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CHAPTER1
MEG
Pop quiz!
As a teacher, I love a good pop quiz, but as a student, they’re the worst.
Unfortunately today, I guess I’m the student, and I don’t know the answer to this question.
When the face of a beautiful redhead with the name Genessa comes up on your boyfriend’s phone, what should you do?
A) Begin sobbing.
B) Overanalyze.
C) Freak out.
D) Run!
I’m going to go with a mixture of B and C.
I glance again at the vibrating phone on the coffee table. Genessa’s sapphire eyes and Disney Princess smile make me run a hand through my hair self-consciously. I’m sure there’s a reasonable explanation. Perhaps Zak was trying to find a Little Mermaid look-alike to be the entertainment at a work party. Or maybe Genessa commandeered Zak’s phone and forced her digits into his address book while holding him hostage.
Yep. Plenty of reasonable explanations. I have nothing to worry about.
“Zak!” I yell from his living room sofa. “Zak! Someone’s calling you.” He must be in the shower, because he doesn’t answer.
The phone buzzes again.
Genessa:I can’t wait to see you tomorrow at CrossFit. Maybe after our workout we can...
I swipe up on his phone, desperate to read the rest of the text that got cut off—After CrossFit we can WHAT?—but the screen is locked. I quickly type one, one, one, one into the phone, but the dots dance, mocking me for assuming Zak would have such a predictable password.
I chew on my lip. Tomorrow is Saturday. I asked Zak if he wanted to go with me to Hobby Lobby to shop for fall decor. He said he couldn’t go because he has to work. IfGenessaasked him to go somewhere, would his work schedule magically change? I push his phone away in disgust and pull out my own phone, frantically forming a text to my siblings.
Meg:Zak’s in the shower. Someone named Genessa just called his phone and then sent a text that said, “I can’t wait to see you tomorrow at CrossFit. Maybe after our workout we can…” Then the rest of the message got cut off. Am I crazy for jumping to conclusions? I’m crazy, right?
Tessa:You’re not crazy. He’s totally cheating on you.
My younger sister Tessa was definitely the answer-Dtype of girl.
Brooke:Maybe this explains why he hasn’t proposed or wanted to get married. He’s been seeing another woman.
Matt:Just because a woman calls a man does NOT mean he’s in a relationship with her.
My thumbs fly across the phone’s keypad in Zak’s defense.
Meg:Matt’s right. There’s probably a good reason for her text.
Matt:I’m always right.
Tessa:There’s not a good reason. He’s cheating on you. Get rid of him!
Brooke:If you think there’s a perfectly good explanation, then why did you text us?
I roll my eyes. I don’t know why I texted my family. They’ve hated Zak since…well, the beginning.
Nothated.That’s such a strong word. Theydislikehim because they think he’s stringing me along. But they don’t know him like I do. He’s literally the perfect guy. Handsome. Intelligent. Driven. Goal-oriented. My mom picked up on his qualities immediately. From the first day I brought Zak home, she told me I was going to marry him. If she were still here, I’d be texting her right now, not my siblings, and she’d tell me that Zak and I have been together for three years—of course he’s committed to me.
