I snort. “I haven’t figured that out yet.”
She slips her arm around mine and grabs my hand before tugging me toward the front of the house. I go without argument, feeling a bit lighter.
“Let’s go learn, then. Just do me a favour and maybe don’t get drunk enough to blurt out how into Evie’s uncle you are in front of me. Not tonight, at least.”
Evie pops the second bottle of wine and makes a show of waving the cork in the air.
“Success!”
Aubrey leans against my shoulder and gives her a thumbs-up. “You’re officially a corking pro.”
“We should put that on a shirt. Brielle! You have to put it on a shirt for me,” Evie demands, a slight slur to her words.
It’s adorable, honestly. She hasn’t stopped grinning all night, even when I was struggling not to slip away into Roman’s bedroom just to sniff his cologne like a fucking creeper andignored her initial greeting. It’s only been a few days since I’ve seen him, but I’m like an addict with my nose in the air, desperate for a hit of him.
“You got it.” I finish off my wine and set the empty glass on a wooden coaster.
“Are either of you hungry? I could grab some more snacks.”
“Just sit with us, Evie,” Aubrey encourages, patting the spot beside her. “You’re stressing me out with all this running around like your battery is overcharged.”
Evie’s cheeks go red-hot as she quickly refills her glass and takes the offered seat. Sheepishly, she shakes her leg. “Sorry. I justreallywant you to have a good time.”
“Even if we didn’t—which we are—we’d still hang out with you again. You don’t need to worry about that,” Aubrey explains gently.
“That’s nice, but I know how these things go. Especially with girls like you two.”
“Girls like us?” I lean forward and stare across Aubrey’s lap, focused on Evie’s drawn expression. It looks incredibly out of place.
She avoids my eyes, worrying me further. “You’re both obviously beautiful and popular. The entire Havoc baseball team loves you.”
“You’d be surprised how unpopular I actually am,” Aubrey snickers. “Half of my office is too scared to so much as look at me when I walk the halls, and the other half used to pass around an old photo of me with my eyes scratched out.”
I reach across her lap and grab Evie’s hands this time, forcing her to look at me. “And I used to be four times the size I am now, with acne that scarred me up so badly I’m still too scared to leave the house without at least concealer on. Plus, who cares about the team? I speak from experience when I say that professionalathletes are not always all they’re cracked up to be. The last thing you should do is use their interest as a basis for anything.”
“You don’t have to say that just to make me feel better,” she says, attempting to smile. It doesn’t reach her eyes, and that just won’t do.
“We’re not, and I won’t let you think that. I wanted to come tonight because I actually really like spending time with you.”
Aubrey nods in agreement. “You can consider yourself an official member of our Wine and Unwind girl group now, Evie.”
“Now, that is a T-shirt-worthy name,” I tease, releasing Evie’s hand.
Her small smile stretches wide. “I’d wear that proudly.”
“Good, because I’m actually going to do it. We can wear them to our next meeting.”
Aubrey rolls her eyes at me before taking a sip of her wine. “We’ll need to compare calendars.”
“As long as we stick to the nights my uncle is away, we could host them here. The pool is really nice, and nobody ever uses it,” Evie offers.
My eyes drift to the back door and stay there as I remember the day I stood on the opposite side of it with Roman’s hand around my throat. There’s a sudden dampness between my legs that grows more noticeable the longer I think about it. I’m more than ready for a repeat performance.
One more day, I remind myself. By tomorrow night, I’ll have found a way to see him again, even if just to calm the restlessness that’s been clinging to me since I tracked his flight as it left Vancouver.
One. More. Day.
34
