Page 91 of Caught Looking

“Hmmm,” Willa smiled at me. “There was also the time Everett bet him he couldn’t pick up a slightly older woman at the bar we were at. So Seth, of course, went all out.”

“And?” Jeri practically salivated.

“And not only did he get turned down, but the next week he ran into her again…she was his new economics professor.”

“No!”

Willa nodded furiously. “She teased him about it all semester. No one got the digs, but we did. Wesodid.”

While Willa carefully listed out the jokes she could remember, Charley climbed out so she could start dinner prep. Phoebe and Nan decided to play a game of volleyball in the pool with the rest of the girls.

Jeri’s competitive streak got the best of her and she joined in, too. Leaving me alone with one of Seth's oldest and best friends.

I could play with fire, or I could behave, but my money was on fire. I was tired of him keeping this secret from me. He’d had every opportunity. I’d told him mine. Trusted him.

It wasn’t right to go over his head and ask Willa for details, but my curiosity, and, okay, my panic, were getting the better of me.

She gave me a wide, completely open smile. “So, do you want to know about all his old girlfriends?”

Just one.“Willa, as nice as you are, I’m not sure he’d want you to tell me these things.”

She frowned. “But…why? They aren’t a secret.”

Oh, but they were. My cheeks heated with emotions I wasn’t familiar with. Emotions I didn’twantto be familiar with. “He doesn’t talk about college. Not ever.”

Her mouth fell open. “Not ever?Ever?”

“Nothing. Every once in a while he’ll mention a class or a game. Sometimes a story about the three of you or Isaac. But that’s it. He…he doesn’ttrustme with the rest.” I bit out that word.

I was starting to hate that word.

“That can’t be right. He talks about you all the time. He adores you.”

That was all well and good. “He told me he got his heart broken. That it destroyed him. And that he hasn’t let anyone in since. That’s it. That’s all I know. So as you can see, I really don’t think he’d like it if you spilled his secrets.” Even if I desperately wanted her to.

Willa blinked at me. Then she shook her head slowly. Then her eyes narrowed and I realized she wasn’t as sweet and light as she seemed. Willa was also a stone-cold killer. So to speak. “That sonofabitch. You know he’s in love with you, right? Let’s just get that asshole’s heart out there first.”

Whoa.“Asshole?”

She shrugged. “I love him to death, but he is the most stubborn pain in the ass! For a man with more emotions than most women I know, he sure does hide them well.” She let out a growl. “All right. Our friendship is about to go into warp drive, Annalise. You are being pulled into the circle of trust.”

I put up my hands. “Willa, no.”

“I’m going to pull my best friend card, Annalise. I’ve known him longer and I’ve put up with his stubborn streak far too many times. If he has a problem with what I’m about to say he can come find me.” She cocked an eyebrow. “He knows I’ll shovel his shit right back at him.” Then she cocked her head to the side. “Actually, that’s one of the things he loves about you. Why aren’t you handing him his ass on this?”

Because as happy as I was to go toe-to-toe with Seth on a lot of things, this was too much. Too hard. “I wanted him towantto confide in me. I’ve been leaving hints. Reminding him he can trust me. But his lips have remained sealed.”

“That’s sweet, but you can’t do that. Seth needs blunt. And even then…well.” She shrugged. “So here’s the deal, yes he got his heart broken. Her name is Lori and if I ever see her again I’ll probably claw her eyes out. She lied to Seth. Betrayed him. It broke him.”

Lori.

“I never liked her. You know how I said I don’t have a lot of female friends? Well, she is part of the reason. She was so fake. So concerned with how she looked. She always acted like I was a total weirdo for being friends with guys. Well you know what,Lori? My guys are blunt. They’re honest. And that’s a hundred thousand percent better than being a conniving narcissist, even if it does come with incessant sex jokes and entirely too much red meat. Fuck, I’m word vomiting again!” She threw her hands in the air.

I was already in deeper than I should be. I felt like I was betraying Seth. And I no longer cared. “What did she lie about?”

Willa seethed. “Well for one, she wasn’t in love with him. She was using him.”

My heart sank. Seth was so giving. I hated that she exploited that part of him. “Using him for what?” I gulped, afraid I already knew the answer.

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