“What did he mean when he said ‘you did it’?”
Sawyer’s throat works on a nervous swallow. He leans over for two of the glasses Ethan poured ages ago, and I wonder if he’ll answer.
“Came out to Tursdays,” he says dismissively, handing me a marg without meeting my eyes.
I’m sure he’s hiding something, but I don’t push him. What’s the point? He’ll never confess to it. But it’s all the evidence I need that he’s not the good guy he’s been pretending to be. There’s a comfort to Rich’s open loathing. With him, I know where he stands. But Sawyer’s made a fool of me too many times to fall for his act again.
“Fifteen minutes to trivia time!” the emcee announces, and the bar erupts in cheers and jeers, piercing my thoughts.
“We’ve been here for half an hour?” I ask, alarmed.
My eyes flick to the door. Then the time. Worry pulses dully in the back of my mind. Tess doesn’t strike me as a flake. But people are different outside of work. Maybe sheisthe type to run perpetually thirty minutes behind in her social life.
No. Instinctively, I know that’s not her.
I shoot her a quick text letting her know I’m here. I stare at my phone for a few seconds, waiting for the three dots to show up.
“She’s a big girl,” Sawyer says coolly. “She’s probably just looking for parking.”
I relax a little. Parking was a nightmare, and has probably only gotten worse.
When Ethan’s back with a chastened Rich, and another ten minutes passes, I still haven’t heard from her. Even the Korean fried cauliflower taco that Sawyer practically shoved at me, and subsequently had me black out in ecstasy, isn’t enough to assuage my worries.
It’s this town.It puts me on edge, in a constant state of fight or flight. What do I even know about Tess, anyway? She’s a work colleague. And a grown woman. Maybe she changed her mind about coming. Or took a nap and just,poof, forgot.
I take in a deep breath then exhale slowly, letting all my paranoia and suspicions drain out of me, and focus on the conversation.
“Where’s Abbi tonight?” Sawyer asks Ethan.
“Girls’ night with my sisters,” he says.
To me, Sawyer explains, “Ethan’s with Abbi, JamesBaret’s little sister. She was a freshman when we were seniors.”
I vaguely remember her, best friends with Ethan’s twin sisters of the same year.
Rich laughs. “I still can’t believe you settled down, man. You were such a player!”
“Hey,” Ethan protests, “she was with someone else forten years. What was I supposed to do? Join a convent?”
Sawyer sputters into his drink, and I know he’s imagining the same thing as me: Ethan in a nun’s habit.
“Monastery,” he corrects.
Rich smirks. “Joining a monastery wouldn’t help, kings have huge harems.”
“Monarchy,” I say, biting back a smile.
Rich tilts his head, puzzled. “You’re talking nonsense.”
“Malarkey,” Sawyer and I say together.
“You lost me,” Rich says.
Sawyer and I grin at each other, warmth washing over me.
This is okay. This is fine. This isn’t high school. I don’t have to trust these people to enjoy myself tonight.
Then the door to the restaurant opens, and a wild-eyed Tess stumbles in.
