Page 63 of The Paris Roommates: Dean
How could the woman she adored side with a lie?
A knock sounded at the door, soft and hesitant. Thea. “Come in,” she called, ignoring the impulse to put out her cigarette.
“I couldn’t go back with Jean Luc yet, knowing how upset you were,” she said as she entered and closed the door. “I knew you took this badly. Oh, you’re smoking. Brooke, you shouldn’t.”
She took another long puff, letting the smoke trail out of her as if it could carry her anger and disappointment. “You took this badly too! What is wrong with Dean? I’ve been with him through every major breakup. Yet here we are, paving the path toward total disaster. And then there’s Nanine… How could she agree to hide something like this? She’s always been a model of good character, as they say in France.”
“I know!” Thea sat on the edge of her bed and gestured in the air. “I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. She’s always been adamant about doing the right thing. Keeping this from Jacqueline seems the opposite.”
“I expected this of Kyle and Madison.” She inhaled deeply, filling her lungs with smoke before blowing it slowly into the cold night. “They’re all business, and part of me can see their point. Who knows if Dean will even keep dating Jacqueline, so why hurt our interests? My new cynical self says to never sacrifice your professional goals for some guy or girl.”
“Brooke, that’s your breakup talking. I promise you that the right person—”
“I know, Thea.” She just couldn’t hear it right now, because Adam had destroyed that innocent part of her. “But Nanine! I just can’t believe it!”
Thea edged down the side of the bed until she was sitting close to where Brooke had cracked the window. “I’m worried about Dean too,” she confessed, “and I’m worried about this situation creating a rift between us. Sawyer stormed out after you left, and Kyle and Madison stood beside Nanine like they were on her side of German dodgeball or something.”
Brooke gave a watery laugh. “Oh, Thea. German dodgeball?”
“I hated when people chose sides at school,” she said hotly, not like herself. “I was always picked last because I was too soft. Kinda like people said I was tonight.”
Here we go, Brooke thought. She crushed the cigarette out against the metal in the window jamb and laid it in the track. She would dispose of it later. “Thea, you know everyone loves how nice you are. Madison was only being testy.”
“Did you know the deaf guy wasn’t deaf?” she asked, making room for Brooke to sit on the seafoam green duvet cover.
Brooke took her hand. “Yes, but you so earnestly wanted to help him that I couldn’t bear to crush you. Who knows? Maybe he needed someone like you to be nice to him to turn his life around.”
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing out of her own mouth. She was a hardened New Yorker. Panhandlers in Central Park gave her a wide berth after they met her eyes. Then again, the reason she loved Thea like a little sister, and had from the moment they’d met, was the goodness she radiated. Brooke had needed it. Hell, she still did.
“Well, tell me next time.” Thea picked at the duvet. “I want to give to people who really need it.”
“I will.” She took her hand in a gentle clasp. “Now, what are we going to do to make this right? Dean might be headed for disaster, but I’m not about to set aside my fix-other-people’s-lives ways. I think we tell him to invite Jacqueline to your thirtieth birthday party next week.”
Thea’s mouth immediately tipped up. “I’m trying to be calm, but I’m really excited about the party!”
“Of course you are!” She gave her a gentle shove. “You’re turning thirty! And we love you. But Dean can only bring her if it’s all right with you. My take is simple. We need to get her to like Dean more—and us—before she learns about the cave situation. That’s our play here.”
God, she was picking up Dean’s asinine approach, but fuck it. Majority had ruled. They were keeping the truth quiet whether she liked it or not. By God, they were going to make this work!
She would also suggest pizza night tomorrow night and a healthy game of Drink and Divulge to get everyone back on track. She was not going to allow a rift in the house. They’d all left their old lives to become business partners in Paris. To live together and work together. Being with her friends was changing her life again—the same way it had ten years ago—and she needed that. Here, with them, she was going to get things back on track. Her life, her work, her self-confidence. Everything. This cave stuff wasn’t going to mess that up.
Thea was thoughtful for a moment before saying, “I’ll tell Dean to ask Jacqueline to my party so long as you promise me things won’t be weird if she shows up.”
Brooke made herself laugh to cover her discomfort. How could she promise that? “We’ll sic Fabiana on her to make sure. That woman is so exuberant she could make friends with a stone-cold killer.”
“Jean Luc says it’s because she’s Italian. It’s why he’s only half as exuberant. His French part cancels it out.”
That had them both quietly laughing, which led to a hug. Moments like this were why they were sisters of the heart. The embrace felt good until Thea sniffed and coughed.
Brooke pulled away. “I swear you’re like a scent dog. I barely smoked one cigarette!”
“It’s the baker in me,” she admitted. “I’m supposed to detect multiple layers of flavors.”
“No, it’s because you always have your nose in your sourdough starter, sniffing every day to make sure it’s producing all that magic you talk about.”
She gave her a friendly poke. “You enjoy the results of my beloved Doughreen.”
She shook her head. Only Thea would think to name her sourdough starter. “You know I do. How about we talk about something happier? When do you want to go wedding dress shopping? Jean Luc talked to me about your concerns, which I was waiting for you to share with me. Hint. Hint.”
