When Shira landed in Miami and turned on her cellphone, a text from Brian came in: "I miss you beautiful. When can we meet next time?"
Shira quickly texted back: "Soon I hope! I miss you already."
Just then, her phone buzzed with another text. It was from Zack: "Babe, I parked my car in the parking lot. I'm waiting for you right out of the arrival gate."
Shira's eyebrows started twisting together. She texted: "Great! We are all waiting to get off the plane." She couldn't help but feel a sense of guilt.
Fifteen minutes later, Shira plastered a smile on her face and walked towards Zack, who was holding a bouquet of red roses, with excitement on his face.
Zack's face lit up as he caught sight of Shira. "Hey, welcome back!" he said, leaning in for a hug. Shira returned the gesture, but her mind was elsewhere.
Zack pulled back and handed her the roses. "These are for you. I hope you had a good trip."
Shira took the roses and gave them a half-hearted smile. "Yeah, it was fine. Just the usual stuff."
Zack looked away and said. "Oh...okay. Well... I was hoping we could catch up and you could tell me all about it."
Shira said. "I'm sorry, Zack. I'm just really tired from the trip. Can we catch up tomorrow instead?"
As they walked to the parking lot, Shira couldn't help but think about her night with Brian. When they reached Zack's Camry, Shira turned to him and forced a smile. "Thanks for picking me up, Zack. I really appreciate it."
Zack returned her smile, while his eyes looked down on the ground. "No problem. Let's get you home."
The minute Shira stepped through the front door of the old house, she made a beeline for her trusty old laptop. Excitement bubbled within her as she settled down and powered it on, her mind already busy with ideas for her upcoming collaboration with Ryleigh.
She began by jotting down potential themes for their project: work outfits perfect for the summer sun, playful twinning looks for the office, and a touch of vintage-inspired glamour. She scoured the web for reference photos and styles, a few hours later, her pitch plan taking shape right before her eyes. Her father yelled 'dinner!' a few times but Shira completely didn't hear it.
Shira's previous tiredness from the long flight is forgotten. As she fine-tuned her pitch plan, Shira allowed herself a moment to imagine the incredible content she and Ryleigh would create together. Styles meshing and all the surprised comments from fans, and all the likes and followers. Finally, she clicked 'send,' took a long exhale, and leaned back in the chair. This has been a fruitful trip, more amazing than she ever thought it would be. It's the life she has always wanted.
She then opened her camera and browsed through the photos. Her fingers paused when she came across an image of the hotel's bathrobe she took. It was the softest and thickest robe she had ever wrapped herself in. She zoomed in to take a closer look at the sewn-on label.
Intrigued, she decided to Google the brand Frette. She was surprised to find that the bathrobe was from a luxury brand , and was much taken aback by the price - a single bathrobe cost a whopping $180. However, the thought of treating herself to something nice and luxurious for the first time was too sweet to pass. She decided to splurge, put in her credit card information and clicked 'Order'. She then finally laid on her bed, and couldn't wait for the package to arrive.
Just when Shira was about to collapse onto her bed, her phone started buzzing. It was a Facetime call from Gina. Shira hesitated for a moment, debating whether she should answer. She was exhausted and all she wanted was to get some rest. But she knew Gina wouldn't stop calling until she picked up.
"Hey, Gina! How are you?" Shira greeted, trying to sound as cheerful as possible.
"Hey! I'm good. Tell me all about your trip! Was it as amazing as you thought it would be?" Gina asked, her voice filled with excitement.
Shira paused for a moment, thinking about how to answer. She didn't want to come off as show-offy, but she also didn't want to lie to her best friend.
"It was good. I met a lot of interesting people and learned a lot," Shira replied vaguely.
"Oh come on, don't be so mysterious! Tell me something exciting that happened!" Gina urged.
Shira thought for a moment, then decided to tell Gina about this 'algo' engineer she had met. Gina didn't know that she was dating Zack, so it should be fine.
"Well, I did meet this guy. He's an engineer and we really hit it off. We spent a lot of time together and had a lot of fun," Shira said, trying to keep her voice casual.
"Oh my god, you had sex with him, didn't you? Oh my god oh my god oh my god!" Gina screamed, causing Shira to jump.
Shira's face turned bright red. "Gina!" she scolded, but she couldn't help but laugh.
"Oh come on, you can tell me. I won't judge," Gina said, her voice filled with curiosity.
Shira took a deep breath and decided to tell Gina the truth. "Yes, we did. It was...it was amazing," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I knew it! I knew you would have a wild time on that trip. Tell me more!" Gina urged.
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