“What happened?” I asked.
They all looked at me guiltily, my dad all of a sudden completely engrossed in his dinner.
“Just tell me. Her social media isn’t private. Even though I don’t follow her, I’m just going to go look at her page as soon as this is over, so tell me what it is.”
“A new boyfriend,” Ruby blurted out.
“He looks like a thumb,” Mom added.
Regan laughed before covering her mouth.
My chest tightened, but I forced my demeanor to remain calm. The news wasn’t shocking, but that didn’t make it any easier to swallow. I wasn’t torn up about it like my family might have thought I’d be, but still. I preferred to pretend like my ex-wife didn’t exist. Our divorce hadn’t been bitter, per se, but the terms also hadn’t been the best. It wasn’t mutual, and she’d said some hurtful things at the end.
While I believed I was taking this time to focus on myself and take a break from dating, my family seemed to think that I was strung out, and unable to move on. They likely thought the news would break the delicate façade I was barely holding on to.
West clapped a hand on my shoulder. “She posted a few days ago. It’s probably new.”
“You’re in on this too?” I asked, trying not to scowl.
He shrugged. “I got added to theMissing Reidgroup chat years ago.”
“That’s how you know we’ve truly accepted you,” Ruby said, practically beaming up at him.
“Remind me to add you toFamily Minus Ruby,” I grunted.
She glared at me in response.
“Are you okay?” my mom asked, pouting.
“I’m fine, no thanks to you meddlers.” I sighed. “Obviously, she would move on. She was looking for someone funand outgoing, and she probably found that. Good for her. I truly don’t care.” Well,almostdidn’t care, but close enough. The news was really just a mild sting in the grand scheme of life. Nothing compared to the gut-punch that had accompanied the initial moment she’d told me she wanted out of our relatively short marriage.
“It would be nice if you could post something with a girl,” Mom said.
“Yeah, really stick it to her,” said Regan.
“Oh yeah, because nothing says, ‘I moved on’ like strategically posting in the hopes of bothering an ex.”
My mom shrugged. “It could just be an added bonus.”
“Can we talk about literally anything else?” I asked, picking up my fork and taking a bite, hoping to signal to the table that this line of conversation was officially over.
My family exchanged glances, and for a few seconds, the only sound filling the small, tiled room was the soft clinking of silverware against plates.
“So about my friend with the cat,” Ruby said carefully after a minute.
I groaned, letting my head fall back. “I meant, let’s talk about anything thatdoesn’thave to do with me.”
“Please Reid,” she begged, clasping her hands and shaking them in front of my face. “Please at least meet with her. She looks so lost and hopeless right now. It’s sad.”
“I’ve never solved a live case,” I pointed out. My group’s entire focus was looking into cold cases that the police had botched.
“This could be your first!” she exclaimed.
“Are you really going to say no to some poor girl with a stolen cat?” Regan asked.
I rolled my eyes. “Not you too.”
“Come on, just meet with her. See if there’s any potential for you to help.”
