“She’s hot, okay, but she’s got nothing on Maria Brink or Cristina Scabbia.”

“Dude, you just have an Italian boner for Scabbia.”

“Hey, f**k—” Brian took that moment to lift his head and address Tay, but his gaze landed right on Macy still standing near the door. “Oh, hey, Mace.”

She grinned. “Would you be having this discussion in front of your girlfriend?”

One corner of his mouth tugged upward, and a dimple dug deep into his cheek. “She’s privy to the never-ending hottest-chick-in-metal debate, don’t worry. She knows she outshines them all.”

“Awww,” the guys said in unison, breaking into laughter. Tay muttered something that sounded awfully like “pussy whipped”.

“Says the choad who has none,” Brian fired back.

Macy pitched her voice higher to be heard over the bubbling testosterone. “Is she around?”

Brian nodded toward the back of the parlor. “She’s in my office. Go on back.”

“Thanks.”

He watched as she skirted gingerly around the counter to the hallway. “And how was your night?”

If only he knew—and she hoped like hell he didn’t. She realized she hadn’t even thought to take her sunglasses off. Number-one hallmark of a hangover. Her grunted reply caused the guys to snicker.

She passed Starla, one of the two female artists, in the hall, and exchanged brief pleasantries. Then she peeked around Brian’s office door to find Candace at the desk with her phone crammed between her ear and shoulder, typing furiously at the keyboard. With her hair pulled up in a stylishly sloppy bun, she looked a little tired, but her pretty face brightened when she noticed Macy, and she smiled and waved her inside. Good sign.

Macy pushed her glasses to the top of her head and shut the door before dropping into a chair across from the desk. Candace hung up her phone.

“She lives!” she said.

Macy rubbed her eyes, which were being assaulted by the too-bright bulbs overhead. “Well…sort of. I think.”

Candace tucked a stray wisp of pink-and-blonde hair behind her ear. “So, spill. I’ve been waiting to hear this all day.”

“Spill what?”

Her friend crossed her arms and sat back. “Oh, come on. Don’t be like that. I’m not one to ask for details, because I know how you are. But I’m dying over here.”

“Oh, it was nothing—”

“You did something. You were on his lap. Even if you only kissed him, it’s still something. At last.”

“Okay, so it was something. That’s all I’m willing to divulge at the moment.”

“You are nothing if not stubborn, woman.”

“Listen, I’m not here to talk about him. I’m here because I need to talk to you.”

“Do you want to go across the street to the coffee shop or—”

“No. Let me get this out.” Sighing, Macy rubbed her temples. Why should it be so hard to say you’re sorry to someone you knew as well as yourself? “I just…I owe you an apology. A really big one. And not just about how I acted like a complete bitch last night, although that’s a big part of it.”

Candace’s eyebrows rose. She didn’t comment.

“I’m sorry about the attitude I’ve had, how I try to talk you out of everything, and some of the things I’ve said about you and Brian being together. A million times, I’m sorry. You don’t need to hear that crap. You’re happy, and you deserve to be happy after everything you guys went through.”

Relief washed over her friend’s face, though somehow it made Macy feel worse rather than better. Candace must have been waiting a long time to hear her say this. “Thank you. That means a lot to me.”

“You were always like a little sister to me, and I always felt like you sort of looked to me for guidance in a way, so seeing you stand on your own two feet and do your own thing was…well, it was awesome. But it was hard on me too. I thought I was going to lose you, and I’m still afraid you’ll get fed up with me someday.”

Tears welled in Candace’s eyes. Macy tilted her head and studied her. She’d always been an emotional girl, but something about her wasn’t quite right today. “I’m not going anywhere. I hate that you even think that.”

“I know that, I was just being selfish and immature—” Before she could complete the thought, Candace bolted from her chair, and the two of them collided in a fierce hug at the corner of the desk. “I’ll be better from now on,” Macy promised.

“I love you just the way you are, Mace.” Candace sniffled noisily into her ear. Macy pulled back from her and looked into troubled blue eyes, just now noticing the faint shadows underneath.

“Are you all right, though? Everything okay?”

Sighing, Candace stepped back and returned to her chair. Macy reclaimed her own, perching on the edge and hoping nothing was upset in her friend’s world.

“Everything’s okay, it’s only that…well, Brian and I…” She glanced at the closed door and caught her bottom lip between her teeth.

“You aren’t fighting, are you?” Macy whispered.

Candace shook her head. “No, not fighting,” she whispered back. “I guess you could say engaging in a very serious, very intense ongoing discussion.”

She had a feeling it had nothing to do with the hottest chick in metal. “What’s up?”

“Well, I graduate in three months, you know. There’s all these things I can do…and I had all these plans. But then I started helping him out here, and I love it. I want to be here, with him. And he feels like I’m throwing away years of hard work if I just hang my degree on the wall and keep working in his studio. I’m not throwing anything away as long as I’m doing what I love. I’m happy taking care of the business side of it so he can stay out front where he wants to be. I like knowing he’s right down the hall.” She sighed and pressed her fingers to her temples, bracing her elbows on the desk. “Am I completely psycho or something? Maybe he wants to get me out of here. Maybe I’m suffocating him.”

“I saw you and Brian last night. He didn’t look like a guy who was being suffocated, at least not in a way he doesn’t enjoy.”

“Yeah, I know that’s not it. He’s just thinking of what’s best for me.”

“I do see his point, and if you keep working here, your parents will all but die. He might be thinking about that too.”

Candace waved her hand almost angrily. “They’ll get over it. I’m not even worried about them.”

“Yes you are. And he knows it. And he doesn’t want them to hate him because he loves you, and he knows it’s important to you that they don’t.”

She knew she’d struck a nerve when a fresh stream of tears trickled from Candace’s eyes. Dammit, why wouldn’t those people just leave them alone and let their only daughter be happy?

Macy sighed. “But there I go again, telling you what’s what.”

“No, you’re fine. And I see his point too. But I’m also thinking of what’s good for him, and he needs the help. Business is picking up, and he’s got clients from all the surrounding areas coming in. He wants to open another studio. Why should he have to hire someone else when I can do it and I want to do it?”