"How'd it go?" Bruno asked.
Eric sighed.
"Honestly, it didn't go well at all," he replied. "Beauty was devastated when I told her you gave me a pass to ask her out. I've never seen her look that hurt before."
He paused, collecting his thoughts.
"I don't understand why you made me do this anyway. Why put her through all that?"
Bruno was silent for a while before replying slowly.
"I didn't want her to feel like no one wanted her. I thought... maybe it could help her, make her realize she has other options if I'm gone."
Eric leaned back in his seat, shaking his head.
"I don't know, man. This... it feels wrong. I don't think it'll make her feel any better," he replied. "Yeah, I do like her, I guess, but... not like that. Not enough to defend her like you did at the salon. Besides..."
He hesitated, unsure how Bruno would take his advice.
"If you really care, why not talk things out? I don't know why you broke up with her in the first place, but in this situation, I think she needs support, not confusion. No offense, sir," Eric pointed out.
"You wouldn't understand," Bruno replied. "I have my reasons, and I didn't want her to feel alone. I just want her to heal..."
"From her past," he completed silently. Although Eric was the only one who knew about their relationship, apart from Jessie, Bruno couldn't trust him with Beauty's past.
Eric chuckled at Bruno's comment about helping her heal.
"Sorry, sir... but with all due respect, Mr. Bruno, you don't seem to have much experience with this kind of thing. But if you want, I can help. I know women; I know how to fix things up."
Bruno's voice turned cold.
"I don't think I want to associate with someone like you, Eric."
Eric's jaw tightened at Bruno's bluntness. That was unexpected, but he swallowed it. He nodded, wiping his face with his palm in embarrassment.
He knew Bruno's reaction was because of his careless jokes about Beauty's body back at the salon.
"Look, man... I'm sorry about the things I said about her then. I didn't know how much you cared about her at that time. I just wanted to feel cool, you know. It's what almost everyone does at the company-belittle her for her size and weight. But not anymore. I've apologized to Beauty too, and I'm here now, offering to help you two get back together. After all, I'm the only one who knows about you two. I can keep it a secret."
"I never wanted it to be a secret," Bruno replied stiffly. "That was her choice."
Eric sighed again, but he didn't give up and decided to try once more. His voice sounded almost pleading.
"Come on, Mr. Bruno. Let me help you. I've got experience; I know how to talk to women. We should be friends, man."
Eric heard the click as Bruno hung up on him.
"Wow, he hung up on me. Did I make him mad?" Eric muttered as he stared at the phone screen.
---
As the call ended, Bruno placed his phone down. He gulped hard, eyes closed. Leaning back in his chair, he rubbed a hand across his face.
He hated the feeling of guilt after Eric's words.
Eric was right; Bruno might be a genius at work, but he knew little about women. And the fact that he couldn't bear to see another man around her yet still pushed Eric to approach her was pathetic.
A small voice in his head asked, "What are you going to do now?"
Bruno opened his eyes slowly.
"I wanted her to heal from what happened. I thought she would feel better knowing she had another admirer, that it would help her."
Anger rushed through him.
"How could I be so careless?"
The thought of her moving on-someone else holding her, making her laugh, kissing her in certain places-tore him apart. He wouldn't survive that for sure.
Moreover, letting Eric, of all people, get close to her was not very smart.
Beauty wouldn't trust Eric. She'd heard the horrible things he'd said about her from the beauticians at the salon.
Suddenly, a sharp knock echoed at his door, jerking him out of his thoughts. Before he could respond, the door swung open.
His grandmother walked into the room, looking elegant.
Gina Hathaway looked stunning for 79 years old, having clearly aged like fine wine. Long, silver hair cascaded over her shoulders in soft waves, and her skin was still smooth and tight.
Good genes ran in the Hathaways.
"Grandma, you visited!" Bruno exclaimed nervously, a genuine smile spreading across his lips at the sight of her.
"Bruno, my darling! I came to check on you. Your mother told me you've been in your room for hours and haven't eaten anything. What's the problem?"
She approached him as she spoke.
"I'm fine, Grandma, really. I'll eat when I need to," Bruno replied softly.
"Hmm, 'fine?' You don't look it," she chided, narrowing her eyes playfully as she looked him over, then shifting her gaze around the room.
Suddenly, her gaze froze.
Her eyes rested on an empty spot on Bruno's bookshelf, and her expression changed.
Bruno immediately recognized the look and felt his heart drop. He slapped his forehead.
"Why didn't I replace it immediately? Maybe if she sees it from afar, she'll think it's the same. Now I'm doomed," he thought.
His grandmother had just noticed the missing vase-the beautifully hand-painted ceramic piece she'd gifted him years ago.
"Bruno," she began, meeting his red-rimmed gaze, "where is your vase?"
"Uh... I... meant to tell you about that," he stammered as she narrowed her eyes further.
Her brows rose, unamused, as she waited for an explanation.
"Tell me what?" she asked immediately.
Bruno rubbed the back of his neck.
"Well... I... it accidentally got knocked over. But don't worry, Grandma, it's being restored."
He smiled at her broadly in an awkward way, hoping she would believe him.
"When you smile like that, you're lying," his grandmother replied, unimpressed.