“Naw, I think that was prawn,” Willa put in.
Malena shrugged and continued eating. At work, she was the picture of perfectionism and dressed like every guy’s wet dream—I knew because we often had lunch together and I would pick her up from work with Lena in tow. Yet at the moment she was wearing leggings and an oversized sweater, her thick long hair bunched up in a messy bun. And there wasn’t a stitch of makeup on her beautiful tanned skin. She didn’t really need the makeup, but I got why she did it. Makeup was armor, and she wielded it to perfection.
“Just remember that I love you and you’re a lawyer. Attempted murder and causing bodily harm are frowned upon in your circles,” I said, taking another drink of my wine.
She leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest. “I promise I’ll stay on my side of the table. But I can’t promise there won’t be any yelling.”
“Okay, so here goes nothing,” I started, diving in. “You both know I noticed Sebastian over a year ago when I first started at the club.”
“Noticed him?” Stella asked, chuckling. “That’s a nice word for falling head over heels for someone you’d never met before. Or hadn’t ever talked to.”
“It wasn’t like that. I just liked the way he looked.”
Malena twirled her hand in the air, telling me to get on with it since she was well aware of that part of my story.
“And you also know I thought he’d never so much as looked my way in all that time,” I said. “Well…” Then I told them the whole tale, from first talking to Sebastian to last night.
“Now I don’t know what to do. The thought of never seeing him again breaks me in half. But he broke my trust. And he lied,” I finished, looking at the girls, who were doing their best impression of blow-up dolls; their mouths formedO’s, their eyes were wide, and none of them spoke.
I waved at them. “Hello? Anyone there?”
“Have you considered drawing dicks all over his bike?” Willa asked, looking at me innocently with her big doe eyes.
“He’s in a motorcycle gang,” Stella said, her voice a hushed whisper. “And he’s an FBI agent.”
“Why are you whispering?” Willa whispered. “He’s not here.”
“Because what if the guy outside hears you? They’ll never find our bodies,” Stella whispered again, her eyes comically wide.
“They’re not that kind of club,” I put in, my voice sounding loud after all the whispering. “And he’s not really part of the MC. It was only a cover.”
Malena jumped up, waving her hands around, still holding her chopsticks. “Mi amor, you know I love you, but right now I want to shake you until your brain pops back into the right position. How could you not tell us what was going on? A stalker? And a motorcycle club? Jim taking your money? Are you insane taking that on by yourself?”
“I know this wasn’t the best way to handle it, but—”
She started walking the whole length of my kitchen and then the hallway when she had nowhere else to go. “Not the best way? It was outright stupid. Careless. After everything we’ve been through, you still don’t think you can lean on us.”
She’d stopped yelling halfway through, her voice now thick with hurt. I got up and walked up to her. “I’m sorry. So sorry. And it has nothing to do with me not trusting you. You’re my best friend. I trust you with my life. My children’s lives.”
Stella joined our huddle. “Best friend? What about me?”
“And me?” Willa asked. “You need at least three best friends. If one isn’t available and the other one is too far away, you can call your third option, who will ride in like a lady in shining armor on a white horse and rescue you. FYI, that would be me. I’d make a great lady.”
I chuckled and pulled her close as well, and we all huddled together in a group hug.
“And why did you not invite me to help you with your dance routine?” Malena asked, now pouting but not sounding upset anymore. “I used to do ballet.”
“I didn’t realize that transferred over to pole dancing.”
“Dancing is dancing. If only you’d asked me, I could have put an unforgettable routine together. I always wanted to try pole dancing.”
I pulled back, raising a brow at my friend. “You should give it a go. It was fun even if I was hopeless at it.”
“Hell yes. I want to come too,” Stella said, her eyes lighting up in excitement.
“I’m so in. Maybe Jameson can put a pole in at the apartment so I can practice,” Willa said.
Oh no, Mason and Jameson wouldn’t be down with that at all. The Drake brothers would cause a worse scene than Sebastian did if their girls started wrapping themselves around poles on a stage.
