Page 68 of Crazy for You

He wiped down the counter as he talked. “No. Off-the-Grid’s where it’s at for me now. The potential to grow is endless, and I get to work with Ethan and Mark.”

“You three really are close,” she said.

“Like brothers.”

She envied him that a little bit. She had lots of friends, but none as close as he, Ethan, and Mark were. “You guys are really lucky to have each other.”

“Don’t I know it.” His eyes narrowed. “What about you? You still keep in touch with the Mackenzies?”

“Yes, but it’s more like saying hello when I bump into them places and sending a card at Christmas.” Emma had lived with the Mackenzies for three years, but they’d made no real effort to keep in touch after she turned eighteen. They’d never treated her like family. So Emma hid behind her smile and let them slip quietly from her life.

Actually, she’d done that a lot since losing her mom and Derek. She had plenty of friends, but no best friend…not until Gabby came along anyway. She was always surrounded by people, and yet somehow she still felt incredibly lonely.

“What about their daughter?” Ryan asked. “You guys used to be close. What was her name?”

“Clara. We grew apart, I guess. We’re still friendly, but we don’t really hang out.” And a big part of that had been when Clara hooked up with Ryan right after graduation.

Right after Derek died.

Emma had never told Clara about her crush, but she knew Clara had suspected the truth. And so, when Clara slept with him, it had felt like the ultimate betrayal, when Emma’s world was falling apart and Ryan still looked at her like she was a little kid.

“That’s too bad,” he said.

She shrugged. “Gabby and I have gotten really close, though.”

“Yeah, you two definitely seemed to hit it off.”

On the bar in front of her, Emma’s phone lit with an incoming text message. SOS

“Uh-oh,” she said.

Ryan glanced down at her phone. “Someone in trouble?”

“Yeah, Jess. She needs me to rescue her from her date.” Emma glanced over at her friend’s table, where Jess was still smiling and nodding along to whatever Ruben was saying. Emma tapped her fingers against the bar for a few seconds, formulating her plan. “Could you help me sneak out the back?”

“Sure,” Ryan said. “Why?”

“I think I need to walk in through the front door like I just got here. I’m going to pretend to be her sister.”

Ryan’s brow furrowed. “But you look nothing like Nicole.”

“Her date doesn’t know that.”

“How about you go over to her table as yourself, but pretend you’re shitfaced, and your date ditched you, and you need a ride home.”

Emma scrunched her nose. “I suppose I could do that.”

He leaned back with a smile. “Show us your chops.”

She stood, wavering in her stupid ballet flats. Why hadn’t she worn heels? They’d have made her job so much easier. “Wish me luck.”

“You got this.”

She gulped several deep breaths until the oxygen rush made her dizzy then she staggered toward Jessica’s table in the back.

Jessica looked up, her eyes wide. “Emma? Are you okay?”

“Oh my God, Jess…I’m so glad you’re here! I, um…” She swayed to the side, righting herself just before she fell flat on her face.

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