Page 34 of Whatever It Takes

“What the hell is wrong with your phone?” Erica pushed past me with Mackenzie right on her heels. “We’ve been texting you all morning long and why the hell did it take you so long to answer the door. Are you trying to give us both a heart att…” Her voice stopped when she entered the kitchen.

Quinn greeted them both with a grin.

“Quinn. You’re here awfully early.” Mackenzie’s eyes moved around the kitchen, taking in the current mess and inspecting everything that her eyes landed on.

“He spent the night last night,” Emery’s sweet voice offered up, basically hanging me out to dry.

Erica was leaning up against the counter. I thought her jaw was going to hit the floor.

Mackenzie pushed her sunglasses on top of her head as she walked over to Emery. “Quinn spent the night, huh?” Her eyes narrowed on mine. There was no doubt I was in for a round of interrogation.

Emery’s smile grew wide. “He’s moving in with us. We are going to his apartment to get his stuff today.”

A collective silence fell over the room. Both of my friends snapped their heads to mine so fast, they were in danger of detaching from their shoulders.

“I’m sorry,” Erica said, finally finding her voice. “Did you say Quinn was moving in?”

The man in question rose from his seat and placed his dirty plate in the dishwasher. “Why don’t I take Emery with me to my place to pick up a few things? You girls will stay here with Charlotte while I’m gone, right?”

They both nodded their heads without saying a word.

“Great.” He grinned. “Hey, Peanut, want to take a ride with me, so your mom has some time alone with her friends? There is also a cool playroom in my building that I want you to check out.”

She tilted her head to the side. “What kind of playroom?”

“It has a jungle gym and playmats with books and toys. I’ve never been in there. I thought we could check it out together.”

“Okay.” She jumped off her seat. “I’ll go get my coat and shoes.”

And just like that she was gone.

Quinn walked over to where I was leaning against the kitchen island. He placed a possessive hand along my hip, leaned in and brushed his lips along mine. “I won’t be long. Make sure they stay until I get back. I don’t want you alone.”

He couldn’t have been any more obvious, and it dawned on me that we were really going to need to have a conversation. My stomach was in knots from all the events that unfolded last night. From learning that Grant was involved with some very dangerous people. To the possibility that Emery and I could be at risk because of his involvement with those dangerous people. And then there was that moment that Quinn and I shared last night in the bathroom. I should have known that the peaceful feeling of falling asleep in his arms would be short-lived. I stared at him and wondered how this would all work out. Talk about whiplash.

He gave me one last squeeze before he let go to retrieve his keys off the counter.

Both of my friends stood off to the side, stunned stupid.

“It was good seeing you both.” He shot them both a wink and sauntered away.

Erica slammed her purse on the counter. “Okay! What the actual fuck just happened?”

“Hold that thought,” Mackenzie said and padded over to my wine rack and grabbed a bottle of Moscato. “You’ve got orange juice, right?” she asked while pulling out three champagne glasses from my cabinet.

My voice was scratchy as I pointed toward the fridge. “Yeah, top shelf on the right.”

She handed the bottle of wine over to Erica to open while she assembled the glasses on the table. Once the glasses were filled, I sat and stared at my drink and tried to think of what to say.

“Start talking.”

This was the tricky part. How much did I want to tell them? There were so many questions that I didn’t have answers to and too much uncertainty about where we stood. My life was a mess, and while last night proved that Quinn and I still shared a connection, I wasn’t convinced that starting things back up with him was the smartest thing to do.

“Charlotte.” Mackenzie’s voice was gentle. “Tell us what’s going on in that head of yours.” She reached her hand across the table, sensing my struggle.

I let go of her hand and took a sip of my mimosa and gave them the rundown of everything that happened last night. Their jaws went slack when I told them about the note that Grant left on Quinn’s windshield and about the drugs and the potential danger. They both sat on the edge of their seats, hanging onto every detail. I thought their eyes were going to fall out of their sockets when I told them about the encounter in the bathroom.

Erica leaned back in her chair. “Okay, so what’s the problem? You both obviously still love each other. He explained why he left you. He’s able to look past you marrying someone else. He broke up with his girlfriend. The list goes on.”

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