Laura cocked her head to the side, watching me closely. “Yes, but…I didn’t realize things were so bad. Bad enough to contemplate divorce.”
“We aren’t contemplating divorce, we’re getting divorced,” I said. “It’s fine. Honestly, we’re both better for it. I’m just glad it’s happening before I’m too old to enjoy myself again.”
“Well, I want you to be happy, but what will happen to our group? What will that mean? Do we have to see you separately?” Laura asked, reaching across the salon chair and putting her hand on mine. “I’m so sorry, Natasha. I wish you’d told me.”
“You won’t have to do anything different. Aside from adding an extra space at the table when I get my boy toy.” I winked, though the idea of Jaren bringing someone else sent ice through my veins that I forced myself to ignore. “It’ll be fine,” I swore, and I hoped to God it was true. “We aren’t divorcing you guys, just each other. I swear we won’t make it weird.”
She nodded, but I knew she wasn’t convinced.
“Sometimes, splitting up while things are still amicable is for the best. I think it’s really brave of you two to realize where you’re broken and look for something better. Something to bring you happiness,” Megan said.
“Thanks,” I told her, draining the last of my glass. “Where is our lady? I need another.”
“She should be back soon,” Emily said, brandishing her empty glass. “I need one, too.” She looked at Laura. “You two are the same age, right? You and Natasha?”
“Mhm,” Laura said. “She’s a few months older.”
“Why do you have to do me like that?” I asked, a hand to my chest, a growing grin on my face. “‘Yes would suffice.”
Laura wrinkled her nose at me. “Hey, when it was us getting into bars, you were proud you were older. Now is my time to shine,” she said with a dry laugh, taking a sip of her wine.
“So did you and Brad get married straight out of college, too?” Emily asked. “Or did you meet after?”
“We met in college,” Laura confirmed. “Around the same time Natasha and Jaren did, actually. But we got married a few years after college. We had a,” she smiled to herself, “long engagement. I got cold feet quite a few times, and we ended up with an impromptu wedding in his parents’ backyard.”
“She says that,” I added, “but nothing Laura does seems impromptu. It was gorgeous and looked better than I could’ve done given six months to plan it, let alone, what? Like a week?”
Laura nodded a confirmation. “Something like that.”
“And you two have been friends since college, too?”
“The four of us, yeah,” Laura said. “Brad and I, and Jaren and Natasha.”
“So where do the rest of the group members fit in? I know you and Nick work together, and obviously you’re,” she pointed to Megan, “Nick’s fiancée and Andy’s Brad’s best friend…”
Laura drank the last of her wine and set the glass down on the table beside her chair. “Yeah, Nick and I have been friends all our lives. We went to school and then college together, so we’ve always been close. We opened our dental practice right after college. Nick’s family had the space and sold it to us, so it all worked out perfectly. And he met Megan…” She looked at Megan. “A year ago?”
Megan nodded. “Yep. That’s right.”
“So, she’s been part of our group since then, and Andy and Brad were best friends in college, too. But Andy didn’t really hang out with us until after we graduated, just because it was always a couples thing.”
“I love that,” Emily said. “You guys are literally the cutest.” She paused, spinning her empty glass around in her long, outstretched hand.
“We’re very blessed to have such great friends, and Andy is among one of my best. He’s really such a great guy, and he seems so smitten with you,” Laura said.
Emily pressed her lips together, waving her off. “Oh, no. We’re just having fun. He’s a sweet guy, but it’s not serious.”
“Have you told him that?” I grimaced, shocked by her words as I thought back to what Andy had said the night before. Megan and Laura looked just as taken aback.
“Andy really seems to care about you,” Megan said cautiously.
“It’s true,” Laura added. “I’ve never seen him so serious about a girl, and I promise I’m not just saying that. In college, Andy got really hurt by someone he was dating who cheated on him, and I’ve never seen him open up since that ended…” Her eyes drilled into Emily, and there was a warning in her tone. “Until now.”
Emily smiled, but it was tight-lipped. “Well, like I said, he’s sweet. I care about him, too.” She inhaled. “I didn’t realize he’d been cheated on in the past. He never told me. You all must know so much about each other. I can’t imagine the kind of secrets you must have between all of you.”
“Secrets?” Megan squeaked. I was shocked by the sudden change of subject, though Emily looked relieved to be in control of the conversation again.
“Yeah, I mean…there has to be something, right? Something you’re keeping from the others or…from yourselves.” She rested her head back in the chair, staring at the ceiling. “Friendships like these are rife with all sorts of scandalous things.”
“I don’t know. I think we’re pretty boring, honestly,” I said, wishing that the lady would return to refill our drinks. I was losing my buzz.
“Yeah, totally,” Laura said.
“Mhm,” Megan agreed, though I noticed her hands were gripping the arms of her salon chair so tight her knuckles had turned white.
“I don’t buy that,” Emily said. “I mean, statistically, between you all…there has to have been at least one affair, one secret life, and one murder.”
I swallowed, my throat tight. When she looked
