Page 45 of Gross Misconduct

“Why are you asking?”

My question then put her on the spot. That was something Eli had taught me. When you didn’t like a question, you followed it up with another question.

“I know, it’s none of my business. I shouldn’t have asked. I’m sorry. That was out of bounds. I guess when I think of public figures, I wrongly assume their personal lives are also public.”

“No problem. Chloe, come!” Yup. This was shitty. I thought I could like Nadia, but her question had crossed so many lines. “We need to get going,” I said as pleasantly as possible, but I knew it was comingoff as fake.

“I hope you’re not leaving because I was being an ass. I do apologize.”

“No, not at all,” I lied. “I have a busy afternoon.”

I hated cutting Chloe’s playtime short, but everything about Nadia left me feeling gross. Jeremy and I were not her gossip fodder, and it seemed that she thought otherwise. My mission was to protect his image, and I intended to do that.

I thought to tell Tangi and Wolseley about what had happened with Nadia, the person I thought I’d formed a friendship with, but I felt stupid that I’d fallen for it. Fallen for what? I wasn’t sure. Her fake friendship? Her nosiness? I had no idea, but it bothered me all day to the point that I sulked around the apartment. The only thing I did was warm up leftovers, take Chloe out a few times, and sulk.

I did watch the Kodiaks win their game, so that was a bright spot. I must have fallen asleep on the sofa with Chloe soon after the game ended because we both jumped when Jeremy returned to the condo. Chloe leapt off the sofa to greet him with kisses and a wagging tail, and before I could say a word, he had her leash and harness on and was taking her out for a final bathroom break.

I got into my T-shirt and pajama shorts and was going to head to bed, but I waited for them to return, still annoyed by what Nadia had asked.

“You’re still up?” he asked when he got back to the condo.

“I’m annoyed.”

“With me?” he asked with surprise.

“No, no,” I said, shaking my head.

“Tell me what’s going on,” he said, hanging up his coat. Hewas dressed in his suit still, so I told him to go change. My story wasn’t exactly riveting. He changed into a T-shirt and sweats and hung out with me and Chloe on the sofa. “All right, spill.”

I groaned and covered my face with my hands. “Remember Nadia and her husband? They had the beagle?”

“Right. From yesterday.”

“I did that dog park meetup today. She and I got chatting, and all of a sudden, she asks me if we were dating when the Orla video came out.”

Jeremy’s face soured, and I knew then that I hadn’t overreacted. “She asked you that?” he said slowly.

“Yup. I got so pissed off. I think she knew it. She tried to apologize, but I got the hell out of there. Here I thought she was normal and that maybe I had made a new friend. Am I overreacting?”

Jeremy’s jaw clenched, and I was sure he was gritting his teeth. He shook his head slowly and sighed. “No, you’re not, and she’s an asshole. But maybe she’s also not very bright and says things before thinking about them.”

“If so, is that the kind of friend I want?”

“Do you need her as a friend? It sounds like you have two amazing friends.”

I rolled my eyes. He didn’t understand. He had a million friends. Sure, maybe they weren’t best friends, but he still had tons of them. I had two, and one lived far away. “It’s different for you,” I said, refusing to feel sorry for myself. “Everyone likes you. Unless you’re kissing a teammate’s wife, but even then, they still like you. Nadia’s husband was falling all over you.”

He blinked a few times in confusion. “People like you too.”

“They don’t. Not enough to want to be friends. Wolseley and Tangi are the only two people who’ve wanted to be friends. Even in college, friends were fleeting. I just don’tconnect with people in anything more than a superficial way or maybe as acquaintances. Even my own parents don’t like me.”

He seemed so discombobulated. “But we are friends.”

I huffed. “Come on, you didn’t want to be friends.”

“Why does that matter? We are friends now.”

I turned away because tears were stinging my eyes. “I hate feeling sorry for myself. Look, let’s not pretend here. Once this fake engagement is up, we won’t be friends anymore. I know that. You know that.”

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