Page 144 of Sugar

She slumped back in her seat. “I haven’t seen him since that night at the bar. I blocked him, but like our mothers, he’s not opposed to creating an endless number of new profiles. The fact he refuses to quit working for my dad doesn’t help. And my dad won’t fire him. My mom and I tried. Something about a potential lawsuit.” She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. I don’t get why Josh is bothering. He puts all this effort in, and then as soon as he hasme, he loses interest again. He spends any time we’re together on his phone or cuts out of dates early. I don’t want to be chased. I just want someone who wants to be with me.”

“He’s a dumbass,” I said.

“Yes. Yes, he is.”

“And you’re amazing.”

“Yes. Yes, I am. I need an Easton.” She held up a finger and quickly amended, “Not actually him. He’s great for you,notme.”

That was an understatement on both parts. He wasn’t great for me.

He wasperfectfor me.

And they would be awful together. If he tried to tell her what to do, she would probably come back with a counteroffer that included a color-coded index, references, and uproarious laughter.

Greer swiped her screen to load the saved picture then zoomed in on his face. “But this. I need someone who looks at me like this.”

“You do.”

“Instead, I’ve wasted years with fucking Josh.”

“Literally.”

“But not anymore.”

I lifted the glass. “Cheers to that.”

Easton

Me: How was brunch?

Guppy: Good. It was just me and Greer because Wren had plans with her boyfriend.

There wasa lot I loved about Maddie. The way she told me random details about her day was high on that list. I might not give a damn about Wren or her boyfriend, but I liked that Maddie wanted to share anything and everything with me.

Me: I’m glad you got some time with Greer. She still split from the prick?

Guppy: You remembered! And yes.

Me: Are you with her?

Guppy: No, she wanted to sweat out her mimosa with a hike. What a waste… Why?

Me: I need a favor, mine. Where are you?

Guppy: The cafe because you won’t tell me where you get the better coffee.

Me: Ensuring you keep me around.

Guppy: You do that in much better ways. What do you need?

Me: Can you take a picture of my bench in the library? I want to show Cohen the artistry.

Guppy: Going now.

Then so am I.

Getting out of my SUV, I made my way from the parking lot to the library. If she’d been with her friends, I would’ve just let her know I was there early to pick her up. But since she was available, I had something else in mind.

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