Page 73 of From the Moment We Met

“Meet you at the pub?"

"Good thing the babysitter arrived early. Are Ben and Enrique meeting us after dinner?"

"No penises tonight. I've had enough to last me a lifetime."

∞∞∞

"Spill it, what happened?” Sabina slipped onto the barstool, shooting her friend a questioning look.

"Jacob Edmonton is an asshole,” Lilly bit out, her jaw clenched.

"Care to elaborate or is that the whole story?"

Lilly scratched at the surface of the bar, her favorite nervous habit. "Alcohol first, story after."

Their whiskey arrived, and Lilly slugged back half the glass, the burn a painful but beautiful feeling. She knew after the burn came the numbness. Numbness was good. Numbness made the heart hurt less.

"Lilly, the man has called me fifteen times in the last ten minutes. If you don't want me to answer him, you'd better tell me what the hell is happening."

"Why does he keep calling you?"

He's looking for you. He’s sick with worry, wondering where you are. You told me earlier today that you had the most amazing night with him. What in the world could he have done in less than twenty-four hours to earn this level of animosity?"

A single tear slid down Lilly's cheek, and she wiped it away. "He made me feel and look like an utter fool. Apparently, he fit in sex with me between appointments."

Sabina grasped her arm. "You slept with Jacob? I thought you said you hadn’t—"

Lilly shook her head. "Not quite, it's my only saving grace in this situation, not putting out for the infamous playboy." She looked at her friend. "Why were you having dinner with him last night, anyway? Has he put you in the rotation, too?"

Sabina smirked at her friend's comment. "Not hardly. He felt awful about Victoria showing up at his house uninvited on Saturday. He hoped I could shed some light on your mindset, and how you felt about him. I know he’s crazy about you—"

"Oh bullshit,” Lilly bellowed, taking another swig of whiskey.

"Lilly, the man is head over heels for you."

“No, he’s an out of this world actor. You know, I actually believed all the lies he told me last night.”

“What lies were those?”

Lilly blinked back tears—stupid, stupid heart. “That he’d never felt this way before, that I was different from any woman he’d ever met…but it was all a load of crap. And that man’s tongue should be outlawed—”

"That bad?"

Lilly groaned, resting her head on the bar. "No, that damn good."

"You demanded I meet you here, now you're not saying anything, except that he’s an asshole.” Sabina put her finger under Lilly's chin, forcing her face up. "I can't help you if I don't know what happened to cause this reaction.”

"We had this amazing night together—off the charts romantic. I slept curled in his arms all night. But then he rushed off this morning, claiming he had some business to attend to—what a crock. Then I run into him with Victoria at the Chiltern Firehouse."

Sabina's face fell. "Fuck. Did he explain his situation with Victoria?"

Lilly took another swig of whiskey. "Nope and I don't care about his reasons. I don't ever want to see that man again."

"So, you didn't let him explain anything?"

"Why should I? I think it's pretty apparent what happened. I was played for a fool by Jacob bloody Edmonton. You know Victoria demanded I leave him alone? She claimed I was distracting her boyfriend from his priorities.”

Sabina gasped. "She said that? What a conniving bitch." She heaved herself from the stool, sliding a bowl of peanuts in front of Lilly. "I'll be right back. Eat something before you puke."

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