Page 21

"Does this dress make me look fat?" Riley asked, turning around in the mirror and looking at me. I sat on her bed, crossed-legged, and scowled at her. I took in her outfit: a flowy pale blue skirt and a white blouse with ruffles on the shoulders. It looked good on her.

"You're pregnant, Riley."

She rolled her eyes and sighed, placing her hands on her hips. "Yeah, but I don't want to look fat. Do I look fat?"

I waved a hand at her. "You look pregnant."

She turned back to the mirror. A small smile pulled at her lips as she ran her hands over her stomach. She was five months pregnant now and just starting to show properly. I couldn't help but feel a little jealous. She had it all—the beautiful husband, the wonderful marriage, and now the baby.

I shook my head, trying to focus. "I thought you said you needed help with a few things. Isn't that why I drove over here in a hurry?"

She nodded. "I need help figuring out what to wear. We're having girl's night in a couple of days, and I want to look good. But I feel some of these outfits make me look chubby and not in the pregnant way."

I chewed on my lip, unsure if I wanted to go. Since the big screaming match and the blow-out that followed, I'd been avoiding everything. I didn't want to know what the girls thought of our fake relationship, and I really didn't want to know if the entire town knew. I'd been trying to stay home and avoid as much as possible, but I knew I would eventually have to get back into things.

Riley turned back to me. "No one knows."

"Knows what?" I asked as I grabbed a pillow, leaning onto it.

She crossed her arms. "Your face is an open book. No one besides everyone at the party knows about you and Weslie's relationship. And really, the girls haven't said much."

I rubbed my hands together nervously. I hadn't known the girls that long, but the idea of this ruining my friendship with them worried me.

"It wasn't fake. I mean, it was fake at first." I ran my hands over my face and sighed. "It's complicated. It was fake in the beginning, but it's not anymore."

"I'm getting that vibe."

I dropped my hands. "But it isn't. It was so simple when it was just us. There is no need to impress each other. It's just easy. It's like...I've lived with him for twenty years already, and he knows what I like and don't like."

When did everything get so complicated? When did it become so messy?

"Did you mean what you said? Back at Ayden and Wendy's house?"

I thought of what I had said. Telling her the truth and asking when we stopped trusting each other.

"Which part?"

"That you love him. That you fell in love with him. That you've loved him all these years."

I felt tears bloom as I nodded my head. "I do. I did." I wiped my eyes. "I've loved him since we were teens. And I'm sorry I never told you. I should have."

Riley frowned, looking hurt. "Why didn't you tell me?"

I shrugged, looking around the room. "Because he left. What was the point? Why admit something when it was over."

"The point was you told me everything. I told you everything. Why not tell me about him."

"But we didn't," I corrected her. "You never told me about wanting to move or that you had a crush on my brother for years. We were both keeping secrets."

Her face dipped. She swallowed, chewing on her lower lip.

As angry as I was about all of that, I wasn't. If we were being honest, we all had secrets we didn't tell, even to someone we cared about. I had kept secrets, and so had she.

I reached a hand out, taking her hand, and squeezed it. "I'm not angry about it, April. But as close as we are, I think we even have secrets we don't tell each other. And that doesn't make our friendship terrible. I think it makes it better."

I watched tears break from her eyes, and she wiped them. "I feel like I've been a shitty friend since you got here. I've watched you fall apart, and I haven't been able to do anything."

I shook my head. "You haven't. You have been an amazing friend, Riley." She'd been there more than anyone else in my life had. She was more a sister than a friend. She knew my secrets, and she knew my fears. She had held my head while I cried countless times since being here, and she'd always stood by my side. And I, in turn, had done the same for her.

"We're growing up, and that's okay because it's not just us anymore." I nodded my head to her stomach. "Our little group is growing."

It had always been us against the world, and in the old pack, that mindset worked. It was how we survived, but it wasn't needed here. We could thrive and grow here, and we were.

Riley wiped her eyes and sniffled. "Do you think the guys have made up yet?"

I snorted, shaking my head. "No, from what I've gathered, they haven't spoken or seen each other since the fight."

Riley rolled her eyes, walking back into her bathroom and shutting the door. "I swear to god, men. It's been over two weeks now. They should have at least started to get over this. Or talked by now."

I couldn't help but laugh because it felt normal. I felt like myself, and I didn't think I would again.

"So, this house you guys bought…where is it?"

Riley came back out wearing her sweatpants and a baggy shirt. She smiled as she walked out. "It's beautiful. It's a house in one of the older parts of town. It's a little run-down but has so much character."

"Do you have pictures?"

She nodded, pulling her phone out. She showed me a large house with beautiful windows and a huge yard. It needed some work, but the bones of the house were good. The photos inside were filled with large rooms and a huge kitchen, all with natural wood floors and built-in bookcases. There were five bedrooms and an office. There was a dining room and a basement that they could do whatever they wanted.

"Wow."

"It needs a bit of work," Riley said, biting her lower lip. "But god…. it's stunning. And Cayden said he would start work immediately so we could move in by the time the baby is born."

"You're going to have it all," I chuckled. "The husband, the baby, the career, and the house."

She blushed. "You know, I never thought I would. It was always shoved down my throat, and I never really thought about whether I wanted it. It was just expected of me. But given the choice, I want it all. I just wanted it with Cayden.”

I understood that. I thought I was going to be stuck with Ivan for the rest of my life. I remembered how I wanted to run at our wedding, but I could feel the weight bearing down on me. My mother gently told me it was just wedding jitters. My father told me he was a good man and that Ivan was going to be a wonderful husband and father.

I frowned. "I was terrified I would end up pregnant when I was with Ivan.

Riley froze, looking at me stunned. "What?"

I inhaled slowly, another secret I never told her. "I always wanted to tell you and leave him, but I never did.”

She looked horrified as she stared at me. "Wh…wh…what? Why didn't you tell me?"

I had been so scared. I remembered wanting to tell her, the words bubbling up to tell her, but I never did. I always said to myself that things would get better, and if I told her, she would never understand when things got better.

"Because it was just easier to hold it in. It was easier to act like everything was fine.

Riley swallowed. "Why are you telling me now?"

I gave her a soft smile. "I'm telling you because I want you to know. You are a shining star of what I hope I will get one day."

Before Riley could respond, my phone rang. I glanced at it, and my stomach dipped when I saw Ivan's number.

"Don't answer that," she said, her eyes looking at the name on my screen.

I grabbed it, tempted to ignore it, but I couldn't. I needed to know if he knew about Weslie and me. Was he finally going back home?

I answered it, pulling it up to my ear. "Hello?"

"Do you miss me yet?" he spoke in a husky voice, his voice slightly off, and I wondered if he'd been drinking again.

I sighed. "No."

"Not even after the little gift I gave you?"

I stiffened. "What are you talking about?"

"Your apartment, beautiful little space. Nothing like our house, of course."

Riley's eyes widened as she listened in, and I frowned. "What about my apartment?"

"I set it on fire."

I frowned. Why hadn't I known that? Why hadn't anyone told me? But the look on Riley's face told me she knew, and I'm guessing the guys didn't want her to tell me.

I ground my teeth together, a little angry now. Why did everyone feel the need to hide everything from me? Like I was some broken doll.

I straightened my back. "Why did you do that?"

"To make a point, you belong with me, April."

I snorted. "I'm guessing you don't know I've remarried then."

He went quiet, too quiet for my liking. It was the silence before the storm.

"What?"

"I've remarried. I've already moved on and started a new job. I've become part of this pack, and you can do nothing to change that. The old pack will have to acknowledge the change, so I'm part of this pack now."

"Why would you do that?" he yelled.

"Because I'm not yours anymore," I snapped back, tightening my hold on the phone. "So you need to go home and leave me alone."

"You're going to regret that, April. You and I both know you belong with me, and once I get my hands on you, I'm going to…" I ended the line before he could finish, and Riley's eyebrows went up.

"Damn, you grew some balls."

"I've always had them," I said with a smile. I just let Ivan change me, and I was done doing that. I was done living in the shadow where I had to tiptoe around.

"Are the guys at work?" I asked, pulling myself off the bed.

"I think so."

"Good. I'm tired of those two fighting."

Riley raised an eyebrow at me. "And you plan on changing that how?"

"I've known the guys for a long time, and they need to talk. They will be talking." I grabbed my purse and gave Riley a quick hug. "You looked good. Wear that dress."

I hurried out of the house, got to my car, and headed to the fire station. I found Ayden standing at the door talking with Miles. I still felt a little embarrassed about the other day, not to mention the fact that word got out about Weslie and me in his house's coat closet.

Ayden spotted me first and offered me a gentle smile. "Hey, April. Need something?"

"Are Cayden and Weslie here?"

He nodded. "They are not speaking to each other but working the same shift. So, I'd say it's progress."

Miles snorted. "Really? Because I wouldn't say that."

Ayden sighed, shaking his head. "Cayden is working on some paperwork in my office, and Weslie is in the kitchen."

"It's the closest they have gotten together all week."

Ayden smacked Miles on the back of his head. Miles rubbed his head and scowled. "What?"

"You know, sometimes I wanna call your wife and tell her to take you home."

“Oh, do you mind if I borrow an empty room for a moment?” I asked, pausing in front of Ayden.

“Sure, the board room is empty. Right door off the kitchen.”

I smirked, walking past them and heading up the stairs to find Weslie on the large island. He was wearing his usual outfit, and his hair was slightly curled. I felt my stomach flip, taking him in and knowing just how important he was to me.

His eyes spotted me, and he looked at me, confused. "April, what are you doing here?"

I stopped at the edge of the island and placed my hands on the counter. "You have a moment to take a break?" I batted my eyes. "Please?"