Cupid's Contract

The Only One

"I brought you coffee, why are you ignoring my texts?"

Eve's morning salutations could, admittedly, use a little work. She threw open the door of Veronica's office with such force that she knocked over her green tea. Thank God for small mercies, really.

"What are you talking about? What texts? Oooh, pass me that tissue!" Veronica was pushing sheets around her desk, trying to avoid the tea as it spread across the surface, staining documents with no regard for their importance.

Eve threw the box of Kleenex at her, nearly smacking her friend in the face. She would later deny any accusations of throwing with admittedly more force than the situation warranted.

"What texts? What TEXTS? All of them! All of the texts that I sent you!"

Veronica, still rubbing her shoulder in the place the box had caught her, raised an eyebrow. "Right, that was specific. Well, if it was anything after five o'clock I haven't seen it. I left my phone at..." she stumbled slightly, then focused her attention on the mess on her desk. "I left my phone at a friend's. So you'll have to reiterate your texts now, please and thank you."

"A friend? What friend? I'm your friend. You only get one!"

Veronica opened her mouth to retort with something unreasonable, no doubt, but Eve did not have time for this sort of foolishness.

"Focus, Ronnie. What happened at the event?"

Veronica blushed, to Eve's confusion. "Er, what do you mean?"

"For a successful and intelligent woman you are really doing yourself a disservice right now. What happened on Saturday? Stop playing coy!"

"I'm not being coy! I just don't want to rush into anything!"

"Rush into anything? This is my bloody career we're talking about!"

"Wait what? Your career? That's what - wait - what?"

Eve was tempted to dump Veronica's freshly delivered coffee on the rest of her desk but she chose a deep laborious breath instead. It was more for the health of their friendship than Eve's lungs. "Johnny told me at dinner last night that there were 'speed bumps' in my staff day and that they'd be discussed in my review. What 'speed bumps'? What 'review'?"

"Why were you having dinner with Johnny?"

"My dinner date with Johnny last night is not pertinent, Keating!"

There was a tapping at the still open door and before Eve could whirl around and crack her whip at her next victim a curt voice cut through the tension. "Sorry to interrupt your personal conversation, but you're needed in the conference room, Ms. Higgins."

Ah, fiddlesticks.

How much of that had Drew heard?