by Amber Lynn
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Amber Lynn
Copyright © 2017 Amber Lynn
This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter One
“I just don’t think he likes me as much as I like him.”
Sarah Lewis let out a deep sigh as she shrugged her shoulders and glanced away from her best friend. Knowing how May liked to bully every detail out of her, Sarah realized she’d eventually explain why her boyfriend of nine months thought it was good for them to take a break.
Technically, Aaron hadn’t said he wanted a break, but the suggestion she heard for how they continue their relationship wasn’t going to work for Sarah. She wasn’t a prude, by any means. It just didn’t make sense to turn their monogamy into the more open relationship he wanted.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
May slammed her hand down on the table to illustrate her disbelief. The sound startled Sarah and caused her to reach for her wine glass. Their lunch had been cleared away, but May had ordered a full bottle of wine and insisted they were going to sit there and drink until Sarah felt better about the break-up.
The thing May didn’t understand was that Sarah wasn’t that beat up about the relationship being over. She liked Aaron, even loved him, but it had never felt exactly right. There always seemed to be something missing, and finally Sarah knew what it was.
Sarah hazarded a glance up to see exactly what kind of hostility burned in May’s eyes. She knew her friend would be upset about the break-up, much more than Sarah herself, mainly because May loved hanging out with Aaron almost as much as she liked spending time with Sarah. The break-up made her have to choose between her friend since high school and a guy she’d bonded with over a reality TV show. They had more in common than said show, but it had started a friendship Sarah had trouble competing with.
May's narrowed eyes quickly widened to soften the glare directed at Sarah when she realized she was being watched. Her hazel-colored eyes were as comforting as Sarah had ever seen them, but they missed the mark. May honestly didn’t have a comforting bone in her body. Sarah hadn’t ever faulted her for that. They got along well because they were the exact opposites, which came back to bite Sarah a lot more than it did May.
“Don’t you have work or something you need to run off to? I had to take the day off to find a new apartment, but I’m sure you have plenty of other things you could be doing.”
If May needed some ideas, Sarah was more than willing to provide her a full list of things to keep her busy. Suggesting she head to work wasn’t going to get her friend moving, but a trip to Cancun or somewhere to work on her tan would probably do the trick. The further away from Sarah she could get the better. Sarah really did need to hurry up and find a new place; preferably without May’s help. Their tastes were like night and day.
“I’m not leaving until you tell me why you two broke up, and don’t give me that crap about Aaron not liking you. That man thinks you hung the moon. I can’t believe he hasn’t popped the question yet.”
Sarah couldn’t keep her scoff to herself. Aaron seemed like the perfect guy, and there had been a time when Sarah had looked at dresses in anticipation of him giving her a ring. Even with the niggling feeling that something was off, she had thought they could work it out together.
After taking a quick swig of the remaining wine in her glass, Sarah leveled her most honest look at her raven-haired friend. The restaurant was nearly empty, since the lunch crowd had thinned out. The reason behind the break-up was private, but Sarah hoped May could temper her reaction better in public. To set the tone, Sarah spoke only loud enough to barely be heard.
“I mistakenly came home early last Thursday and walked in to find Aaron heading towards our bedroom naked with a bottle of wine and a pair of glasses in his hands.”
“No,” May said under her breath as she shook her head in disbelief.
Sarah could’ve left the explanation there. May surely had the right idea about what happened. Sarah wanted to make sure May didn’t think there was a chance of reconciliation.
“I cleared my throat, hoping he had a good explanation for the two glasses and why his body glistened. Maybe he’d finally decided to try out that elliptical he insisted we need but never used and was worried about breaking one a glass.”
That was what Sarah had running through her mind when she tried to make sense of seeing Aaron's toned backside almost skipping towards the end of the hall. Sarah had always wondered how he stayed in such good shape when he seemingly refused to work out. It was something she'd always been jealous of, since she had to spend hours in the gym to make sure she looked good.
When May didn’t interrupt Sarah's short pause, she went ahead and finished the story. It was difficult to look her friend in the eye for the rest of it, but she did her best. She was evenly horrified and embarrassed about everything she learned. Horrified wasn’t the best word, but the idea of her boyfriend cheating on her was devastating.
“He froze and turned around, fully alert so to speak.”
Sarah felt sick remembering just how thick her boyfriend was for someone else. They had a healthy sex life, but it usually took some work on her part to get him anywhere near that condition.
“I couldn’t come up with anything to say, and the relieved look on Aaron's face only made me question my sanity. Before either of us could say anything, Trevor walked out of my bedroom just as naked as Aaron.”
“Trevor. As in Aaron's hunky best friend Trevor.”
There wasn’t a question to May's whispered words. Sarah remembered blinking her eyes a few times, trying to make sense of the scene. Even when Trevor noticed she was there, he hadn’t bothered covering up. He just stood there looking at her expectantly.
“That would be the one. Apparently,
they’ve been dating for years and Aaron decided he wanted to spice the relationship up by bringing in someone with boobs.”
“You’re joking. You have to be joking.”
May reached over and quickly refilled Sarah's glass before filling her own. Sarah hadn’t thought she was banged up over the loss of her boyfriend, but telling someone else what happened was rougher than she thought it would be. Instead of immediately replying to her friend, she quickly downed the refill. The subtle warmth she felt as the ruby red liquid worked its way into her stomach made her feel only mildly better.
“No joke. My ex-boyfriend has a boyfriend.”
“How in the world did they explain that?”
Leaning forward on the table, May rested her hands under her chin. Her olive-colored skin glowed slightly. Sarah couldn’t tell if it was the scandalous conversation or the new angle of the light hitting her causing the glow. Any hints of compassion had evaporated from May's eyes as she listened on. There was something wicked lurking in her eyes, but there always seemed to be a touch of something evil.
“They didn’t. Trevor asked if I wanted to grab a glass and join them for round two.”
“You’re fucking joking.”
Sarah shrugged again. May tended to have a foul mouth, so the cursing didn’t surprise Sarah. Her friend clearly couldn’t get the word joke out of her vocabulary. Since Sarah’s life was pretty much a joke, she was tired of hearing it.
“Look, I really don’t want to get into all the details. I just wanted you to know why I’m moving out and Aaron won’t make it to June's wedding next weekend.”
“Wait, wait, wait.” May lifted her hands out in front of her, almost knocking over her half-full glass. “Aaron’s not coming to the wedding?”
Her errant hands ended up settling on the edges of the small table. May took deep breaths as she attempted to process the news. Sarah thought it was obvious that the break-up meant her date wasn’t coming, but there had been a lot to process.
“No,” Sarah said carefully. “Since we’re not seeing each other, I don’t think it’s wise for us to go to a wedding together.”
“But he hasn’t officially said he wouldn’t come, right? We can’t have an uneven wedding party. June would flip, and he’s already had his tux fitting. He has to be there.”
With everything else going on, Sarah didn’t want to go to the wedding, but she knew June would kill her if she didn’t show. May’s older sister had graduated high school before May and Sarah started hanging out, but over the years Sarah and June had become close.
It hadn’t been a surprise when June asked her to be a bridesmaid. It helped that Sarah had a built-in date, since the groom didn’t have a huge friend base to pick from. Without said date, things would be uneven, but Sarah was fine stepping away from the wedding party.
“Did you not hear anything I just said? I’m not going to show up to a wedding with someone who’s been cheating on me since we started going out. I don’t want him thinking there’s a chance we’ll get back together.”
Sarah couldn’t believe she had to tell May her stance on the idea. Since the groom had a best man, May didn’t have to worry about a date as the maid of honor. Not that May had a steady boyfriend to begin with. She was too free-spirited to be tied down by one man. Sarah imagined May wouldn’t force someone she’d broken up with to be her date to the wedding. She’d just find someone new.
“Oh, please.” May waved her left hand off to the side and rolled her eyes. “It’s not like I’m asking you to spend quality time with him. You two can come separately and leave separately. All I need you to do is to look pretty and smile.”
A groan escaped Sarah as she stared at her friend. Over the ten years that they’d known each other, Sarah had to ask herself hundreds of times why they were friends. They couldn’t be more different, but they were there for each other through thick and thin. May seemed to not be willing to hold up her end of that equation if she insisted on Aaron still coming to the wedding.
“What if I find a replacement?”
There was a desire to cover her mouth as soon as the words left Sarah. Aaron wasn’t her first boyfriend, but he was only her third and she wasn’t great about getting to know new people. With about a week before she needed a guy to fill in, there was no way she’d be able to pull off the feat.
The fear and trepidation in her eyes evidently didn’t bother May, who lit up like a Christmas tree. Sarah searched her brain for any other idea to try to get out of showing up with a guy.
“Or, June could just have a slightly smaller wedding party.”
Sarah had already mentally gone over the idea, so she had no clue why that hadn’t been the first thing out of her mouth. It wasn’t like the three hundred guests were told how many bridesmaids there were going to be.
“Oh no.” May reverted to shaking her head again. “You’re right. It would be uncomfortable for you to show up with Aaron, even with separate cars, but a new guy is exactly what you need. Who do you have in mind?”
After signaling the waiter to come remove the wine and glasses from the table, May leaned in and leveled Sarah with a look that told her they weren’t leaving until Sarah assured her there would be a man at the wedding standing across from her. If she could have just waited another week before finding out about Aaron, things would’ve been a million times easier.
“I don’t have anyone in mind, May,” Sarah replied, adding emphasis to her friend’s name.
“Don’t get sassy with me. You’re the one who brought up the idea. Isn’t there anyone outside of our circle of friends you know who would be willing to help you out?”
Everyone within their immediate circle of acquaintances was already somehow involved in the wedding. May knew Sarah didn’t have friends outside of their group, so it was a rhetorical question.
In college, Sarah managed to write a book that most people didn’t hate and had even been able to get a decent advance for it and her second book. That meant she spent her days at home trying to come up with ideas for the third book in the series. Every once in a while, she’d go out to get inspiration from watching others, but she didn’t generally sit down to chat with anyone.
“Does a character from my books count? Right now, that’s all I got.”
Thinking about it for a second, Sarah wished the idea was possible. Her books included gorgeous hot spies saving damsels in distress. Sarah felt a little like one of those damsels, but there weren’t any hunks around lining up to hang out with her.
“Fine. If you’re not going to take this seriously, I’ll leave you with two options. You can either hang out with me at the bars this weekend and try to convince someone to come, or you can go to the speed dating thing Club Jinks holds every Friday night.”
Sarah raised her left eyebrow in question. The latter option seemed awfully specific coming from someone who usually picked boyfriends by who could out drink her.
“Don’t give me that look.” May’s eyes narrowed slightly and she pointed a finger across the table. “I’ve tried it twice just to see what it’s like. It was a little boring for my tastes, which means it will probably be perfect for yours.”
There was a lot of truth to that statement, making it impossible for Sarah to deny it. May lived the life of a supermodel, even though she wasn’t one. She had the looks, but the work it took to be one wasn’t her idea of fun. Since graduating college, May had worked in her father’s bank basically doing whatever she wanted. Her exact title had something to do with being his assistant, but he had another assistant to handle those duties.
“I think I prefer the idea of June just cutting me from the wedding.”
“You wouldn’t say that if you’d spent any time with her in the last week. If you thought she was picky about making sure we had our nails painted the same color come the big day, you have no idea how crazy she’s gotten. There is no way she’d take any news of a change even moderately well. It’s going to be a tough sale that Aaron has a stand-i
n, but it’s better than telling her she isn’t going to have her perfect twelve-person wedding party.”
Sarah could imagine the horror May hinted at. June and May were very much alike based on the fact that they always had to have their way. Knowing that, Sarah was certain she wasn’t going to get out of finding a date for the wedding.
She had to wonder whether it would be easier to just deal with Aaron for a few hours. Besides her confusion over everything, they’d left things amicably. Aaron was staying with Trevor while Sarah got her things together and vacated the apartment, but both men had been adamant that they were a phone call away if she needed anything.
Shaking her head, Sarah stopped her mind from taking the easy route. Her boyfriend had lied to her from day one and had been cheating on her, both offenses she couldn’t live with.
“Well, since the bar scene really isn’t my thing, tell me more about this speed dating. I’ve heard of the concept, but I’ve never considered it for myself.”
With the table cleared, there wasn’t a reason for them to continue the conversation in the restaurant. Looking around at the other wooden tables and booths in the sunny room, there were only two other groups of people, and no one looked to be concerned over the discussion happening between Sarah and May. As long as May didn’t decide to make any scenes and the staff didn’t need the table, finishing the conversation before moving on to a new location seemed logical.
“I know it’s not going to be your thing either, but bumping into someone like Aaron and hitting it off isn’t likely to happen in the next few days. Since you need to get this new guy in for a tux fitting and all that jazz, it has to be done this weekend.”
Sarah looked back at her friend as she started giving her directions. The reference to how Aaron and she had met was unneeded. So was the reminder of how little time she had to get things done. It was Thursday, so she had three and a half days according to May’s schedule. Somewhere in those days she had to find a fake boyfriend and an apartment.
“Just tell me what I have to do to get set up and where I need to go. You said Club Jinks, right? Where in the world is that?”