Page 111 of The Trade

I push open the door and step into her room, finding her lounging on the bed. Her eyes meet mine, and I can sense the wariness in her gaze. “Hey ...um, is everything okay?”

I offer a small smile, attempting to put her at ease. “I just wanted to talk. Are you ...do you have time right now?”

“Absolutely.” She shifts as she leans back against her headrest. Her eyes are earnest, her expression open. “Of course.”

The simple affirmation prompts me to move. Quietly, I make my way toward her, awkwardly settling on the edge of her bed.

She draws in a slow, deep breath. “Where do I even start?”

“I guess ...at the beginning?”

“Well,” she says, her fingers playing anxiously with a strand of her hair. “There isn’t much to it. You were there when I met your brother. There was a ... a spark, I guess. Nothing big, just a little one. You were constantly leaving the dinner table to call West, so Mica and I ... we flirted. Just harmless stuff.”

“Were you planning on sleeping with him then?”

“God, no!” she assures me, fervently shaking her head. “It wasn’t like that. It was just ... the attention, I guess. Mica, your brother ... he’s larger than life. Tall, handsome, famous. Being noticed by someone like that is overwhelming.”

“So, then, the night of the banquet?”

“I came home early from the event because of Cam—you know, he had to stay back to help with the cleanup. Mica was already on our couch when I walked in.”

“Okay, that makes sense.”

“I thought you were still staying with West. I told Mica you wouldn’t be back until morning, assuming he’d call you right away to return. But he didn’t. Instead, he suggested we watch a movie. One thing led to another, and we ... ended up in my room.”

“I think I’ve got the picture from there.”

“I swear, Jade, it wasn’t planned or anything,” she rushes to clarify. “But I am truly, deeply sorry. I got caught up in the moment.”

I meet her apology with a knowing look. “Believe me, I know what that feels like.”

Her brow furrows. “You do?”

“Yeah, I may have kissed West at a bar last night.”

“Oh, shit.”

“It was a careless mistake. We were alone together, and ... one thing led to another.”

“Oh, Jade.” Her eyes hold genuine concern as she asks, “Are you okay?”

“Not really,” I say, honesty overriding my pride. I quickly steer the conversation back to her. “Shan, I want to tell you everything. But first, I need to ask—are you ... are you still interested in my brother?”

“It was a onetime thing. Mica and I ... we’re not .. . we wouldn’t be good together.”

“Okay.” Relief washes over me. “Then let’s consider it water under the bridge. I’m sorry I didn’t hear you out sooner. I just wasn’t ready yet.”

She dismisses me with a wave of her hand. “You don’t have to apologize. I’m just glad we’re finally talking about it.”

“So am I.”

“So, tell me what happened,” she says, curiosity in her eyes. “Why did you guys break up? From the outside, it seemed like everything was going so well.”

I guess it’s my turn to be vulnerable. I swallow the lump in my throat before I ask, “Will you promise to keep what I’m about to tell you between us?”

“Sure, of course.”

“The football team ...they have this fucked-up tradition. That’s why we broke up.” My hands wring together anxiously in the middle of my lap. “It’s a sort of game amongst the senior players. Every year, at the banquet, they try to switch dates. And ... that’s the only reason West invited me in the first place.”

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