Page 138 of Cougar

“Wait,” Liz starts, jerking her attention back to me. “I thought you were married to Jules?”

The fuck.

Mike’s head snaps in my sister’s direction. “Elizabeth!” he scolds.

I jerk up from the sofa and point at Mike. “You told her?”

“Of course not!”

“You’re married?” Emerson chokes out.

“No.” I shake my head. “It was a long time ago.”

Fear grips my heart, knowing everything I’ve done to get Emerson and me to this point in our relationship—the love, the trust—is gone. I had every opportunity to tell her, but I wanted us to be solid before admitting that Jules and I had drunkenly eloped in Vegas.

The marriage only lasted a few months before Jules and I both realized we’d exhausted our relationship and broke up for the last time. Mike handled our divorce discreetly, or so I thought. Jules and I remained best friends, and when I moved back to Heritage Bay, we fell back into old habits. Our physical attraction to each other had never been the problem.

Emerson turns to Liz. “You said that to hurt me.” She sucks in a breath. “I’m done with this bullshit. All of it. You want the truth?”

“Hello?” Rebecca’s voice calls out. “Liz?” A moment later, Rebecca walks into the living room with Chris and Chelsea. Chris takes one look at Emerson, turns to Chelsea and tells her to wait outside.

“What are you doing here?” Mike asks.

“I asked him to come, and to bring Rebecca,” Emerson says, and Rebecca turns to Chris with a questioning look. “I think it’s truth time.” Emerson tilts her head. “Right, Rebecca?”

Rebecca raises her brows. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, Emerson.”

Emerson huffs out a humorless laugh. “Okay, if that’s how you want to play it, let me refresh your memory.” With her arms crossed, she rocks back on her heels and locks her gaze on Liz. “That night you walked in on Mike in bed with another girl, did you see her face?”

My sister’s nostrils flare. “No, but—”

Emerson holds up her hand. “Let me finish,” she grits out.

“It was Rebecca,” Mike blurts before Emerson can go on. All our heads turn to Mike as he drags his hands down his face, a sure sign that he’s reached his boiling point. He turns to Liz with a look of apology and regret. “It wasn’t Emerson. It was Rebecca.”

The. Fuck.

Rebecca’s mouth falls open and she blinks in shock.

Chris looks at his ex-wife with pure disgust on his face. “You screwed my best friend?”

“No,” Mike admits, “but I was drunk enough that we would’ve if Liz hadn’t walked in. I didn’t know Emerson was in my parents’ bathroom until she came out swinging. I was drunk. There was a lot of yelling, and all I heard was ‘pregnant’ and ‘baby.’” Mike turns to Liz. “Whatever exchange you saw between me and Emerson wasn’t at all what it looked like.”

Liz’s eyes widen. “Why are you just now telling me this after all this time?”

“I tried to tell you so many times, but every time I brought it up, you got hysterical. You were pregnant, Liz, and the last thing you needed was more stress. I made a stupid, drunken mistake, and I was afraid I’d lose you and my baby. I tried to bring it up again after Logan was born, but you were so happy and you seemed to have moved on, so I left it alone. I know I should’ve said something, so I accept full responsibility for this entire mess.”

“No,” Chris says. “I harbor some of the blame, too. Emerson, I know we’ve already cleared the air, but after this, I feel like an apology isn’t enough.”

At one point or another, Emerson has been betrayed by everyone in this room, including me.

“So let me get this straight,” I interrupt. “The reason my sister lost her best friend was because you two couldn’t keep your dicks in your pants.” My eyes flick between Mike and Chris, then over to Rebecca. “And you couldn’t stay off your back?”

Rebecca gasps.

“Cam,” Chris warns.

“What the fuck do you care, Chris? You’re not even married to her anymore. And why is that?”

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