Page 82 of The Girl I Once Loved

All of Daisy’s friends from school are dancing their asses off, drunk with glee that their friend is finally going to tie the knot with Thatcher’s Bay's most beloved son. Unlike her bridal shower, the festively uninhibited environment is more my sister’s speed. I’ve seen more dildos and penis paraphernalia tonight to last me a lifetime. But Daisy is having such a fun time, that I don’t have the heart to slip away and go home like I want to, knowing that Noah is counting down the minutes for my return.

The least I can do is send him a text not to wait up for me. If Daisy has it her way, this bachelorette party is sure to last until dawn.

“Just where do you think you’re running off to?” she asks with an ear-to-ear grin when she catches me trying to sneak off the dance floor just so I can text Noah.

“Just going outside for a breath of fresh air. It’s too hot in here. I’ll be back in a jiff,” I promise her.

“Want me to go with you?”

“No.” I smile back. “You just keep having fun. I’ll be back before you know it.”

“Okay, babe.” She smiles, continuing to dance the night away with her friends.

I swerve my way through the crowd and let out a relieved exhale when I finally manage to step outside, the cool sea breeze kissing my cheeks and cooling me down. But my relief is short-lived when I see someone else had the same idea of getting a few moments to herself and some fresh air.

“You’re still here. Thought you’d be gone by now,” Stacy stammers when she sees me, and I can smell from her breath that she’s had a few too many vodka cranberries.

“Sorry to disappoint.” I scowl. “I know how badly you want to see me gone.”

“I didn’t say that.”

“You didn’t have to.”

To her credit, Stacy looks somewhat ashamed of my accusation. Doesn’t make it any less true though. But as the awkward silence between us lingers, I start to become uncomfortable with the way she just stands there…staring at me.

“Well, I would say it was nice bumping into you, but we both know I’d be lying,” I say dryly, turning my back to go back inside.

“Enough, Skylar,” she belts out before I’ve taken a step.

“Enough?” I turn to her with a raised eyebrow. “You don’t get to tell me when it’s enough.”

Her cheeks turn red, and the familiar disdain that she showered me with back in high school comes tumbling through those deep emerald eyes of hers.

“I never did like you,” she admits with a slur.

“Likewise,” I retort, crossing my arms over my chest.

“You probably don’t even know why I didn’t like you.”

“I can take a wild guess.” I throw her a mocking grin.

“You’re right. I never gave you a chance because of Noah.” She shrugs unapologetically, admitting what we’ve both known all our lives. “The way he looked at you back then…I knew you were trouble.” I keep my mouth shut, not willing to take the bait. “You were different than the others. I knew it the first time I saw you. You were different.”

“Guess I must not have been if he cheated on me with you. But then again, you probably had more experience on that front that I had. Once a cheater, always a cheater, isn’t that how the saying goes?” I sneer at her.

She stares me down for a beat, and then shocks the living daylights out of me when her head falls back in a cackle.

“God, you’re clueless. You think Noah cheated on me? Never, Skylar. He’d never do that to me. Anytime he hooked up with some rando, we were never together. Aside from a kissyoustole from him at my pool party junior year—which he told me about the minute it happened—Noah always made sure to respect me by staying loyal.”

“Well, congratulations. Apparently, I wasn’t as deserving.”

But just as the words are out of my mouth, I see her flinch, guilt written on her forehead. She starts looking up and down the street as if she’s suddenly afraid to be seen with me. And when she grabs onto my wrist and pulls me into a dark alleyway, all my hackles rise.

“Let me go, Stacy, or I swear to God, I’ll claw your eyes out,” I warn through gritted teeth.

If Stacy Monroe is too drunk off her rocker to believe I won’t slap the bitch, she’s got another thing coming.

“He’s going to hate me for this, but I can’t live like this anymore,” she mutters under her breath, letting go of my wrist.

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