Page 41 of False Assumptions

Hannah laughed. “No, we were firmly in more territory by that point. You should be nice, though, since you were so deep in denial you were practically the Queen of Egypt not that long ago.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Elena muttered, burying her face in her drink.

At Layla’s quizzical look, Hannah filled her in. “She and Daniel got together in August, and Elena was the only one who didn’t think she and Daniel were dating—including Daniel and all of us. They were. She was just in a bad place and not ready to admit it. But she kept calling him her friend, so your excuse sounds awfully familiar.” Hannah waved a hand to cut her off when Layla opened her mouth. “I’m not judging. You’re entitled to feel however you feel about your relationship with Coop—Evan. Whatever you call him.”

Layla smiled, happy to have someone coming to her defense. “Evan.”

“Yeah, he has all the girls call him Evan.”

Layla shrank back into the couch, wishing she still had a drink to cover the awkward silence that descended at Elena’s words. Hannah glared at Elena and tipped her head in Layla’s direction. But Layla had stopped drinking a while ago, limiting her alcohol intake since she’d have to drive home later. Elena’s careless comment drove home how unlikely this thing with her and Evan really was. Sure, he’d agreed to strings. They had some kind of relationship. But they hadn’t discussed what that meant. Were they dating? Was he her boyfriend? Did he consider her his girlfriend?

She didn’t know. Hence her reluctance to answer questions about the status of their relationship.

He was attracted to her—that much was obvious. He wanted at least a physical relationship with her. They got along and had fun together. Or at least they had before this week. But she didn’t know how long his interest would last. His track record wasn’t encouraging.

“Hey.” Abby’s soft voice cut through the silence. “Don’t try to read too much into Coop’s past. Just because he’s been with more than a few women, doesn’t mean he’s going to drop you after a week or even a month. If he’s spending that much time with you, it’s because he’s interested in you. Guys like him don’t stick around for girls they just want to sleep with once. Trust me on this.”

Megan nodded her agreement. “She’s speaking from experience. Lance and Chris were both manwhores before we got our hands on them.”

Layla smiled, but wasn’t all that reassured. Just because it had worked out for them didn’t mean it would work out for her.

“Besides,” Megan went on. “If he’s got that much experience, he’s probably a great shag. Even if it doesn’t last long term, have fun and enjoy the hot sex while you’ve got it.”

The other girls chuckled or rolled their eyes at Megan, obviously used to her brashness, provoking, “What? You all know I’m right,” from her.

Forcing another smile, Layla tried to join in the fun, conversation moving away from her and Evan and back to the relationships of the others. Apparently Chris had been living in Seattle since the summer but was back in Spokane until Megan graduated. Layla had trouble keeping up with things, her thoughts still swamped with Evan and how invested she should let herself become.

He’d asked for a chance. She was trying, but she had a hard time ignoring his past. And past behavior was the best predictor of future behavior. No, she needed to take Megan’s advice more than Abby’s. Have fun while it lasts, but don’t expect anything more. That’s what she would do.

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