Page 47 of Circle of Strangers
He shakes his head, shutting his computer lid with a soft click. “Not at all. Honestly, I’ve been thinking the same thing. Oscar’s always rubbed me the wrong way.”
“I thought you liked him. You were going to go golfing,” I remind him.
“He invited me. I was just trying to be a good neighbor.” Will leans back in his chair, arms folded, the edge of something playing on his lips. “There’s just something off about him. Can’t explain it. You know how sometimes you meet someone, and they seem ... wrong? Like they’re hiding something.”
Hiding something—interesting choice of words.
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“I noticed you talking to Mara a little bit ago,” I say lightly as I meet Sozi at the edge of the sidewalk for our morning walk the next day, but the words come out heavier than I intended.
Sozi tucks her phone into the side pocket of her leggings.
“Yeah, she stopped me on the way over. Said she’s still getting used to being home.” She shakes her head. “That whole thing is insane, right? I can’t imagine what was going through either of their heads during all of that ...”
We fall into step, our strides matching as we leave Saguaro Circle. The sun peeks over the rooftops, casting long, soft shadows along the pavement. Birds chirp. The sky is a canvas of pastel blue overhead. Just another picture-perfect day in our picture-perfect neighborhood.
I only wish I could enjoy it.
“You feel sorry for her?” I ask, half expecting Sozi to scoff, but she surprises me.
“A little,” she admits. “She’s always been kind of lost. No idea how to deal with her emotions. And look, what Oscar did? The dating app thing? Not okay. But what she put him through wasn’t any better. The two of them have got to be exhausted. They should just throw in the towel already. Put each other out of their misery.”
“Couldn’t agree more.” I exhale sharply, already tired of the Moreno mind games.
“What does Will make of this whole thing? I saw him talking to Mara this morning,” she mentions with an air of nonchalance.
My stomach plummets.
“This morning?” My voice is sharper than intended, but Sozi doesn’t notice.
She’s oblivious to the tension suddenly radiating off me, and I can’t blame her. I’ve yet to tell her about my boundary-setting conversation yesterday.
While I’m no longer concerned Will and Mara are sneaking around, my request to keep our distance from the Morenos continues to fall on my husband’s deaf ears—andthat’swhat trips my trigger.
It’s not like him to keep secrets, nor is it like him to be so obstinate.
What else is he hiding? What other facets of his personality are waiting to meet me?
“Yeah, just as he was leaving for work about an hour ago. They were standing in your driveway just chatting away.” She chuckles. “I didn’t snap a picture this time. I thought maybe it was overkill.”
Heat rises to my face, and my pulse kicks into high gear. Willknew. He knew I told Mara to stay away from us, from him, from our family. And yet there he was, having a friendly little chat with her, allowing her to set foot on our driveway, no less.
His mulishness sparks a blind rage in my center—sharp and painful. Will ignored my request about staying away from the Morenos, lied to me about Jacqueline, and now Mara’s disregarding my crystal-clear boundaries?
These sorry souls have no idea who they’re dealing with, but they’re about to find out.
My hands clench into painfully tight fists at my sides, ire simmering in every part of me. As Sozi yaps on, her voice cheerful and unaware, running through neighborhood gossip and whatever drama her son’s class is currently going through. I nod and mm-hmm in the right places, pretending to listen, but my thoughts are miles away.
I keep replaying the visual in my mind—Will, standing in the driveway with Mara, talking like our conversation last night never happened.
The remainder of our morning stroll passes in a blur, Sozi’s voice buzzing in my ears like tuned-out background noise, my body moving on autopilot. By the time we’re back to my house, I’m seething, primitive anger coiled tight like a spring.
Between this and the Lucinda letters, I’m teetering on the edge.
It’s almost enough to make me snap.
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