Those Red High Heels (3 page)

Greg reached over and placed a soft kiss on my cheek. “Somethings are meant to be, and somethings aren’t. I do still love you, Emma, but I hope you find the happiness and love that is meant to be yours. By the way, I’m glad you finally got the red shoes. They look great on you.”

I looked down and smiled at my new buy. Of course I’d put them on the minute I got home. I leaned against my door when it finally clicked shut. I should have been more upset about this breakup, but I’d known for a while that we weren’t going to work out. I guess I was hoping for a miracle. I took one more, quick look at my killer red shoes and knew I was ready for a brand new start.

Chapter Three

The next morning I woke up refreshed and ready to start my new life. I may have shed a few tears in the middle of the night, but I promised myself that those would be the last. A final closure, you could say.

I called Brynn right after Greg left last night. She was super pissed off at first that I’d had my phone on silent because she’d thought I was being murdered, but then softened up when I told her Greg and I were definitely finished. She’d said she was sad it ended like it did, but also told me that it was about time I started living for myself. We both decided I needed to get out to New York City ASAP, because Brynn and Collin’s engagement party was a week away and there was a lot to be done. I’d started looking at airfare when Brynn surprised me with a prepaid ticket. I would be in New York later that afternoon. We both screamed, and I jumped around for a good five minutes.

I started packing right away, and was so excited to escape Chicago, Greg, and my old job; but I was also starting to get depressed about leaving Sadie. I had a feeling, though, that I would be getting her back soon.

Right when I stepped out of the shower, and was organizing my travel makeup and shower bag, my phone vibrated on the bathroom counter. I picked it up and wiped off the dew that had formed during my relaxing hot shower. I didn’t recognize the caller ID, but it did say the caller was from New York City. Maybe it was Brynn’s work number. That would be weird though, because she had never used it before. My curiosity got the better of me and I ended up swiping my answer key.

“Hello?” I asked quickly and expected Brynn’s excited voice on the other end.

“Yes, is this Emma Walker?”

It definitely wasn’t Brynn. “Yes, it is. With Whom am I speaking with?” I asked in my most professional voice.

“Hi, Ms. Walker. My name is Jennifer, and I am calling on behalf of Purple Moon. We received your resume for our new marketing position, and I am calling to set up a time for an interview.”

When I heard the name Purple Moon, I about fell over the towel I had dropped to the floor. Purple Moon Press was a publishing company I had applied with in New York City. I only put my application in with them because Brynn had told me she knew some people on the inside, and had a few connections there. It seems like you need to know someone to get into the big leagues. Hopefully, this was my in.

“Hi, yes it is. I’m so happy to hear from you. I’m actually coming to New York this afternoon, so I’ll make anytime next week work.” I held my breath and tried to contain my excitement.

“That’s perfect. How does Monday at 10:00 a.m. sound?”

“Sounds great, and thank you, Jennifer. I will see you Monday at ten.” I turned around, looked into my mirror, and did a little flex to myself. I felt like a badass.

Jennifer ended the conversation and I starting thinking of all the wonderful things that were about to happen. Well, hopefully; if I was able to land this job.

Later that afternoon, I boarded a plane to New York City. There were a few times when Brynn and I had planned a trip for me to go out and visit her, but something always came up. About a year ago, she landed a huge job converting a New York Times bestselling suspense novel into a movie, and I believed they were getting ready to begin shooting it.

Even though I had not been to visit, I was so excited to see what her life was like in our dream city. The story of how she met Collin Donahue was one of those romantic encounters you only heard about in romance novels or on the big screen, but you’d never met anyone in real life who has experienced it. Brynn bumped into Collin, literally, the first weekend she moved to NYC. She was looking at her phone, trying to find her new office, when a very handsome man ran right into her. His coffee drenched them both and they looked at each other with murderous eyes, but then had a
101 Dalmatians
moment and laughed in hysterics for the next solid minute. They had been together ever since.

Collin comes from a famous family. His grandfather was a very well-known and successful actor back in the day. Instead of being a trust fund baby who only paved a path of destruction, Collin used his inheritance to build one of the most sought out production companies in New York City. Brynn and I joked that she secretly stalked him, because she moved to New York to become a screenwriter. Brynn eventually quit her job and moved over to Collin’s production company so they could work together. They really couldn’t have found a more perfect partner for each other.

Collin was a bit older than Brynn, and was going through a divorce when he ran into her. She didn’t even blink an eye when he told her. She said there was something about him that screamed ‘the one.' I was really happy and excited for her and Collin. They had also set a high standard for my ‘the one,' whenever he feels like making an appearance in my life.

I pulled out my makeup compact and peeked to make sure I didn’t have scary airplane hair. After I confirmed I wouldn’t make anyone scream as I exited the plane, I stood up and was more than ready to see my best friend.

**

When I arrived at the passenger pickup area at LaGuardia, I immediately noticed a sign that had my name written in cute swirly letters. Brynn started jumping up and down, and I’m pretty sure she threw the sign and hit a guy standing behind her. We squealed and instantly grabbed one another for a hug. Brynn was one of those friends that no matter how long you’ve been apart, it all goes to the side because it’s like we just saw each other that morning for coffee. I had known Brynn since we were four years old. We met on the first day of preschool in our small farming town in southeast Illinois. A boy was pulling her braid on the playground. She had tears in her eyes, so I walked over and shoved him down to the ground. Brynn looked up at me with complete bewilderment, but then laughed and gave the little boy a kick before the teacher came over. As we’d sat in the office, we looked at each other and grinned. We’ve been best friends ever since. Our parents always joked that we were soul sisters, and even if we didn’t grow up together, we would have found each other at some point during our lives.

As we were walking to her car, Brynn caught me up on all the wedding plans thus far. It was early spring, and Collin wanted to be married by June. That gave us exactly three months to plan the most beautiful wedding imaginable, although Brynn really wanted to keep it low key.

Their engagement party was in exactly one week at the exclusive Pierre venue in Upper East Side Manhattan. Apparently, Collin knew someone who knew someone, and they were able to book the venue not only for their engagement party, but also for their wedding.

“Wait until you see this place, Ems. It’s magical. When Collin and I first stepped in the Pierre, I fell in love. I knew right away that I needed to be married there. It felt right,” Brynn said as she pulled onto the interstate.

I sighed and sat back in my seat. “I bet it is, Brynn. I can’t wait to meet all of your friends, and to finally meet Collin’s brother, Cade.”

Brynn started laughing and winked over at me. Cade is Collin’s younger brother. They both inherited a large amount of money from their grandfather, and instead of staying in New York like Collin, Cade ventured out to the west coast and started his own production company in L.A. It really has worked out well for them, because they collaborate on many projects.

“I can’t wait for you to meet him, too. Collin and I both have this fantasy that you will sweep him off his man-whore feet and he’ll finally settle down. I have a feeling you're going to bring his frat house down.”

I rolled my eyes and swatted her arm. “I just got out of a relationship with a playboy turned boyfriend, and look how well that worked out. I’m staying away from man whores, thank you very much.” She shot me a funny look but dropped the subject.

After a few seconds of silence, I remembered I hadn’t told Brynn that Purple Moon Press called me. “Oh my gosh, Brynn. I forgot to tell you. Purple Moon called me this morning, and I have an interview Monday at 10:00 a.m.” I clapped my hands and smiled over at her.

“What? No way, Emma. That’s so great. I will do anything for you to get that job. I need you here with me. I’ve been waiting for years for you to move out here.” She smiled wide and squeezed my hand. I smiled back and looked over at my friend. She was so beautiful, you almost forgot to breathe when you looked at her. She had the most lustrous dark brown hair, with a hint of chestnut, and striking baby blue eyes. The combination was lethal, and we used it more than once to our advantage when we were younger.

“Tell me about your in at Purple Moon,” I said as I texted Greg that I made it safely to New York. We were on the same page about staying friends with each other, especially with Sadie still being with him in Chicago.

Brynn smiled brightly and gave me a very cheesy grin. “Well, Collin really wanted Cade to be his best man for the wedding, but he is really busy with a project out in L.A.. He’ll probably only make it out for the wedding, so they both agreed that someone local would be more help. My in is Collin’s best man, Greyson. Collin met him on a project a few years back, and they hit it off. He’s younger than Collin.”

I pinched her side and she swatted me away. “That’s right, you younger woman.” I teased and we let out a little laugh.

Brynn rolled her eyes and continued with her story. “Whatever. Ten years really is not that big of a gap. Anyway, Collin’s friend, Greyson, is my in at Purple Moon. He’s actually getting ready to take over a really successful marketing firm in Manhattan, and he works with Purple Moon on a lot of projects. I mentioned I had a friend who was looking for a job with a publishing company, and he did his thing.”

“Are you talking about Greyson Lyons? As in Lyon’s Media?

“You’ve heard of him?” She asked with actual surprise in her tone.

“Heard of him? You’re joking, right? Yes, you could say I’ve heard of him. I just finished my MBA so the name Lyons may have come up a few times,” I said as I shot her a ‘you’re crazy’ look.

Brynn laughed and turned off the interstate toward Manhattan. “He's really a great guy. He’s very taken, or I would set you two up,” she said as she wiggled her eyebrows, which made me grunt. “Although his girlfriend, Nora Mathews, makes Cruella De Vil look angelic.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard all about the merger in some of my classes. They say when Lyons and Mathews combine they’ll be the most go-to advertising firm in all of America. That’s so great that he was able to get me this interview. I’ll have to thank him when I get the chance to meet him. I hope I don’t blow it.”

Brynn reached over and squeezed my hand. “You’re amazing and one of the most people-savvy people I have ever met. They’ll be lucky to have you.”

“So, Nora Mathews is really as bad as they say?”

“Collin and I like to refer to her as the ice bitch, but she’s Greyson’s fiancé, so we put up with her.”

“I guess I can see why he chose her though. They will make one hell of a power couple. What’s not to love?”

Brynn laughed and shook her head. “Girl, you are about to be thrust into a world like no other. There are so many reasons why people get married out here, and love isn’t very high on the list.”