“What?” Suzie’s expression was beyond confused.
My voice took on a bitter tone as I spoiled the story for her without an ounce of remorse. “Zephyr had his own bride kidnapped to save her from their enemies. And despite everything they’d been through, he wiped her memories. So now Aziza is stuck back in the human dimension with no idea that she was slated to become Queen of the Wind Fae. And Zephyr said he did it for her own good, but that was as far as I got before I threw my e-reader across the room!”
I expelled a growl of rage at the memory of not being able to take solace in the latest Fae of the Realm book after I returned from Paris. “Forget Clara Quinn!”
“Forget Clara Quinn?” Suzie repeated. “Your favorite writer of all time? The one you told me I had to start reading if I wanted us to stay friends?”
“Yeah, forget her!” I insisted. “She’s a jerk who glorifies jerks. I mean, Zephyr thought he knewsomuch better than Aziza? He just had to go decide her whole life for her? Move her around like a pawn in his Fae Realm war games? No! No! I couldn’t keep reading after he did that!”
Several beats. Then with a careful tone, Suzie asked, “Are yousureyou don’t want to talk about Par?—”
“No! I don’t want to talk about Paris!” I practically shouted to the heavens before she could finish asking me that question yet again.
“Girl, I’m just trying to?—”
“I know! I know!” I rubbed two hands over my tired face and found myself having to apologize again for the second time in what couldn’t have even been two minutes of conversation. “I’m sorry, Suze. Just give me a few more days. I’m sure I’ll be over this by the end of the month.”
Suzie’s expression told me she clearly didn’t believe me, but she hefted her purse back on her arm anyway.
“Well, you know I’m always here for you, girl,wheneveryou need me,” she said, preparing to leave me to my way-earlier-than-required numbers checking.
“I know, and I’m grateful,” I answered, turning back to my laptop to resume my miserable number crunch.
Until it occurred to me to ask. “Wait, why areyouhere so early?”
“Oh, ah…” Suzie paused on her way out of my cubicle. “After approving your PTO over the payday, I decided to invest in early drop-off at Jay’s school for the month of January to give myself some extra time in the morning, you know, just in case I needed it. But it’s been so nice having another hour to get situated before work. I’m kind of thinking of opting for early drop-off in February too.”
I narrowed my eyes. “So, you’ve been coming in this early since last week?”
“Yeah, I know it’s a lot of money just to give myself prep time….” she began to say, obviously mistaking the reason I was giving her a weird look.
“No, I’m wondering why it took you so long to return my text about Dwayne being cut from the team if you were here at the office way before eight a.m.”
“Oh, I…” Suzie fiddled with the strap of her huge purse and glanced to the side. “Guess I got busy. And, like I said, you didn’t need to be worrying about Dwayne anyway.”
Her vague answer made me narrow my eyes even more.
She was lying! Tome. Her best friend. I might not have been able to intuit that a week ago, but now I sensed it clear as day.
I’d been so caught up, replaying over and over again what happened with Andy-slash-Mick, that it hadn’t occurred to me to re-question what had happened in the hours leading up to Dwayne’s big reveal.
The many hours it had taken Suzie to get back to me.
“I’d still be on the Suns’ roster if it wasn’t for you!”
Dwayne’s strange casting of blame in front of the Benton Budget popped back into my head…along with a new suspicion.
“Did you have something to do with Dwayne getting cut from the team? Is that why you didn’t bring it up when I told you about my fling with the Brit while I was in Paris?”
Suzie answered this question much faster than the other one. “No, I didn’t get Dwayne fired! Not me.”
Yep, the old Kayla, who trusted without question, had definitely left the building. Suzie’s “not me” made me ask, “Thenwho?”
“Who?” Suzie repeated, obviously stalling for time. She was probably hoping I’d sense her discomfort and back off the subject.
That was what old Kayla would have done.
But old Kayla was gone.
