Page 43 of Rich Girl
“Oh, that’s true.”
I turn and look at Ray, shrugging my shoulders in amoh wellkind of way.
“That’s too bad,” I smile at him. “This could’ve been a great opportunity for me.”
The more I go along with this, the more confident I’m getting. Thank God I was able to extract myself out of this horrible situation.
Ray, with a perfect smile on his face, takes the now empty coffee cup out of my hand, only to throw it in the trash can that’s on his side of the sidewalk.
“You could move down here,” he suggests, like it’s no big deal.
My gasp of shock is drowned by the squealing coming out Evie and Carrie. I really curse the moment when I decided to stop for the cup of coffee. It wasn’t worth it. The coffee wasn’t even that good.
“Ray,” Evie takes a step closer. “You’re asking Hayden to move in with you? Is it serious then?”
“What?” My voice is high enough that it startles the birds out of the nearby trees.
He appears to be startled by what is being suggested. It makes me feel a little better.
“No. What I was thinking was that she could move into your grandma’s old place.” He is looking at Evie. “You live with Cal now, right? No point in having the house sit empty.”
All three of us stare at Ray like he sprouted a second head, with only the sound of the baby in Carrie’s arms making, well, baby noises.
Meanwhile, my left eye starts twitching in a bad way. I’ve never felt this before, like the eyeball may actually jump out of my head and go do who knows what. Maybe I’m having a stroke. Someone should probably call me an ambulance, just in case.
“This is a great idea, Ray!”
Evie explodes in a burst of energy that I just can’t understand. She looks at me with a huge grin on her face.
“The house is sitting empty, and I’m not ready to sell it. If you’re looking for a place to stay and work, I’m your girl.”
That’s fine and dandy, except thatIam nothergirl, not at all.
“I trust you,” she tells me, even though she’s known me for a whole hour. “Especially if Ray is vouching for you.”
“I’m vouching,” he promises.
“Ray!” I turn to look at him. With my eyes, I try to send him a message, blinking a little faster. “I can’t just move here.”
“I think that’s a great idea,” he shrugs like this is the most normal thing in the world. “You’re currently crashing on your friend’s couch…”
His words insult me. “I am not crashing on anyone’s couch,” I protest. Too late I realize that I’m close to giving myself away.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Ray chuckles. “You’re crashing in their very fancy bedroom.”
I pull my hand away from his, and he lets me go right away. I’m kind of disappointed in it.
“That’s not what that is! I am not crashing there. I am paying for it!”
Ray’s eyes widen a bit, but not in surprise at what I just said. Almost as if I’d just confirmed something that he already knew. But how? I don’t think I am that transparent, am I?
“I must’ve misunderstood then,” he replies. “Come on,” he starts walking toward where I parked the Jeep when I got here. “I’ll take you home.”
I despise the feeling of getting caught. It is uncomfortable and a hard pill to swallow. My pride refuses to accept that I wasn’t smart enough to continue with the lie I started when I first messaged Ray Parker. It’s a bit too late now to take it all back. I have to go along with it.
“That’s not my home,” I inform him in a haughty tone. This is most likely the first morsel of truth I’ve given him.
He watches me pensively for the longest time, until it almost becomes uncomfortable.
