“Sounds great,” Ed says.
Katherine’s normal smile is back, and I’m relieved. We order our food and more drinks, and everything has shifted back to normal. Thank God.
“So have you two seen much of each other?” Katherine asks.
We both laugh, and I’m not quite sure why. Because our lie feels like safer territory than Ed and Katherine’s truth? Maybe.
“We’ve had lunch together a few times,” Lucy says.
“We keep organizing dinner but having to cancel,” I say. “One of us is always stuck in the office.”
“You have to make time for each other,” Katherine admonishes.
“It’s difficult,” Lucy says. “I’ve been really busy, and Hunter has ... Well, you know what it’s like, Ed. When it’s your own business, it’s always going to be a priority.” I don’t know if she means it pointedly toward Ed, but that’s what I hear. She’s telling him how committed I am to Portis.
“Would you ever go part-time?” Katherine asks Lucy.
Lucy frowns. “I couldn’t afford to live if I went part-time.”
“No, but say you and Hunter got serious—no pressure—or if you met someone else. Would you reduce your hours to take the pressure off?”
Lucy glances at me.
“You love your job,” I say to her. “And things are going really well for you there, right?”
Lucy nods. “I do love it.” She glances up at Katherine tentatively. “I’ve had some really good feedback recently.”
“That’s great,” Katherine says. “But—”
“I’m not thinking about scaling back,” Lucy says.
This would be a perfect time for Lucy to tell Katherine about what’s been going on at work. But she doesn’t take the opportunity.
“Just be open to the idea,” Katherine says. “Our lives are so much less pressurized since Christmas. It takes away some of the stress.”
I wonder whether Lucy and I pretending to be a couple is as much of a lie compared with what Katherine’s telling us now. She’s presenting a perfect picture, but ten minutes ago, they were having a disagreement. Both of them have confessed to feeling serious pressure, part-time work or not.
“I’m focusing on work,” Lucy says, sliding her gaze toward me. She hasn’t told her sister about her conversation with the partner at work. I wonder why she’s not sharing it now. She should be proud of herself, but instead, she’s hiding this from Katherine. It’s not just our relationship that Lucy’s not being honest about, and I have to wonder how deep the lies go.
Chapter Twenty-One
Hunter
I slide into the Uber and gasp like I’m breathing air for the first time in hours.
“That wasn’t fun,” Lucy says. “Dinner with Katherine is always fun, but that didn’t qualify.”
“Yeah, it was a weird vibe tonight. Ed was on edge. But honestly, it was good to hear that he’s struggling to stay on top of work. Sometimes I wonder if he notices that he’s not as committed.”
“Please, God, when we have our fake wedding, let’s not make it a four-day affair at the venue of my mother’s choosing.”
I chuckle. “We can elope.”
“Honestly, the weekend on Martha’s Vineyard was so perfect, I’d like to do something like that.”
“I really think you should go part-time before I propose.” I grin at her, and she swipes me playfully on the arm. “You haven’t told Katherine about law school.”
She straightens in her seat. “Nothing to tell,” she says.
