Page 75 of Please, Forgive Me

Even with everything going on, I felt lighter—and that, right now, was enough.

DIEGO BITTENCOURT

I hated unfinished things—and this time, because of my own mistake, I’d let an important detail about tomorrow’s meeting slip through the cracks. It was already past ten, and the thought of it gnawed at me.

I didn’t have a choice. I had to fix it tonight.

Truth be told, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about contacting Maria Gabriela at this hour, but I knew the success of the meeting depended on it.

I sighed, grabbed my phone, and before I could talk myself out of it, started a video call.

Of course she’d pick up. I trusted that she would.

After a few seconds, her face appeared on the screen, bathed in the soft glow of a bedside lamp. Her hair was loose, falling over her shoulders in waves, and she wasn’t wearing any makeup. Her expression was relaxed, natural.

I looked at her for a few seconds—maybe longer than I should have.

Since when was she so comfortable around me? Or worse, since when did I pay so much attention to details like that?

“Diego?!” she said, snapping me out of it. “Is everything okay? It’s late.”

I smirked.

“I forgot to mention something about tomorrow’s meeting. We need to adjust the schedule before we talk to the investors.”

She sighed and leaned back in her chair.

“I knew you’d remember something last-minute.”

“Well, at least I remembered, right?” I said, trying to lighten the mood.

But as I spoke, something in the background caught my attention—a blur of movement. It only took me a second to realize what it was. A dog.

“You got a dog?” I asked, cutting straight through the business talk.

“I adopted one.”

“What’s his name?”

She smiled, looking a little relieved by the change of subject.

“Max. He’s adorable but way too energetic tonight. Won’t give me a moment’s peace.”

I chuckled. I couldn’t even remember the last time I’d laughed with her—maybe before all this chaos began.

“Sounds like fun,” I said, watching Max bounce around behind her. “Good to know you’ve got company now.”

Before she could respond, something happened that neither of us was ready for.

A second later, Max appeared in the frame, tail wagging and head held high—with something in his mouth.

Something… odd.

I leaned closer to the screen, squinting. It took me a few seconds to process what I was seeing. When it hit me, my expression froze—then the laughter burst out before I could stop it.

It was a vibrator.

Max was darting across the room, shaking his head happily like he’d just found the world’s best toy, completely oblivious to the mortifying nature of his new prize.