Page 40 of False Assumptions

Rolling her eyes, Abby shook her head. “And aren’t you the pot calling the kettle black? You’re moving to Seattle with Chris and living on his money. I’m hardly the only one that’s going to be a ‘kept woman.’ And what century do you live in? Who says that anyway?”

Megan cackled. “You crack me up, Abs. Criticizing my use of ‘kept woman’ when you just said something about the pot calling the kettle black. My grandma always used to say that. And anyway, I’ve got a show scheduled at a gallery in Seattle in June. If it goes well, I’ll be able to support myself.”

“What?” Hannah sat up straighter. “Megan, that’s amazing. Why didn’t you say so? More to celebrate!”

“I didn’t want to steal Elena’s thunder,” Megan said with a shrug. “I just found out today.”

“Congratulations, Megan. That’s really awesome. Let me know when the show opens, and Lance and I will come over for the party.” Abby got up and hugged Megan.

When the congratulations died down, Layla decided to satisfy her curiosity. “Sorry, since obviously everyone else knows the answer, but what’s your show for?”

“Oh.” Megan waved a hand. “I paint.”

Elena snorted and leaned closer to Layla. “She says that like it’s no big deal. She’s amazing. She painted Hannah and Daniel together last year, and it was gorgeous.”

Looking between Megan and Hannah, who nodded, Layla focused back on Elena. “Your Daniel?”

“Yup.” Elena turned to Megan, making a shooing motion with her hands. “Go get your phone and show her your stuff.”

Rolling her eyes, Megan got up and retrieved her phone from her purse, then squeezed her way onto the couch between Hannah and Layla. Abby made a half-disgusted, half-amused sound in her throat and moved to the chair, leaving more room on the couch. Hannah scooted over, but stayed close enough that she could see the screen on Megan’s phone as she pulled up her website and scrolled through the pictures of her paintings.

“Oh my God. These are amazing.” Layla couldn’t believe how beautiful Megan’s paintings were, the mix of color, light, and shadow evoking a riot of emotions in Layla that she hadn’t realized a painting could cause.

Hannah’s finger pointed at the next painting on the screen. “That’s Daniel and me.”

It took Layla a second to realize that she was looking at a close up of bodies twined together. Her eyes widened, and she looked at Elena. “You were okay with your friend and boyfriend posing together like this?”

Shrugging, Elena shook her head. “Daniel and I weren’t together then. We hadn’t even met yet.” She grinned at Hannah. “He actually asked Hannah out a few times.”

Hannah narrowed her eyes. “It was twice, and I only agreed the one time.” She met Layla’s eyes. “Matt and I were together when Megan painted that. He’s the one who introduced me to Megan and convinced me to pose. Though, when he walked in on Daniel asking me out the first time and found out how we were posing, he wasn’t happy.” She chuckled at the memory and Megan smirked.

“Yeah. We all got to hear his reaction after that.”

Layla looked between them, confused, and Hannah blushed. Hannah met Layla’s eyes. “Matt’s a little possessive.”

All three of the other girls gave varying sounds of amusement and derision. “That’s like saying mama bears are a little protective,” said Megan.

“Oh, please,” Hannah shot back. “Like Chris is any different?”

Laughing, Megan bumped Hannah with her shoulder. “I never said that. But I wasn’t the one almost naked and pressed against a hot guy who wasn’t my new boyfriend.”

Sitting back, Hannah sipped her drink. “Yeah, well, he got over it. Daniel was never a threat to Matt, and he eventually figured that out.” She gestured at Elena. “And now he’s with Elena, so everything’s good.”

Layla stayed quiet for the most part, having fun listening to the banter between the four friends, asking questions every once in a while when she missed a reference. They happily filled her in, talking over each other and taking over the story of how they all became friends.

After going through another round of drinks, two bowls of popcorn, and shared plates of nachos that Elena made, Megan settled a speculative gaze on Layla. “You know all about us now, but we don’t know much about you.” She leaned forward, propping her chin on her hand. “Fill us in.”

Layla gave a nervous laugh. “What do you want to know?”

“You’re dating Coop right?” asked Abby.

“Um, sort of.”

Elena gave her a quizzical look, her eyebrows pulled together and her head cocked to one side. “What do you mean ‘sort of’? You guys have been spending the last few weeks together almost constantly. If you’re not dating, what are you doing?”

Reaching for the plate of nachos, Layla tried to stall. The nachos were gone, so she was reduced to picking a piece of melted cheese from the plate. All eyes were on her. She shrugged. “We’re friends. And exploring the possibility of … more.”

A devilish gleam came to Elena’s eyes. “Oh, okay. If that’s what you’re calling it when you agree to spend spring break at a guy’s house.” She turned to Hannah. “Were you and Matt ‘friends exploring the possibility of more’”—she made air quotes with her fingers—“when you spent last spring break at his place?”

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