“Ditching the girls already?” Dean asks, glancing up from the pool table.
“They went to the bathroom together.”
“Oh. Scarlet and Quinn have become good friends.”
“Yeah,” I say, not meaning to smile as much as I do. “It’s nice.”
“I guess,” Dean says flatly, and I look at Archer and roll my eyes. We both know what he’s getting at. Kara is—for some stupid fucking reason—annoyed at the new friendship. If she weren’t so uptight, we could all hang out together and it’d be fun. Though I suppose when I stop and think about it, it’s kind of a weird situation.
Archer and Dean have been best friends for years. Quinn is marrying her brother’s best friend. My girlfriend is now good friends with my sister, so when those two hang out and we double-date, Archer comes with.
Whatever. We’re all family now.
“How’s Bobby?” I ask Archer.
“He’s doing all right. Supposedly he made a breakthrough during group therapy yesterday. Like he did the last time he was there. And the time before that.”
“I’m sorry, man. That’s rough.”
“You can’t help someone who doesn’t want to help themselves.” He moves around the pool table. “Speaking of help…you are taking a cat, right? Quinn mentioned that you wanted one for Jackson.”
“I did, and I’m considering it. Scarlet would like it too.”
“Getting her a pet already?” Dean trades his pool stick for his beer. “Are you ready for that type of commitment?”
He’s joking, but my answer is serious. “Yeah. I am.” I look in the direction of the bathrooms, hoping to see Scarlet walking out. “She’s perfect.”
“It’s nice seeing you happy,” Dean tells me. “We all like Scarlet, which is a welcome change from—what the fuck?” He cuts off and almost drops his beer, eyes going wide. “Daisy.”
He doesn’t have to say the words for me to know. The look of horror on his face says it all. Daisy is here, and I turn just in time to see her stop in her tracks. We make eye contact and she doesn’t so much as smile. Then she turns and makes a beeline to Scarlet.32Scarlet“I swear to you, it burned my mouth,” Quinn says and we both laugh. “I told Archer I would never go down on him again if he eats spicy food. I know he likes it, but for the sake of a blow job he’ll give it—what the fuck?”
She grabs my arm and comes to a dead stop.
“What’s wrong?” I face Quinn. Her green eyes are wide and it’s like she just saw a ghost. Following her line of sight, I turn and do a double-take. The annoying eavesdropping woman from the visitation room at the prison is standing a few feet from us.
Is this a strange coincidence or is she—
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Quinn demands, and a darkness that I’ve never seen before comes out in here. “Get the hell out of here before I beat your ass.”
The annoying lady puts her hand on her hip and shakes her head. “Nice to see you too, Quinn.”
Wait a minute. She knows Quinn?
“Get out of here,” Quinn says through gritted teeth. “Now.”
“Or what?”
“I’ll force you outside myself.”
Annoying Lady leans in. “We both know you don’t have it in you.”
“But I do.” Logan rushes forward, putting himself between Annoying Lady and Quinn. “This is my bar and I can kick whoever I want out. So get out.”
“That’s no way to treat a lady.”
“You’re not a lady,” Logan spits. “Get the fuck out of my bar, Daisy.”
Daisy? I blink. Once. Twice. She’s still there. Owen and Archer are coming over, and Dean is standing in the back of the bar, hands raised a bit as he tries to talk down Wes.
And now it makes perfect sense.
The Dawson siblings are ready to tear this woman apart because she’s Weston’s wife. She’s Weston’s wife who sat next to me while I poured my fucking heart out to my sister. While I admitted every bad thing I’ve done and planned to do.
I can’t breathe.
“Babe, you okay?” Archer puts his arm around Quinn’s shoulder, trying to turn her away. She’s still seething with anger, ready to throw the first punch.
“Archer Jones?” Daisy tips her head. “Wait a minute—you two are together?” She laughs. “I did not see that coming. How’d Dean take it?”
“Stop acting like you know us,” Logan warns. “And get out before I call the cops.”
“But one is already here.” Daisy smiles. “I’d like to talk to my husband now.” She looks right at me. “You do know you’ve been sleeping with a married man, right? Though I suppose breaking up a marriage is a cake-walk for you.”
She knows. She fucking knows.
The world spins around me, threatening to swallow me whole at any second. And I think this time I’ll let it.
“You okay?” Owen puts his hand on my shoulder.