Page 43 of Lips of an Angel

“Before or after the ring appeared on his finger?”

“Before, obviously.” I sighed and scrubbed a hand over my face. “I’m still not seeing the point of this conversation.”

“Fine,” Ryder said, getting to his feet. “As much as I'd love to drag this out and watch you squirm, I’ll show you some mercy.” He braced himself on the desk, leaning over me. It would likely be the only time that Ryder would lookdownat me. “He’s in love with you, you giant, tattooed buffoon!”

I blinked. Moments of silence stretched between us. Surely Ryder hadn’t said what I thought he had. Angel? In love withme? That was the most ludicrous thing I’d ever heard.

“No, he’s not,” I finally said.

Ryder spun and sauntered back to the couch. “Denial is a river in Egypt! Do you really think I would pull something like that out of my ass? Especially knowing how Angel is?”

“I don’t… see it.”

“Because you’re so wrapped up in Raleigh-land. Take it from someone who’s worked alongside the two of you for the last five years and has had to deal with the hearts in Angel’s eyes whenever he looks at you. And you’re in love with him too.”

“That’s ridiculous, Ryder.”

Something stirred in the back of my mind, but I didn’t want to entertain the thought—if for no other reason than refusing to let Ryder know he was right. That was dangerous territory. Besides, Angel and I had been best friends since we were twelve years old. That gave him seventeenyearsto say something, and he hadn’t. We told each other everything, or so I thought. Moreover, I didn’t think Angel was the type to string Eli along for all that time if he was in love with someone else.

With… me?

I was saved by my phone going off. Though when I fished the device out of my pocket and read the ID, I wondered why the hell the universe had it out for me.

It was Eli.

I didn’t let Ryder know that. “Will you go make sure Jack’s not out there going full Monte Durham on Angel? He can only take so much of the fuss, and we have a bar to run.”

Ryder snorted. “Sure thing, boss.”

I’d grill him about the smug grin on his face later. I waited until he’d shut the office door, and only then answered the phone. “Hello?”

“Hey,” Eli said. “I’m glad I got ahold of you before the bar opened.”

As much as it pained me, I played the part of the supportive best friend. “You got lucky. The bartenders are all fawning over your new fiancé. Congratulations, by the way.”

I could practically hear Eli’s smile over the phone. “Thanks, but that’s not why I’m calling.”

“Is everything okay?”

Clattering echoed in the background of the call, then a door shut and there was silence. “Angel told you I was on the trauma rotation this month, right?”

“He did.”

“I’ve just seen Billie.”

“Are they okay?” I was concerned, but more so because Eli was calling me about it.

“They will be, but Raleigh? I need to warn you about what’s happening. They’re claiming they were at the Hopyard last night, and someone slipped something into their drink. They said their memory got fuzzy, and when they woke up, they were…” Eli sighed, letting the silence fill in the blanks. “They asked for a chaperone, so I wasn’t the only one in the room with them. I had no choice but to get the police involved, but I wanted to call you at the first opportunity.”

My palms were so clammy that the phone slipped in my grip. I caught it before it hit the floor. “Should I come down there?”

Eli’s response was instant. “No. That could look even worse on your part. Your best bet is to wait there and let them come to you. Angel was with me, but did you work last night?”

I ran a hand through my hair. “Yeah, but I was back and forth dealing with paperwork and manning the door.”

Eli sighed. “I have to get back, but I’d start going through the security footage if I were you—see if you can get ahead of this. Between you and me, something’s not sitting right about their story. I have to follow protocol here, but?—”

“I get it,” I said, cutting him off. I didn’t want him to get in any trouble by calling me, so the less he said the better. “Thank you for calling me, Eli.”

---