Page 47 of The Sweet Spot

“Nice!” Matt rips his eyes from the screen long enough to stretch back and bump Kellan’s fist in approval. “You got any other old friends coming? What about that one girl from last year, the blonde in the pink dress with the nice—”

“She’s engaged, bro,” wheezes Kellan.

Matt makes a face, returning his attention to the TV.

Setting the bong aside, Kellan turns to me. “Do you want to ride together or are you riding solo with Brooke again?”

Leaning back against the couch cushions, I shrug. She came with us last year, but we’d been new then, lighthearted and flirty. “Nah, I thought maybe Logan could bring her.”

Matt glances back with a confused frown, but no one says a word. Not that I’d expect them to—I didn’t know I was going to say what I said until I said it. The words just wouldn’t stay put.

Kellan’s eyes bounce back and forth between Logan and me like we’re playing tennis. Logan’s frozen, staring at his hands. Any lingering doubts I had dissipate as I realize that he’s not going to deny it. What an asshole.

Matt turns off the TV and comes to stand right in front of the couch,watching expectantly.

“You know, since he’s fucking her,” I add casually, draining the rest of my beer.

This stirs Logan, and he drags his red-rimmed gaze to mine. “It’s not like that, Luca.”

“Then what’s it like?”

He runs his hands through his hair, mouth opening and closing like a dying fish.

Getting to my feet, I look over at Kellan. “Well, I won’t be going with Brooke, so let me know if you want to just ride together. I’m gonna go pack.”

I stalk out of the room, Matty on my heels. He follows me right into my bedroom and closes the door, eyes wide as planets. “All right, man, spill. What is even happening right now?”

“I stopped by her place the other night to bring her a book and saw her and Logan getting out of his car. It was late, almost midnight.” My phone beeps with another text from Brooke. I ignore it, silencing the ringer and turning it face down. “And you heard him just now. Motherfucker isn’t even denying it.”

For once Matt’s serious. He leans against my door with a huff. “I don’t believe it. He doesn’t even like her.”

We’ve talked about the possibility of Brooke’s infidelity before, usually when I needed a sounding board or someone to talk me off the edge when my suspicions over her behavior reared up, but we never knew for sure.

“Apparently, he does.” Exhaling loudly, I flop back onto the bed. “I should’ve listened to you.”

“Shut up. This is next level.” He scratched his head. “Brooke, I mean…yeah. Bad vibes. But Logan? I never thought he’d go this low.”

“Me neither.” For the first time since this shitstorm began, a bolt of sadness pierces my chest.

How do you do this to one of your oldest friends?

Wren

Ismack Dallas’ arm as he glances over at me yet again. “Focus on the road, silly.”

“But you look so hot in that,” he says with a sly grin, gaze snagging on the hem of my dress.

“Thanks. You look pretty hot, yourself.”

We’re en route to a party at his parents’ house, a fancy New Year’s Eve affair they throw every year. When Dallas told me that this year’s theme was the 1950’s, I went straight to the internet and found a belted, pink wiggle dress with soft, red vintage roses and a sweetheart neckline. It conforms to my every curve, making me look like a real vixen.

“Not as hot as you, sweet thing.”

Dallas has become one of my closest friends, even though we tend to straddle the line between platonic and…not. There’s a refreshing lack of expectations when it comes to our relationship. I never saw myself settlinginto this kind of scenario, but it’s easy with Dallas.

Because we have fun together. A lot of it. Sometimes that fun ends in an orgasm, but mostly it’s days out on his sailboat and late-night study sessions and silly adventures around the forests and mountains of Santa Cruz. It was a no-brainer to say yes when he asked me to go with him to this party. Apparently, it’s kind of a big deal among the upper crust of Aptos, but I’d go even if it was a barbecue at the beach.

Laughing, I gaze at the scenery as it blurs by. It’s been cool and overcast all day, the bright silver sky slowly darkening into a gunmetal gray as the sun goes down. “It’s not every day I get to dress up, you know? I’m excited.”

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