Page 14 of Cocky Brutal Sinner

Cat

Anyone know any good restaurants? Nate and I are going for our first post-wedding date, and I want to do something fun.

Pippa

Ryan and I just went to a great Ethiopian place.

Cat

Absolutely not.

Maura

Not a fan of Ethiopian?

Cat

I love it! But you have to eat with your hands, and can you imagine the fit Nate would throw if he got sauce all over his nice suits?

Pippa

Nate can leave the fancy suits at home for once. In fact, I just saw an outfit that would look great on him.

She attaches a picture of a guy on the sidewalk wearing head to toe Cookie Monster pajamas, complete with fuzzy blue slippers.

Maura

Oh, yeah. Totally someone’s boyfriend’s style…just not Nate’s.

Pippa

Sigh. Yeah, Ryan would wear this unironically.

I find myself smiling despite myself. I’ll never stop being grateful for these girls taking me into their little group. I send a laughing emoji to Pippa.

Brinley

If you want classic Italian, a new little place just opened across the street from the Copper Cup. It’s got a real pretty garden in the back.

Cat

Sounds perfect, you’re a lifesaver. I’ll stop by and pick up the menu when I get there.

When I close the text, my chest feels tight. The girls all promised to stop by this morning to meet Eden. I should be excited at my oldest friend meeting my newest. Instead, I’m all wrapped up in anxiety and the knowledge that I’m betraying them. That’s no one’s fault but my own.

“What’s a five-letter word for ‘liar?’” Eden asks, interrupting my train of thought. She’s sitting across the counter, drinking a massive mug of coffee she has me refill every fifteen minutes.

I lean forward to glance at her laptop screen. “Aren’t you supposed to be applying for jobs, not doing crossword puzzles?”

“I spent all morning on LinkedIn, and I’ve run out of jobs I’m qualified for. What I have not run out of is crossword puzzles. So that’s my plan for the next hour. So, liar? Five letters, starts with p, ends with y.”

I think for a second. “Phony.”

Eden grins. “Damn, you’re good at this.”

Another synonym for liar: B-R-I-N-L-E-Y.

Luke hasn’t texted, and neither has Beau. Of course, why would Beau text me, either? It’s not like he knows my secret identity. No one on earth knows, not even Eden, not even my editor. Beau used to complain about Peppermint posts, but in the past year or so, he stopped mentioning them. I guess he decided they weren’t worth worrying about.