Page 81 of Puppy Love

Cam’s voice is like a saccharine symphony playing in my ear. It’s feathery, even when harsh words are slipping out, and the slightest lisp makes me never want to hear another song again. I don’t want her to stop talking, so I scour my brain for anything Cam might find worth her time.

“So, what’s with the, uh, word carved into your car door?”

It’s been a question on my mind since I saw it that night her car broke down. At the time, it hadn’t seemed like a good idea to ask. It’s a particular word, one even most sailors won’t use. And with the depth of the carving, there was definitely intent behind it.

A choked laugh slips through Cam’s lips, but she doesn’t look at me. “You noticed that?”

I nod, even though her eyes are fixated on the dog in the tub.

“So.” She chuckles again, shaking her head. “Cody, you know, my ex—”

I do, because I have never wanted to hit someone so hard in my entire life. Something about him is so unsettling, so unnerving. I force my disgusted expression to go blank and continue listening.

“We broke up because I walked in on him with another woman. Obviously, I freaked out and told him to leave because it was my bed—“

I don’t even mean to gasp, it just forces its way out of me. I swear, when men were created, the universe replaced their brain cells with audacity. Sure, Mallory cheated on me. But at least she had the decency to do it somewhere else. “He didn’t!”

“Oh, but he did.”

Cam’s smiling, but I know how painful it is to go through that. I couldn’t imagine having to actually witness it.

“Anyway, he flips it over on me and says I made him cheat, that he didn’t have a choice because I had just started a new medication and, well, those things can affect that, y’know?”

The story’s coming off like some big comedy skit. Like Cam isn’t talking about the tragic end of a long-term relationship through backstabbing betrayal. Like the sight of him a few weeks ago didn’t send her into a spiral. I’m the queen of pretending everything is fine, but when Mallory slept with someone else, it took me weeks to even tell Ruthie because every time I thought about it, I felt like I was going to throw up.

“So he carved ‘cunt’ into your car?”

“No.” Cam turns on the hose, wriggling the nozzle, and the suds begin to wash down the dog’s body. “The woman leaves, but Cody refuses, so I call Adrian.”

Cam’s eyes dart to me, and I look back down at the floor, reminding myself to stay busy.

“Adrian calls Cody’s mom and tells her what happened. He’s always been a huge momma’s boy. His mom calls him while he’s still lying naked in the bed, and she screams at him over the phone. I couldn’t make out everything, but the word ‘castrate’ was definitely in there.”

Nothing in the story is funny to me, but I force a laugh for Cam’s sake.

“The next day, that etching showed up on Luigi.”

My throat tightens as my own saliva gets caught in my airway. “Luigi?”

“My car.”

“Right.” I swallow, uncertainty filling my mind. Part of me wants to change the topic completely, but the other part wants to tell Cam that I know exactly how it feels, that kind of disloyalty.

“Mallory cheated on me.” The words come out hesitantly, almost like I don’t know it for a fact. Really, I just don’t know why I’m telling her. Maybe it’s an attempt to make her feel better, or maybe, it’s just because Cam has a way of understanding. “That’s why we got a divorce. Well, that was the nail in the coffin, I guess.”

I try to swallow down the dry lump forming in the base of my throat.

Where was I going with this?

Cam’s gaze flicks up to me, that similar, pitying look she had given me the night I showed up on her doorstep.

“I’m sorry,” she says quietly.

18I shake my head. “No, I’m sorry. Cody is a dick. Cam, you deserve someone who sees how amazing you are. You’re a fucking terror sometimes, I’ll give you that. But you’re a privilege to be around, and anyone who knows you can see that. So don’t forget it. When you—” The words get stuck at the bottom of my throat, as if I’m holding onto them. A sigh slips through my lips, and my eyes lock onto hers. “When you’re ready for something more than—”

The salon door flings open. My heart sinks in my chest as I spin around.

“Hey Vi, is it cool if I dip?” Malcolm stands in the doorway, his body slumped against the wooden frame. My eyes flick to Cam, just for a brief second, her eyes wide and her cheeks pale. “Everything is done, and honestly, I want to go home.”

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