“He’s in a motorcycle gang,” Stella said, her voice a hushed whisper. “And he’s an FBI agent.”
“Why are you whispering?” Willa whispered. “He’s not here.”
“Because what if the guy outside hears you? They’ll never find our bodies,” Stella whispered again, her eyes comically wide.
“They’re not that kind of club,” I put in, my voice sounding loud after all the whispering. “And he’s not really part of the MC. It was only a cover.”
Malena jumped up, waving her hands around, still holding her chopsticks. “Mi amor, you know I love you, but right now I want to shake you until your brain pops back into the right position. How could you not tell us what was going on? A stalker? And a motorcycle club? Jim taking your money? Are you insane taking that on by yourself?”
“I know this wasn’t the best way to handle it, but—”
She started walking the whole length of my kitchen and then the hallway when she had nowhere else to go. “Not the best way? It was outright stupid. Careless. After everything we’ve been through, you still don’t think you can lean on us.”
She’d stopped yelling halfway through, her voice now thick with hurt. I got up and walked up to her. “I’m sorry. So sorry. And it has nothing to do with me not trusting you. You’re my best friend. I trust you with my life. My children’s lives.”
Stella joined our huddle. “Best friend? What about me?”
“And me?” Willa asked. “You need at least three best friends. If one isn’t available and the other one is too far away, you can call your third option, who will ride in like a lady in shining armor on a white horse and rescue you. FYI, that would be me. I’d make a great lady.”
I chuckled and pulled her close as well, and we all huddled together in a group hug.
“And why did you not invite me to help you with your dance routine?” Malena asked, now pouting but not sounding upset anymore. “I used to do ballet.”
“I didn’t realize that transferred over to pole dancing.”
“Dancing is dancing. If only you’d asked me, I could have put an unforgettable routine together. I always wanted to try pole dancing.”
I pulled back, raising a brow at my friend. “You should give it a go. It was fun even if I was hopeless at it.”
“Hell yes. I want to come too,” Stella said, her eyes lighting up in excitement.
“I’m so in. Maybe Jameson can put a pole in at the apartment so I can practice,” Willa said.
Oh no, Mason and Jameson wouldn’t be down with that at all. The Drake brothers would cause a worse scene than Sebastian did if their girls started wrapping themselves around poles on a stage.
“You’re as coordinated as I am, if not worse. Remember how you’re banned from home renovations?” I said, looking at Stella, hoping she’d change her mind.
She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at me. “What could possibly happen to me?”
“Let’s see,” I said, counting on my fingers. “You could fall on your head and crack it open. You could pull something. Break a leg. Arm. Your pick.”
“Fine. But if Malena gets to dance, I want to be there,” Stella said.
“Don’t think you can leave me at home. Poles love me,” Willa said, dancing around the living room.
“That doesn’t even make any sense,” I said, watching her attempt a pirouette and falling on her butt.
Malena nodded, and I could tell she’d be up on that stage before the week was over.
I went back to the table and started clearing the dirty dishes. Everyone pitched in, and we had everything put away within a few minutes. We decided to have a quiet night in, watching movies and drinking wine.
I’d banned the girls from bringing any alcohol that could be turned into a cocktail since that hadn’t ended well last time. It was wine only from here on out.
We squeezed onto the couch, Stella topping up everyone’s glass.
“Did you hear from your mom again?” I asked her.
Her mom used to be the mayor of our town. She’d controlled Stella until she finally broke free and fell in love with Mason.
“She tried threatening me a few times to get me to fulfill the contract. But my lawyers said I did everything required to break it, so I’m good.”
Malena scoffed. “Where does she think she lives? And a marriage contract? Really?”
Stella shrugged. “There’s a contract for everything in her world. But she’s moving to DC, so I hope I’ll never have to talk to her again.”
Sounded harsh, but I’d met her mother once and didn’t care to repeat the experience. She was dismissive and cruel, and I was glad my friend was nothing like her.
“Is she still going to try and get a spot in the senate? Even after the whole mall scandal?” I asked, not surprised at her audacity.
“I guess so,” Stella said, biting her bottom lip. “But can we please stop talking about her? Thinking about her gives me an ulcer. And we have more important things to discuss. Like what you’re going to do now.”
Malena lifted her glass. “First, we need a toast.”
Stella, Willa, and I held up our glasses as well.
“What are we toasting to?” I asked.
“To women who think they’re not good enough even though they are everything and more,” Malena said, giving me her best side-eye.
I nudged her. “Why do I feel personally attacked by this?”
She clinked her glass to Willa’s, mine, and Stella’s. “Because you are.”
Stella chuckled. “She’s right, you know. Sounds to me like Sebastian was caught in a shitty situation. And he didn’t ghost you after the assignment was done. Now that would have been a dick move.”
“But he lied to me,” I said, already knowing I was just arguing to not look like a pathetic lovesick loser.
Stella leaned forward to look at me from behind Malena. “And that wasn’t okay. Don’t think we’re saying it was. But it sounds to me like he wants to make up
