, I have never been. But I try pretending I'm good. I can share everything with her and it wouldn't change anything between us. So I find myself looking back into her eyes, swallowing a lump in my throat. "I dated a guy- he was kind until he wasn't. I messed up, wasn't ready for a proper relationship so he went to someone else. Julia was there for me, she means so much to me, she met my dad, my friend, she was my everything." I chuckled, "it might not have been healthy but we were going to work on it before I left."

"You realise that's us? Me, Sofie and Zack. We've met your parents, we've met Audrey and Liv." She kept her back facing me. "We care about you. You've only had unhealthy relationships and can't recognise an opportunity even if it's right in front of you." She's hinting to something, right? She has to be. "Would you take her back?" Sierra finally turned to me. Her eyebrows were knitted together and she had a slight frown as she tried holding my stare. "Would you?"

I felt my words get caught in my throat and I avoided her eyes. "In a heartbeat." Not entirely sure if that was still true.

We stood in silence and she shook her head.

"We have to go."