Page 70 of Revenge Honeymoon

Emily, who’d just taken a shower to remove the stench of the river from her hair, glanced at the television.

A couple rode ATVs through a muddy jungle, dirt chunks flying.

“That looks so fun,” Ruby said.

Emily twisted a towel around her damp hair. “We’regoing to have a blast.” She wanted to leave no question that the two of them would be on the excursion together. Tyler shouldn’t even be an option.

One of the ATVs drove straight through a huge mud puddle.

“The last time I was on an ATV was near Boise when I went to that pharmaceutical conference.” Ruby turned up the volume.

Both women watched the video for a few seconds in silence.

“I’ve never driven one of those things before. Do you think they’re safe?” Emily imagined being coated in mud, unable to see, and driving off the trail into a palm tree. Spending the rest of the cruise in a neck brace wouldn’t be ideal.

Ruby rolled her eyes. “Of course they’re safe or the cruise wouldn’t give you that activity as an option.”

Someone knocked on the door. “Room service!”

Before opening the door, Emily tightened the knot on her robe. “Dinner is served.” The smell of freshly grilled steak hit her nostrils.

The server from the dining room handed her a tray and then grabbed another off his cart.

“Rubes, can you help?”

“On it!” Ruby leapt from the bed, snagged the tray out of Emily’s hand, and plucked the cover off the plate. “I feel like I haven’t eaten all day.”

“Me too.” Emily thanked the server and shut the door. For a split second she wished she’d seen Max in the hall as he headed to dinner, but she’d only seen a newlywed couple making out near the fire extinguisher.

As the two friends dug into their steak dinners, Emily brought up the topic they’d been silent about since the bus trip. “So, Tyler. What do you think his text is all about?”

Ruby sighed. “I don’t know, Em. I’m so confused.”

“You shouldn’t be. He’s not worth your time. You’re so much better than that, Rubes.”

“Better? What do you mean?” Ruby’s voice wavered. “Did you have a problem with Tyler?”

Emily slowly chewed on a piece of steak so she could come up with a good answer.

Ruby tapped her fork on the side of her plate. “Well?”

“To be honest? I don’t think he liked me very much.” Emily stared down at her plate. “But I didn’t think anything of it because you loved him. And if that’s the man you wanted to marry, well, then I needed to get out of the way. I’m just a friend...and he would be your husband.”

“Just a friend?” Ruby shook her head. “Is that what you think you are?”

“Yes.”

“You’re my best friend, Em. My very best friend.” She squeezed Emily’s arm. “When I got married I didn’t expect you to disappear.”

Emily set down her fork. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. “When you two started dating, I hardly ever saw you anymore. I assumed that’s what happens when someone falls in love. Your life changes. You have different priorities. I don’t know, I guess I thought it was part of growing up, settling down, maturing.”

She thought about all of last summer, when she’d been at her lowest, when Kyle had broken up with her. Tyler had told her Ruby was growing annoyed with her constant phone calls and texts. Embarrassed, she’d re-examined her behavior and backed off the communication. Ruby hadn’t said a word about it, so she thought Tyler had been telling the truth.

“And I thought you’d moved on from me.” Ruby cocked her head to one side. “You seemed to be spending a lot of time with your family and less time with me.”

“Well, when I decided to make a go of the picnic business, moving back in with my parents seemed like the best strategy to save a few bucks while I got it off the ground.” Emily gave a smile. “You think I wanted to spend every weekend with my mom and dad?”

Ruby laughed. “Yeah, I guess that was pretty dumb of me.”

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