Page 94 of Fabulous Filthy Friend

Between Rachel and me.

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RACHEL

The warm water of the bubble bath swirls around me, soothing some of my tense, aching muscles but doing nothing to help the pain slicing at my heart. It’s only been twenty-four hours since our fight, but it already feels like an eternity.

Our other little tiff was a mere millisecond compared to this one, even though that lasted far longer. Maybe because last night felt more final. Like losing something in a way that you can never get it back instead of a little nothing that I knew we’d eventually get over.

As soon as I get out of this bath, I’m climbing into bed and praying I can actually get some sleep. The kids don’t deserve to have me a practical zombie in class tomorrow. I feel worse than the undead from the movie I made Flynn watch with me.

The sound of the front door opening and closing tenses every muscle in my body. Through the cracked door in the bathroom, the sound of footsteps making their way down the hallway toward me has me searching the bathroom for some sort of a weapon.

Did I lock the front door when I came in?

I don’t even remember. Everything since last night has been such a blur, and I can hardly remember driving home from work today, let alone what I did once I got here.

My razor sits on the edge of the tub, and I clutch it in my hand and hold it out toward the door.

It swings open slowly, and Alicia bursts out laughing. “What the hell were you gonna do with that thing if I was a real intruder? Give me a damn shave?”

I sag back into the water. “Ha, ha. Very funny.” With the razor firmly back in its place, I glance down to ensure the goods are all covered by the bubbles. “What are you doing here?”

She steps into the bathroom and pulls herself up to sit on the counter with her legs dangling. “Connor came home from school and said you were sad all day. I came over after the kids went to bed to see what made you such a sad sack.”

“Oh, Christ.” I duck deeper into the water until my chin is below it, and I am hiding behind a wall of bubbles. “I guess I did a pretty crappy job controlling my emotions in front of the kids. Teacher of the year, I am not.”

She chuckles and shakes her head. “They’re five. They probably won’t even remember tomorrow. I wouldn’t worry too much about it. But now, I am worried about you. Cade and I haven’t seen you and Flynn for days, and now, you’re upset enough that my kid noticed. What’s going on?”

Shit.

I hadn’t thought about how to explain any of this to our mutual friends. And I really should have. Of course, they’re going to notice something’s different. But I think Flynn and I were so wrapped up in each other over the weekend that we didn’t think about telling anyone. Plus, it was so new…it never got a chance to get old.

“Do you promise not to say anything to Cade?”

Alicia raises her eyebrows at me. “I can’t make that promise until I know what it is.”

I blow on the bubbles in the water to give myself a chance to think. Other than Flynn, Alicia’s my best friend. My only close friend here in California, actually. And if this thing with him never gets sorted out, I’m going to need her more than ever. She can’t help me if she doesn’t understand.

“We slept together.”

“What?” She practically falls off the counter. “You’re joking.”

I squeeze my eyes shut and shake my head. “No.”

“What the hell happened?” She grins and waggles her eyebrows. “Was it good?”

I roll my eyes at her. “Yes, it was good. In fact, it was beyond great. We spent the whole weekend wrapped up in each other and barely left the bedroom.”

A grin splits her face, and she practically vibrates with excitement. “Rach, that’s awesome! Why are you so upset?”

Here we go.

“I swear to God if you tell Cade—”

She holds up her hands. “Okay, okay, I won’t, but how do you know Flynn isn’t gonna tell him the exact same thing you’re telling me?”

“Good point. But still, I don’t want it to have come from me if he doesn’t.”

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