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“I think so,” Ryan said.
Andy was carrying a tray that had legs on the side so it could be placed over someone’s lap, which he did for me. There was a plate full of bacon and eggs, and a smaller plate with three pieces of toast and a little bowl of jam. A glass of orange juice rounded out the breakfast.
Ryan watched me. “You’re not going to throw up all over it, are you?”
“I’m good. This is amazing! Thank you.”
Andy sat on the bed next to Ryan. “You looked like you needed it.”
“Just double-teaming you with care,” Ryan said.
I laughed as I dug into the eggs. They were already salted and peppered to perfection, and tasted fluffy and delicious.
“What do you remember?” Andy asked gently.
“Not a lot. I left the restaurant. That’s about it.” I winced. “Did I do anything stupid when I got home?”
“No, but you missed a lot of excitement,” Ryan said.
“What kind of excitement?”
Ryan jerked his thumb. “Andy here got in a fight with Braden last night.”
“What! Why?”
Andy removed his glasses and cleaned them on his shirt. He looked distinguished and cute with them on, but he had a devilishly handsome face without them. “I was angry at Braden for allowing you to wander home by yourself. It’s a miracle you got home safely without passing out in a subway station somewhere. Braden should have stayed with you.”
“He was with his parents though,” I pointed out. “I’m the one who fled from them without warning.”
“Then he should have called us to come meet you,” Andy insisted. “Or hailed a cab.”
I pursed my lips. “I’m a big girl. I don’t need an escort.”
Ryan laughed. “That’s a stupid fucking thing to say. Everyone needs help when they’re trashed. That’s what friends—or more than friends—do for one another. Anyway, Andy let him have it when he eventually got home. The whole townhouse practically trembled from the shouting. I’m shocked you slept through it.”
“He should have worried about your safety first,” Andy said. There was an intensity in his voice I hadn’t heard before. “Even if he was angry with you in the moment.”
I reached out and squeezed his hand. “Thank you for worrying. Does this mean everyone heard about how the dinner went?”
Ryan and Andy grimaced. That was answer enough.
“So that day you got fired from the department store,” Andy said. “That was for cussing out Braden’s mom? Calling her a bitch?”
“Apparently so,” I grumbled. “Now that I think about it, my boss did call her by name, Mrs. Williams. I didn’t put two and two together.”
Ryan leaned in with a sly smirk. “Between you and me, she is a bitch.”
“Right? It’s worse when you’re trying to sell her a pair of shoes three sizes too small.”
“Having said that,” Ryan said, snatching a piece of bacon from my plate, “I would never say it to her face. That would be dumb.”
“You should go back in time and tell me that a few weeks ago.” I gulped down half the glass of orange juice and sighed. “Should I go talk to Braden?”
Ryan and Andy shared a look. “Well,” Ryan said, “he got up early this morning and left before the rest of us woke up. We haven’t seen him all day.”
I felt a moment of relief that I wouldn’t need to confront him until later. Then I realized what else Ryan had said.
“All day?”
