Page 93 of Never Been Worse

“Do you want me to come over there?”

I weigh his question, then shake my head before answering. “No. I’m a big girl.”

There’s a long pause before he speaks again.

“I’ll stay on until you sleep,” he says gently.

“What?”

“Tell me about your day, little wife.” It’s not the first time he’s called me since I “moved out,” but he’s given me my space, and now I realize he’s doing it to try and respect the boundaries and rules I’ve set.

God. He’s so fucking good to me.

“My day?”

“We’ll talk until you fall asleep. Then we’ll only have five more days.” I smile, so fucking grateful for what I’ve found in the chaos.

And then I tell my husband about my day, but the words I really want to tell him stay stuck on the tip of my tongue.

Five Days Until Project Ruin Jeremy Vaughn

I’m weighing my options on sequins when there’s a knock on the door of the cottage. I stand, walk over, and open the door. Then I stand there, shocked as Stella Green walks in without a word, Jules and Ava following behind her.

“What are you doing here?”

“Wes sent us. Says you needed a pick-me-up,” Ava says, walking over to one of the two dress forms and taking in my work with a wide, approving smile. I would comment, but I’m still stuck on Wes sending them.

“He did?”

Stella nods. “He also sent me with this.” She digs in a bag and pulls out a crinkly blue package with a green sticky note on top.

Some late-night snack options.

Instantly, my throat feels achy, and I start to sniff, my eyes starting to water.

“Oh, oh, no, Harp!” Jules says, a bit of panic in her voice over my show of emotions.

I shake my head and wave at my eyes to distract myself from crying. “I’m fine, I’m fine.”

“You almost cried at a package of cookies,” Ava says. “That’s the literal opposite of fine.”

“No, really. I’m good.” Three sets of judging eyes glare at me, and I sigh. “I just..I miss him. Not seeing him has been harder than I expected.”

Stella’s eyes go wide. “You haven’tseenhim?”

“She’s being stubborn,” Ava says with a roll of her eyes, sitting on the edge of my bed and kicking her shoes off as if she lives here.

“I’m being reasonable! What if someone catches him coming here!? Or me going there? Then all of this is for nothing!” Silence fills the small room that feels so much smaller, with four women now in it.

“Tell us what’s really happening,” Jules says in her motherly tone.

My head jerks back, and I look at her quizzically. “What?”

Ava sighs and rolls her eyes. “You’re not afraid he’ll get caught coming over here because you know just as well as I do Leo wouldn’t let that happen. So what’s really going on? Why are you punishing yourself?”

I purse my lips and shake my head to deny her, but she cuts me off.

“We’re your best friends, Harper. You don’t have to bend the truth for us.”

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