Page 55 of Happily Never After

She opened the door with a smile, prepared to make excuses for her identity-confirming behavior, but faltered when it swung wide. Rosie and Winston sat at her feet. Rosie, who normallyjumped onto the legs of anyone who visited, remained stationary and growled softly.

“Oh—uh, hi,” Claire said, taking in the woman in front of her. She was stunning—easily 5’10”, legs for days, yoga booty shorts and a crop top showing off a toned and tanned body. She was carrying a plate with a raised mound covered in tin foil. Who the hell was this mysterious plate-toting woman? Was this how people in California sold drugs? Or got people to join cults? Or worse, pyramid schemes?

The girl’s thousand-watt smile slid off her face like tree sap when she saw Claire. “Oh. Sorry, I was looking for Luke.”

“He’s—uh—” Claire looked behind her. A choking sound came from the kitchen, then footsteps hurried down the hallway, and Luke appeared. A toast crumb clung to his maroon button-down, and Claire brushed it away.

“What are you doing here?” Luke asked flatly.

Claire jabbed him in the ribs. Being rude to strangers was almost never acceptable, especially when the smell of icing was drifting from whatever they were holding.

“I just—uh—I saw lights on last night and figured you had come back. I just wanted to bring this to you and apologize for…” She paused and stared at Rosie and Winston. “How we left things.”

Claire bristled. What the fuck did that mean? How they left things? Was this one of Luke’s LA girlfriends? She lifted her chin.

And how had she seen lights on? Did she live nearby, or was she actively stalking Luke? Claire drew her shoulders back and stood up straight. She wasn’t generally a jealous person, but she would roundhouse kick a cake-making stalker right off the front stoop if the occasion called for it.

A light clatter in the hallway announced Mindy’s presence. Luke’s jaw clenched.

“Aren’t you going to introduce me?” The girl asked, arching one perfectly manicured eyebrow.

“Claire, this is Olivia. My…” Luke trailed off. His face was screwed up in concentration.

“Ex.” Olivia extended one hand to Claire.

The bottom dropped out of Claire’s stomach. This gorgeous, leggy, ultra in-shape woman was Luke’s ex? And he had settled for a girl who could barely even reach the top shelf wines in the liquor store? Oh, boy.

“Nice to meet you, Olivia,” Claire said as gracefully as she could manage as they clasped hands.

“So nice to meet you,” Olivia said with another smile that didn’t reach her sapphire eyes. Her hand was frigid and bony like a salmon.

Claire pulled her hand back and suppressed the urge to shudder. “Well, it looks like you two have some catching up to do. I’ll be in the living room getting ready for the meeting.” She squeezed Luke’s arm and walked back down the hallway.

Mindy joined her. “You’re going to let them talk?” she hissed. “Did you look at her?”

Claire ducked behind the corner of the living room and craned her ear toward the foyer. “Obviously I’m going to listen,” she said, drawing her finger to her lips. “Shh.”

Mindy ducked down next to her.

“Wow, so you replaced me with two girls? That’s quite a compliment.”

“Why are you really here?” Luke asked gruffly.

“I told you. I felt bad about how we left things. That day can’t be the end of our story.”

Was it Claire’s imagination, or was her voice closer now? Did she let herself into the house? Was she stepping closer to Luke? Over Claire’s dead body.

Luke laughed, but it was a hollow sound. “How we left things?” His voice grew quieter. Claire and Mindy leaned farther into the hallway. “You mean when I asked you to marry me and you said you couldn’t because you wouldn’t leave LA?”

Claire faced Mindy and their mouths both fell open. A hand flew to her chest as hot shockwaves coursed up and down her body. Luke had proposed to someone, and that girl was stupid enough to say no? No wonder he thought proposals were a waste of time and money.

“I was young and stupid,” Olivia said. “I didn’t know what I wanted. But now I know. When I see you here, in the place where we met, and see this scar?—”

Scar? What scar? Luke only had a handful, and she’d better not be talking about the one on his upper thigh.

“It just feels inevitable. You and me,” Olivia purred.

Claire’s hands clenched into fists at her side. This Booty Bootcamp twat was not going to sink her acrylic claws back into Luke. If Claire could escape a serial killer, she could absolutely headbutt this woman off her property. She straightened up and took a step forward, but Mindy dragged her back into the living room.

---