Sing For Me by Trisha Grace

with a brunette. “Would you have said anything if I agreed to marry him?”
    “I would’ve called him into my office and gave him a stern warning.”
    “That’s all? That doesn’t sound as if it would be effective.” She waved it off. “Oh, well, it doesn’t matter. I wasn’t going to marry him anyway.”
    “Why?”
    One of her shoulders twitched. “I don’t know. I just don’t see myself marrying him.”
    “So who do you see yourself marrying? The guy you kissed?”
    She thought about his question. When she realized she was smiling, she pulled her lips between her teeth.
    She thanked God when the lift doors opened.
    She gave Lawrence’s arm a squeeze. “I’m sure I’ll see you around.”
    “Let me send you home.”
    “I drove here, and I’m meeting someone nearby for lunch. Don’t worry about me.”
    Once she left the building, Chloe drove to the restaurant where she was supposed to meet her friend. Since she was rather early, she walked around and searched for a cafe instead.
    She got herself a cup of latte and settled into a seat. The one thing she didn’t quite enjoy about Italy was the lack of coffee like this. Most of what they drank there were espressos, and they drank them like shots.
    She liked her coffee with lots of milk and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
    She brought the cup up to her nose and took in a deep breath, allowing the aroma of the coffee to wake her.
    She didn’t feel exceptionally tired, but there seemed to be a fog in her head. Perhaps it was due to the lack of sleep.
    Taking a sip of coffee, she rested back against the chair as she thought about what just went down with Jason.
    She should be sad, right? Or angry at least.
    Staring at the coffee in her hands, she realized how relieved she was. Maybe Josh was right; if freedom was what she enjoyed most about the relationship between her and Jason, maybe she didn’t like Jason very much.
    Since she didn’t have any answers, she decided that a distraction was what she needed.
    She pulled out her laptop and plugged in her noise-canceling earphones. She closed her eyes and listened to the music she’d written.
    Though the song wasn’t completed, she could already hear Christopher’s voice accompanying the tune. She made the few changes that came to her mind while she sipped her coffee.
    She didn’t know how long she had worked on the music until a text came through her phone, and she realized she was late for her lunch appointment. She stuffed her laptop into her bag and hurried over to the restaurant.
    The loud and enthusiastic Japanese greeting startled her. She smiled and nodded at the chef looking at her, then made her way toward Ella, who seemed to be daydreaming.
    She had requested to have lunch at a Japanese restaurant. Other than missing her lattes, she’d missed sushi as well. She hadn’t had sushi in years. The only Japanese restaurant she’d seen in Italy was at least an hour and a half from her apartment, and it was always packed.
    “I’m so sorry,” Chloe said as she settled on a chair.
    Ella gave her a small, awkward smile and handed her a menu. “It’s all right. I’m just grateful that you can make it today,” she said. “Thanks for shifting our appointment.”
    She blinked and tried to ignore the grayish-blue cloud of words. “Are you finally going to tell me what’s bothering you?”
    Ella cracked a smile. “I know you’re picky about your friends.”
    Picky? That was the first time she heard someone say that about her.
    “And I know you have certain expectations of your friends.”
    “And I hate it when people beat around the bush.” She stared at the conveyor belt and grabbed a few plates. “So, what can I do for you?”
    Ella licked her lips. “I need a favor.”
    “I figured.”
    “I need a song.”
    Chloe smiled. “For yourself? Sure.” She knew Ella well enough; she could definitely write her a song. “I didn’t—”
    “Not for me.”
    She waved at the grayish-blue cloud moving