Page 18 of Force Play
She’s all but cackling now. “That I can do.”
My bluntness has its perks. Like right now, where I got Ella to smile and laugh.
That’s all I wanted.
She deserves to have what she wants, and I hope she and Josh get exactly that soon. They’re going to be incredible parents.
Plus, Sage is getting older, and I’m apparently destined to be an old maid. I need someone to have a baby I can enjoy.
Harlow looks at me and changes the subject. “You ready to move out tomorrow?”
My shoulders sag, and I sigh. “Honestly? No. I love this apartment. It sucks that I can’t afford it anymore.”
“And what about your new roommate?” Ella asks warily.
I roll my eyes. “Oh, I would love nothing more than toneverlive with Ari Morgan. This just isn’t my year. My ex cheated on me. My landlord is raising the rent. I have to move in with a manI can’t stand.” I lay back on the floor and let out a breath. “What a fucking year.”
“Year’s almost over,” Rory chimes.
“Just a few weeks until New Year’s,” Liv adds. “When does Ari come back from Seoul?”
“A little bit before Christmas is what he told me. I still have at least a week of peace.”
Harlow takes a sip of her wine. “How do you think you’re going to get along?”
I let out a derisive laugh. “I don’t think we’re going to get along at all. My plan is to spend as little time with him as possible.”
Ella eyes me curiously. “You know, you never did tell ushowyou ended up deciding to move in with Ari. You were always adamant that you weren’t going to, and then out of the blue, you tell us you’re moving in with him. It doesn’t really make sense.”
I take a large gulp of my wine. “I was trying to save face.”
“To whom?” Rory asks.
“Matt,” I sigh. “Ran into him at Urban Grind and accidentally slipped that I was looking for an apartment. Matt, in all his chivalry, offered to have me live withhim,never mind that he was still dating the woman he had cheated on me with. So, rather than admit I had no idea what I was going to do, I told him I was going to move in with Ari.”
“Why did you want to save face with him?” Lo questions. “He’s a dick, so I can’t imagine you cared much about his opinion.”
“I didn’t,” I reply quickly.
Liv gives me a soft smile. “It hurt to see him, didn’t it?”
Yes.
“Of course not,” I state with as much conviction as I can muster. “I barely even think about him anymore.”
Another lie.
But I keep those thoughts to myself.
I’m the strong one. The confident bitch who doesn’t let anyone walk all over her. I can’t let someone bring me down, especially when that someone is a man.
I want to maintain my appearance of nonchalance. I want to seem like I’m not broken by what Matt did.
But I am.
I loved him, and he betrayed me in such a hurtful way.
That wound runs deep.
