“Men are awful.”
I laugh, taking another drink of my cider. “I can agree with that.”
“I don’t just mean because of ...” She doesn’t say his name. She doesn’t have to. “You’re included in that statement as well.”
“Me? What did I do?”
“Odette.”
Just hearing her name sends a burst of need through me. Fuck, I miss her so much, and it’s only been hours since I saw her last.
I don’t let Izzy know about those feelings, though. It’s not like it matters anymore anyway. “What do you mean?”
She pulls away, giving me a pointed look. “You know exactly what I mean, Noah.”
“I truly don’t,” I say casually, lifting the pint back to my lips.
Izzy punches my arm.
“Hey! What the hell was that for?”
“BecauseI knowsomething happened between you and Odette, you big ass.”
I sigh. “Come on, Iz. You’re imagining shit. There’s nothing— Ow! Stop hitting me, dammit!”
“Then stop lying to me. I’ve been lied to enough over the last five years, don’t you think?”
I wince. Fuck. She had to pull that card, didn’t she?
“How long?” she asks.
She doesn’t need to elaborate. I know exactly what she’s asking—how long have we been sneaking around?
“You remember that storm that rolled through earlier this summer?”
“How could I forget? I lost powerandall the ice cream in my freezer becausesomeonedoesn’t allow me access to the cidery generator.” She pouts momentarily, then narrows her eyes at me. “So, since then?”
I nod. “Since then.”
I take another drink of my cider, letting that sink in for her.
It’s too long to be hiding that from her, that’s for damn sure, especially after learning that her fiancé has been hiding a whole hell of a lot from her too.
I dare a peek over at her. She’s staring intently at the bar—the same one I had Odette screaming my name on top of just a week ago.
“Are you mad?” I ask.
“I mean ... I don’t know. It’s gross, for one. You’re my brother, and she’s my best friend, which means she’s like my sister. So that’s a little strange, but I don’t think I’m mad.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Relief washes over me. Thank fuck. It was the one thing I was worried about the entire time. I didn’t want Izzy to hate me for falling for her best friend. I didn’t want to risk our relationship.
“How’d you know?” I ask after a few quiet moments.
She shrugs. “I don’t know. I had my suspicions for a while.”
