Page 66 of Say It Isn't So

“And now you’re stuck in a love triangle,” Perla stated the obvious.

I stood on my own two feet and licked my lips before lifting my shot glass to my lips and downing it. “It could be a cool story to tell our—”

Perla’s mouth fell open as she wagged a finger in the air at me. “Were you about to say—”

I cut her off before she could finish her thought. Gasping, I lied, “Of course not. Don’t be ridiculous.”

Allie leaned forward and whispered. “If I was a betting gal, I’d say before the night is up you two are going to have sex.”

My sisters all burst out laughing and I swatted Allie’s arm, making sure to keep my voice low as I eyed Knox over Maria’s head. “Stop it. Knox and I are not having sex tonight.” I brought a finger to my lips and bit down on the tip, the alcohol going to my head. “At least I’m pretty sure we shouldn’t.”

* * *

Knox

“So, Bianca, huh?” Frankie asked as he set his bottle down and nodded in the girls’ direction. They were currently huddled together, laughing about something.

I peered back at Frankie and smiled. “Yeah. We used to be friends. I don’t know how much you heard, but it was a long time ago.”

Frankie laughed. “You forget I’m married to Perla, I heard it all. And listen, for what it’s worth, two years isn’t that long ago.”

I shrugged and sat back in my seat. “In some ways it feels like no time at all and then in others, I wonder if I’m deluding myself,” I said and thought about Bianca. Things were so hard where we were concerned—figuratively speaking, of course, don’t be dirty. I had to wonder, though, if maybe we were never meant to be anything more than passing friends.

Eyeing me closely, Frankie leaned forward, his arms coming to rest on the table. “There’s definitely abutin there somewhere.”

I sighed and decided right now Frankie was as good as it got to being my friend. Plus, he was actually here and knew what was going on, so I confessed what was on my mind—“It just isn’t so easy.”

“Nothing ever is,” Frankie said, chuckling at me. “Besides, it’s Bianca we’re talking about. I love her like a sister, but you’ll never be bored with that one and I think you know that.”

He wasn’t wrong. “Don’t I know it.”

“So maybe it won’t be as difficult as you think, that’s all I’m saying.” He picked up his bottle again, finishing it off as the girls made their way over to our table.

One by one they all sat down, except Bianca.

I turned to Perla, who had been walking with Bianca, but was now sitting on Frankie’s lap again. “What’s she doing?” I asked when I saw Bianca stopped to talk to another man—ugh, a slimy Italian man—who I’d noticed entered a few minutes before. I must’ve missed him making a move on Bianca, though.

Perla rolled her eyes. “He stopped her. She talks to everyone; it’s her fatal flaw.”

Maria said something then, but I didn’t hear her. The blood rushing to my head made it impossible for me to hear anything clearly.

I couldn’t tell if what I was witnessing was just talking or flirting. But when I saw his hand wrap around her arm and she stepped back ever so slightly, I knew it was the former. I felt like a jerk for thinking she’d flirt with some other guy right in front of my face, but wasn’t going to dwell on it because she obviously needed me to remove the Italian leech.

I pushed out my chair and stood. “Excuse me a moment,” I said and heard her sistersooohbehind me.

I had no idea what this guy was thinking, but I was about to set him straight. By the time I crossed the small bar and reached them, my jaw was clenched so tight I thought I’d crack my molars. “Get your hand off my girl before I remove it from your arm,” I said, skipping all niceties.

Bianca’s eyes shot in my direction, wider than ever. “Knox.”

When the guy didn’t remove his hand, I repeated myself and was prepared to pry him off her. But Bianca stepped back, her arm brushing mine now, and his hand fell.

“Scusa. I didn’t know she was-a with you,” he said in broken English and put his hands up in a mean-no-harm gesture.

“It’s okay, Raphael,” she said. The she switched to Italian as she added, “Grazie per l'invito.”

He walked away, continuing toward the bar, and Bianca and I were left standing there. I looked down at her. “What was that about?” I squinted, more than a little pissed that she was telling that dirtbag that it was okay. It was not okay. No one put a hand on my girl unless they wanted to slurp their food through a straw.

She looked up, her eyes searching mine.What?What did she want from me? She couldn’t have genuinely believed I wouldn’t come over as soon as I saw that man’s hand glued to her. “He invited me to dinner, so I thanked him.”

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