I shrug my shoulders and take a sip of my coffee. “I’m guessing she was up late last night entertaining a hot, bearded lumberjack of a man. You know, her usual.”
“First off, he only had a bit of scruff,” Lexi says, appearing in the seat next to me. “Secondly, he was a fantastic lay and even offered me seconds this morning. If you know what I mean.” Lexi wags her eyebrows and tosses her blonde hair behind her before she grabs her pink drink and takes a long swig. “Urg, this is delicious and exactly what I needed. Thanks, Capri.”
I give her a nod and a mock salute. “Always. Anyone we know?”
Lexi shakes her head and looks over at Teagan. “Nope, just another one-nighter with a stranger. Well, I guess, a morning-er, too?”
We all laugh. This is the part where the three of us would typically sit in comfortable silence, sipping our drinks and people watching. But this isn’t a typical day, and I’m nearly leaping out of my skin to share my big news with them. “Okay, so I know today is supposed to be your day to explain everything that happened with Josh, Teagan,” I say after a few seconds. “But I have like, really, really, big news.”
Lexi gasps and spits pink juice all over the table before diving into a coughing fit. I grab napkins and wipe up the mess as best as possible while Teagan repeatedly pats Lexi on the back.
“Oh. My. God. CAPRI!” Lexi shouts. “Are you pregnant?!”
My eyes nearly pop out as I look at my friends. They’re both waiting anxiously for confirmation. I shake my head and laugh into my hand to keep myself from screaming. I hate this topic. I hate that the second you get married, people just assume it’s okay to ask such personal questions. They are my best friends, so they get a little more leeway, but I still hate it.
“No. Sorry guys. You both know that’s not something I want, so that’s a big fat negative.”
Both of their shoulders slump in disappointment before giving me reassuring smiles. I hope they can’t see the lie on my face. On the inside, my heart races like quicksand trying to swallow me whole.
“Sorry to disappoint, but you both know how I feel about kids,” I joke with a mock shudder. “And anyway, this news is much better than a baby. I promise.”
Lexi and Teagan glance at each other across the small table and wait for me to explain. I take another sip of my coffee before pulling out the dark envelope from my purse. I hold it close to my chest as I explain its meaning. “You guys, Lee did something amazing for us. Like really, reallyamazing. If I weren’t married to the man already, I’d marry him all over again because of this.”
I hand the envelope to Lexi and watch her eyes skim over the letter. They widen, and her jaw goes slack before she jumps up and grabs me by the straps of my yellow overalls. “Tell me this isn’t a joke? CAPRI! If this is some sort of joke, I might kill you!”
“Can someone please tell me what’s going on?” Teagan pouts from the other side of the table.
Lexi releases my overalls and slams her body into mine, hugging me tightly. “If you weren’t married to the man, I’d probably snatch him up and marry him myself!” We both giggle and untangle ourselves. Lexi retakes her seat, looks at Teagan with the biggest smile, and hands her the letter.
I watch Teagan’s face scan the letter and can’t contain my joy and excitement as I look at Lexi. She winks at me when Teagan finishes reading it.
“Get the hell out. Are you serious?” Teagan looks down at the letter again in shock. “Are we really going to Scotland in two weeks to meet our all-time favorite author?”
I nod frantically while Lexi jumps up and down in her chair. Teagan stares at the letter again, her face erupting into a pained smile.
“What’s wrong?” Lexi asks, looking over to me. Our brows knit in confusion.
Teagan hands the letter back and crosses her arms. “Josh and I just booked a cruise…and it’s also in two weeks.”
Lexi lets out a low whistle and tosses her hair back. “Josh will just have to understand. It’s not every day you get invited to meet your favorite author for an all-expenses-paid trip. Right?”
My heart aches when I see the hesitation flit across her face, followed by a flash of fear on Teagan’s face. I know she loves Josh, but I’ve alwaysthought she deserved better than him. She can’t see it because she’s too wrapped up in his spell, but he’s no good for her. My eyes flick to Lexi’s, and I see her jaw tensing as she picks at her nails.
Teagan deserves better than both of them, but it’s not my place to tell her.
I reach over and squeeze Teagan’s arm. “Hey, just talk to him, okay? We can bring a plus one, so maybe he’ll join us in Scotland? Lee’s coming too, so he’ll have another dude to hang out with as the three of us fangirl over Pierce.”
Lexi scoffs loudly before her lips slide into a wicked smile. “I guess I’ll just have to find myself a hot Scottish guy, while the four of you are off gazing into the Scottish sunsets or whatever. More cute men for me, right?”
I roll my eyes as Teagan shakes herself out of her stupor.
“You’re right. I’ll just talk to Josh about it. There’s no way I’m missing this trip,” Teagan says with the fakest enthusiasm I’ve ever heard spew from her lips.
We all sit in silence as we finish our drinks. Only this silence isn’t comfortable at all. For some reason, all my excitement about this trip turned into dread in my stomach.
Lexi:
Welcome back to Live, Laugh, Murder, my favorite murderous friends! Lexi Casburn here! I’m with co-hosts, Teagan Shepherd and Capri Kim, to talk about A. M. Pierce’s newest novel,Escaping the Lighthouse!
