Page 47 of Ever After

Alex looks into the rearview mirror. “Was this a complete mystery to you too, then?”

“Yes. Surprised the shit out of me.” She chuckles.

“Right! They were being so quiet when I picked them up from the airport…made me worry a bit. I didn’t know whether or not Jay was holding her hostage. No one would say a damn word or tell me a damn thing.”

“Seriously? Jay would never hold someone hostage,” I say.

“Ditto. We tell each other everything and I barely heard anything about it until she came home from her rendezvous,” Lia says with a laugh.

I guessI’mbeing ignored now.

“Same here. Jay tells me everything. I know everything about him. Not a damn thing was said to me. Not even when I kept asking what was going on. They wouldn’t give me a straight answer. I couldn’t believe it. Jay kept something like this from me for an entire week. I was so hurt.”

I turn to both of them. “Wow. You guys are being so dramatic.”

“Yup. I was pretty hurt, too,” Lia agrees.

Okay. I’m still being ignored. I sat and listened to them talk and ignore me the rest of the way to Jay’s house. I can’t believe how similar they are. It’s like two peas in a pod.

I walk into Jay’s house, and I’m pulled into a hug right away. I didn’t expect Jay to be here. Alex said he got held up at work.

“I missed you,” he whispers in my ear.

His whisper gives me goose bumps all over my body. “I missed you too,” I admit.

Then here comes Alex, interrupting us with his grand entrance with our bags. I look back at him and Lia standing in the doorway next to him. “Jay, this is Lia. Lia, this is Jay.”

“So you’re the mystery man.” Lia walks up to Jay and shakes his hand.

“I guess I am,” he says with a smile and turns his head and kisses my cheek. “You guys must be hungry. I have some steaks on the grill. Beer is in the fridge. Help yourself to anything.”

“Thank you,” Lia says.

Alex walks us over to the fridge and pulls out four beers for us all and starts opening them.

“I’ll take your bags upstairs.” Jay grabs both of our bags and walks upstairs.

Lia and I follow Alex outside to the patio. I take a seat on one chair and Lia does the same next to me. Alex goes over to the grill and checks on the steaks.

Lia turns to me. “Hey, where is the bathroom?”

“I can show you,” Alex says.

I sit and stare out at the little pond that is in the back of Jay’s house. I felt very nostalgic being back here. A calm feeling overtakes me. Back home, it was so hard for me to feel relaxed. Between Aiden’s up and down moods trying to get me back keeps my head spinning.

“Why were you holding out on me Lilah?”

Of course, here comes Alex, interrupting my thoughts. I say to him what I said to Lia. “I’m sorry getting you laid wasn’t the first thing on my mind.”

Alex takes a seat across the table from me. “Aww come on. That’s what you think of me? I’m just trying to get laid? She’s cute.”

“I’m sure that’s all you thought.”

“I mean, it would be nice.” He winks.

“What would be nice?” Jay comes out and walks over to the grill. He looks at Alex with a questionable look.

“To sleep with Lia,” I say.

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