For the first time since seeing that stupid post, I feel something other than hurt and anger. A small spark of excitement ignites in me.
"Okay." I roll my shoulders back. "Let's do it."
Emily's grin spreads wide, her eyes lighting up. "That's my girl. Now finish your taco before it gets cold."
I pick up the abandoned taco and take another bite. It tastes better now, somehow. Less like a consolation prize and more like fuel for what's coming.
"To new beginnings," Emily raises an imaginary glass. "And to Ethan choking on his regret when he sees what he lost."
"To being single and fabulous," Lily adds.
I manage a genuine smile. "To green dresses and nights out."
Ethan may have moved on, but that doesn't mean I can't do the same.
I finish my taco and reach for another one.
Tomorrow is going to be interesting.
Chapter two
Charlie
"Holy shit," I whisper, staring at my reflection. The woman looking back at me is somehow both familiar and a stranger.
My sister stands behind me, makeup brush still in hand, looking immensely pleased with herself. "Told you I'd make those eyes of yours pop."
She has. The smoky shadow creates this sultry dimension that turns my normally hazel eyes almost green. My normally unruly waves have been tamed into soft, beachy curls that frame my face and cascade just past my shoulders. And my lips—usually bare except for chapstick—are now a deep berry that makes them look fuller, more pronounced.
But it's the dress that completes the transformation. The emerald fabric clings in all the right places, the neckline dipping just low enough to be interesting without veering into desperate territory. Even without a bra, the dress's construction makes my C-cups look lifted and accentuated.
"You're a wizard," I tell her, turning slightly to see how the dress catches the light. "An actual wizard."
"I know." She caps the lipstick tube with a decisive click. "Now can we acknowledge the fact that every single person at the club is going to be drooling over you tonight? Because they will be."
"They'll be drooling over all of us," I say, finally taking in my companions.
Emily's crimson jumpsuit hugs every curve, the halter neckline exposing her pilates-sculpted shoulders that gleam under the bathroom light. Her dark ponytail swings with each movement, hypnotic and deliberate. Her gold stilettosadd a good four inches to her height, yet she balances on them as naturally as if they were sneakers. One glance and you'd swear she was about to either close a million-dollar deal or scale a building to steal diamonds.
Beside her, Lily radiates that effortless British cool - her midnight blue slip dress flowing like liquid against her perfect porcelain skin. Her blonde bob catches the light, each strand polished to perfection. Her vintage silver earrings dance and twinkle whenever she tilts her head. She has a magnetic presence that will definitely make strangers do double-takes.
"We do look quite good, don't we?" Lily murmurs, her mascara wand making one final sweep across already impossibly long lashes. "Like Charlie's Angels, but with better outfits."
"And hopefully less crimefighting," I add. "These heels were not made for karate kicks."
My phone buzzes on the bathroom counter. "Uber's seven minutes out," I announce, checking the notification.
Another notification pops up on my screen just as I'm about to lock it—Instagram. My stomach tightens. Not tonight. I slide my finger over the alert, dismissing it without opening.
Nope.
"Perfect timing for a pre-game shot," Emily declares, already moving toward the kitchen. "Liquid courage before we make our grand entrance!"
We follow her out of the bathroom, the three of us momentarily pausing to admire our collective reflections in the full-length mirror hanging in the hallway. We look good. Really good. Like the kind of women who have their shit together, who know exactly what they want and how to get it.
If only that were the case for me.
In the small kitchen, she’s already lining up shot glasses with practiced efficiency. The tequila bottle—Casamigos, because Emily doesn't believe in cheap liquor, and because it’s my favorite tequila—stands ready beside a plate of pre-sliced lime wedges.
