Page 20 of A Little Crush
My mouth lifts. “You forget who you’re talking to, but I definitely should.”
“Don’t worry, Boo-Boo.” She winks and tugs me closer to the front door. “We’ll find you a backbone.”
Sure, we will.
Tatum wasn’t wrong.The counter is littered with so many finger foods I feel like I won’t need to eat for a week. Thanks to the warm weather, the massive fireplace stays unlit, and we wind up outside on the balcony. An hour later, drinks are poured, and the stars twinkle above us as we lounge on the cushioned patio furniture while Ophelia fiddles with her tiara. It’s one you’d use for a princess costume. Tatum crowned her bride of the year as soon as she walked in. It’s silly and ridiculous, and I’ve never been happier for her.
“To being engaged,” Finley cheers. She lifts her bottle of Diet Coke with lime into the air.
Glasses clink as well all join in.
Repeating the gesture, I say, “To having the best sister-in-law ever.”
“Amen to that!” Lia laughs.
Finley grins. “To losing the worst sister-in-law ever!”
“Here, here!” Dylan chimes in, holding her round belly as she cackles at their inside joke.
If only I could join in. My forehead scrunches, and I tilt my head. “Okay, what’d I miss? Because I’m pretty sure both your sisters-in-law are right here.” I motion to Raine, Finley’s brother’s wife, and Dylan, her husband’s baby sister.
When all eyes turn to me, I’m even more dumbfounded than before.
Seriously. What am I missing here?
“Iris?” Dylan offers. “Jaxon’s ex?”
Ex?What the hell is she talking about?
“What?” I ask.
Finley exchanges a curious glance with Raine and Dylan. “You don’t know?”
“Don’t know what?” Tatum chimes in. She tucks her feetunder her butt on the couch, then leans forward, clearly invested in the gossip these girls are dangling in front of us like low hanging fruit.
“Jaxon’s divorced,” Raine explains.
Divorced. As in…not married. Wait, no. That can’t be right.
“What?” I repeat, as confused as ever. I mean, yeah. I noticed Jaxon was mysteriously by himself at the wedding rehearsal, but I figured his wife stayed home to watch their baby or something, not that she wouldn’t be coming to the wedding at all.
Why didn’t I scope out his left hand for a ring?
“He’s divorced,” Dylan repeats for me.
Jaxon isn’t married. Jaxon Thorne isn’t freaking married. Feeling like the ground’s opened beneath me, I clench the wine glass a little harder in my hand while trying not to lose my shit.
Finley nods. “And it was messy AF. She kept throwing fits about Jaxon coaching the women’s team at LAU, so he applied for the head coaching position for the Lions, and your dad offered him a job. Six months later, he comes home to find her in bed with another guy. What was his name, anyway?”
Raine taps her chin, searching her memory. “Starts with a C, I think?”
“Chris,” Dylan announces. “His name’s Chris, and he’s an ass.”
“Good memory,” Ophelia quips, adding, “Jaxon doesn’t exactly like talking about it, like, at all, so…”
Dylan grimaces. “Ollie’s overheard a conversation or two between Jax and his ex over the last few months. It’s the only reason I remember.”
“And of course your husband ran right to you to spill all the details,” Finley quips dryly.
