Page 93 of Broken Pact

I snort. “That doesn’t sound like something I would say.” I definitely said that before.

“I’m sleep deprived, not an idiot.”

I hear baby noises in the background, and I jump on that like the adorable squishy life raft she is.

“Is that my favorite girl cooing to me? Tell her Auntie Cora is coming to visit soon.”

“Not-uh. I don’t think so, Coraline Josephine Carter.”

A laugh stutters out of me. “Are you full-naming me at eight o’clock in the morning, babe?”

“Oh god, it’s only eight? I thought it was like noon,” she laments.

“Hey, you let me know when you want me to come steal my favorite baby away so you can take the most epic disco nap.” It’s an offer I repeat often. I’ll take any and every chance to snuggle Evie’s adorable daughter.

“Don’t distract me, Cora. Back to the matter at hand. What happened to sleeping with the enemy?” she huffs.

I pull into my parking spot at the bakery and put the car in park. “Is that a movie reference?”

“No, those are the words you told me when I first started seeing Nova,” she deadpans. I imagine the little furrow in her brow.

“Oh well. I still maintain that.”

“Hey,” she protests.

I shrug. “What? I love you, so I’m allowed to be protective.” Nova St. James might be her husband now, but he was a playboy once upon a time.

“Well, I’m doing the same,” she says.

“Yeah,” I hesitate, biting the inside of my cheek. “But this is different.” I don’t even know what different means in this context. Different because it’s supposed to be fake, but nothing about the last couple days really felt fake.

“So was Nova,” she counters.

“And Bane and Silas,” I drawl.

“Exactly,” she shouts like I just made her point for her.

I shake my head, huffing a laugh. “Okay, what are we even arguing about again?”

“I don’t really know,” she says, laughing.

“I don’t know either.”

She sighs, a wistful noise. “Tell me what’s going on. I feel so out of the loop with you.”

I sigh through my nose and take a sip of the iced coffee I picked up to buy myself a few seconds. I don’t want to lie to her, but I don’t even know what the truth is anymore.

“We’re together.”

“Explain,” she snaps.

“Jasper—that’s his real name by the way?—”

“I know his legal name, Cora.” Evie sighs with impatience.

Guilt pricks against my breastbone like a fresh needle. “Yeah, well, I didn’t.”

“But I thought you two dated already?” Her voice is hesitant, like she’s afraid of saying the wrong thing

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