“I don’t know what to say,” Serena said, scooting closer to me and pulling me into a tight hug. “I’m so sorry she did this to you. You don’t deserve that. I’m so disappointed in her.”
I rested my head on her shoulder and stared at the wooden bench. At this point, I felt numb to all this pain. It was heartbreak after heartbreak, and I just wanted to spend some quality time with Michael. We didn’t even have to fuck. We could have some wine and stay up late and make waffles at three in the morning. I didn’t care.
“When I see her, I’m going to—”
“It’s fine,” I said to Serena. “Michael is taking care of her …” I hoped.
After we finished our ice cream, we walked back to the apartment. Damien’s sister was walking out of the house with her newborn, cradling her in her arms.
“Hey, girls,” she said to us, eyes flickering to me. “You want to see Anna?”
Damien’s sister handed Anna to Serena. Serena smiled at the baby, giving her a kiss on her nose. I smiled and gazed lovingly at her. Her skin was so soft, and she was dressed in a pink onesie. Something so pure in this fucked-up world. Serena handed her to me despite my death stare telling her not to, and I cradled Anna’s head in the crook of my arm.
“Does Daddy Bryne want another kid?” Serena asked.
I almost choked on the air. I handed the baby back to her mother and narrowed my eyes at Serena. “Quiet down,” I said, glancing up at her open apartment window. “Just because Mason and Melissa know doesn’t mean I need the entire world knowing yet.”
Serena said good-bye to Damien’s sister and rocked back on her heels. “That didn’t answer my question.”
“Serena, I have so much going on right now. I haven’t even told him that I love—” I stopped mid-sentence. I hadn’t said it out loud yet, and I really hadn’t admitted it to anyone else except Mom.
“You love him,” she said. She pulled me into a hug and rested her head on my shoulder. Her vanilla scent was oddly comforting. “Mia, I am so happy for you. After everything you’ve been through, you’ve finally found someone who really makes you happy and treats you right.”
After walking to her apartment, I spotted Victor lying back on Serena’s couch, playing video games with Damien, and sighed. The last time I had seen him, he had been drunk in bed at the party. Yet he didn’t look at me any different for running out of the room or after listening to Mason label me as a whore to every single one of our friends.
When Serena saw Victor, she narrowed her eyes. “Did you know?”
Damien stared between all three of us and put his video game controller down on the coffee table. “What’s going on?” he asked her, brows furrowed together, noticing Serena’s death glare.
Victor glanced up at us, realized Serena was staring directly at him, and blew out a deep breath, tossing his controller onto the couch. “Did I know what?”
“About Melissa and Mason.”
Victor narrowed his eyes, then looked at me. “What about them?”
“They’ve been sleeping together for months,” Serena said. “Mia found them together.”
“What the fuck did you say?” Victor said, jaw clenching, hands balled into tight fists. He glanced at me, waiting for me to confirm or deny it. “Are you serious, Mia?”
I nodded, but part of me didn’t think he’d believe me. He and Mason had been best friends for such a long time, similar to Melissa and me. I didn’t know if he’d believe what the so-calledwhorehad to say about his relationship. But Victor deserved to know either way.
“Yes, they admitted to it.”
“They’ve been fucking?” He marched past us to the front door and slammed it open. “Why would I fucking know that?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “You were okay with having threesomes with her. I thought maybe you knew about it.”
“Threesomes, not cheating,” he said through gritted teeth. His whole body was tense, and he was visibly shaking. He walked down the stairs toward his car. “Where is that fucker now? I’m going to go kick his ass.”
Serena grabbed my hand and followed him. “Come on.”
I dug my heels into the ground. “I am not going to see Mason.”
“Girl, we’re going to go get your stuff from his apartment and enjoy the beatdown of his sorry ass. You aren’t going to talk to him one time.”
So, we all piled into Victor’s car, and Victor drove like a maniac to Mason’s apartment. The whole time, my heart was pounding against my chest, my jaw was twitching, and my legs were bouncing. I hadn’t seen Mason for a long time. I needed my stuff, but I didn’t know if I needed it this badly. I could wait until I was with Michael, or I could wash my clothes I already had at the hospital.
Serena placed her hand on my knee and squeezed. “Settle down. Everything will be okay. If Mason tries to hurt you, Damien will kick his ass.” She leaned closer. “And we can always call Daddy Bryne to take care of this mess.”
