One Night Love Affair *COMPLETED*

Chapter Seventeen

 

TALKING TO JAMES AGAIN AND pretending to be Vivian, was one of the hardest things Lana has ever done. But saying 'No.' to James's proposal to get together and catch up was, hands down, the hardest thing she had ever done. Not even leaving her broken home, or leaving James's suite six years ago, or returning home to a dying grandma to take care of her estranged brother, was as hard.

Her heart broke into pieces, when she closed the door and saw James walking away. 'Will my heart ever be whole again? Now that I know for certain James wants to really get to know me?'

Lana's thoughts were broken when she noticed Mia excitedly jumping towards the door.

"Who was THAT? He's one smoking hot dude!"

Excitement poured out Mia's voice and Lana knew she will need all her strength, if she wants to keep her secret. So, she just tried to shrug the whole thing away, as it never happened. Unfortunately, but as she predicted, Mia wasn't having it.

"I'm serious Lana! If you don't want him, I'll take him in a second."

There was no way out, so Lana resorted to a white lie.

"He's just someone I used to know – a friend." A little ekszaduration on the friends part, but they did know each other once. Like REALLY know each other. "And calm your horses, he's married."

The last words were spoken with a hint of disappointment in Lana's voice and Mia recognized the emotion in a second.

"Just someone you used to know, ha?"

Lana shrugged her shoulders again, trying to show as little interest as possible.

"Oh, no. Oh no, no, no! We..." Mia pointed a finger at Lana and herself. "...Are going to have a little chat today. So call home, and tell your brother you're staying with me. Or even better yet, I'll call him and told him, I'm kidnapping you, for a girls night out, before you beery yourself in the bakery."

If Mia hadn't started the short monologue about how they are going to talk about James, Lana would be absolutely in love with the idea of a girls night out before the bakery opening. But now, with the threat of conversation about the dreaded past, she can't escape, Lana didn't feel all too well.

"I don't know, Mia. I'm not fee..."

Before she had a chance to finish the sentence, Mia cut her off by raising her hand and effectively shut her up. At the same time, Mia was already searching for her phone, so she could call her brother and tell him 'the good news'.

In her mind Lana prayed he was still at that super important meeting with some business man from New York. It was all he talked about the past few weeks, but she was too preoccupied with the opening of Lana's Bakery to really listen. Right now, she just wished the meeting went well and her brother went out to celebrate, or that the meeting went badly and her brother went out to drown his sorrows in a bottle of bear. Either way, she wished her brother wasn't planning on being home this evening.

"I know what you're thinking." Mia finally fished out her phone and was already typing in her brother's number. "But I know your brother won't mind. Even if he did had his big meeting this afternoon. There's nothing he wouldn't do for you Lana. And by extension, for me."

It was the truth and Lana knew better than to argue with the truth. Her brother hero-worshipped her, and after she came back, even though she never made it as an actress, she was still a hero to him. After all, she was his mother and father for the past six years, since grandma passed away. She was his only family.

And I'm not even sure what this super important meeting he had today was with.

Guilt was weighing her down. There was so much she missed out in her brother's life and here she was again, not listening, only thinking about herself. The only thing she knew about the meeting was, it had something to do with his new computer software thingy. About which she, once again, knew practically nothing about.

"Yeah, it's been a while." Mia finally stopped checking out her nails, and destroyed all of Lana's hopes. Her brother answered the call. "Listen, I have a favor to ask you. I want to get Lana out for a girls night, and she's a party pooper, saying something about needing to stay at home. Could you be the sweetheart I know you are and do me a sold?"

Few seconds of silence that followed felt like hours to Lana. Because now, there was officially nothing that could stop the inventible - THE talk about James. The one she prayed she'll never have to do.

"You're a life saver. I owe you one."

Mia disconnected the call and as happy as she looked, Lana couldn't help but to force a small smile on her face.

"This is going to be the most awesomest girls night out ever!"

'Oh yeah. It will definitely be a memorable one. Because there's not enough white wine in the world to make me forget about what the talk will be about...' Lana thought to herself as she went to the back of the bakery, to pick up her stuff.