Page 25 of Exposed

The screen looked all blurry. I rubbed my eyes but it didn’t help.

Tanner threw a pair of jeans at my head.

But my reflexes were too slow to catch them.

“No wait, you need a more appropriate pant,” he said and chucked a pair of tuxedo pants at my head.

“What’s going on? I can’t see anything.”

“Drink this,” Tanner said and handed me a glass.

I shook my head. I’d vowed not to drink any more of Nigel’s green juice. I didn’t love the idea of him having a secret, unspecified ingredient. Especially because he liked to wink at me when he said it. I was almost 100% certain that he skeeted in it.

“Trust me,” Tanner said. “Nigel drugged you last night. You need this to properly wake up.” He slapped the side of my face.

“Ow.”

“See? You’re out of it. And you need to be with it because you’re supposed to meet up with Brooklyn in 20 minutes and I have somewhere to be or everything will be ruined.”

“Wait, what?” I took a sip of the drink and my vision immediately cleared. “Where am I meeting Brooklyn?” I’d been worried that she wouldn’t reach back out. But she’d texted me this morning like she’d promised. She wasn’t running away this time.

“Her text was very coy. She said Central Park. That you’d know where. She’s a flirtatious one, isn’t she?” He pointed to my phone, but I was already up and grabbing the jeans.

“No, the other ones,” Tanner said.

“I’m not wearing a tuxedo to Central Park.”

“It’ll make the proposal better.”

I paused with one foot in my jeans. “What?”

“Ignore me, I said I wouldn’t say anything. Pretend I’m not here.”

“That’s what Nigel said to me last night as he tried to blend into the wall again. Right before the whole night got very blurry.”

“Yes, whatever, you two had a little spat and he drugged you. Get over it. He had your best interests in mind. And it’s not like you drowned in your bath. You were fine. And he stopped your hysteria, because you were certainly relaxed. I get it, Brooklyn being married is a bit of a blow. But she’s single now and you’re going to want to propose to her. This afternoon, I think. So put on your tuxedo and stop dilly dallying.”

“She said last night that she just wants to talk. I wasn’t at all hysterical, but I was upset. I can’t believe she got married. After everything we promised each other?”

“The past is in the past,” Tanner said as he looked through my shirts.

“It doesn’t feel that way right now. And I know that her husband passed away. It seems like it was probably recently. She’s really upset. She’s not ready to get proposed to. Would you stop looking through my clothes and talk to me for a second?”

Tanner turned around. “I disagree with everything you said. You love her. And she obviously still has feelings for you if you made love and talked the night away.”

“We talked about how she moved on from me.”

“Because you didn’t let her finish her story.”

“Tanner, how much have you been hanging out with her?”

“A lot. We’re friends. Here, this one will do.” He pulled something out of my closet that I didn’t own.

Was Nigel shopping for me now? I didn’t have time to argue about this. I didn’t want to be late. I pulled on the newer pair of jeans and the button-up shirt. It all fit perfectly. Because of course it did…Nigel was always checking me out.

“I need you to promise me something,” Tanner said.

“To not kill Nigel?”

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