Sometime Soon - By Debra Doxer Page 0,35

bad idea. I take a breath and push on, deciding to yank that damn tooth right out. “I saw Bryn this week. She told me something… something about Mike.”

“Bryn told you something?” Katie asks confused.

I nod.

“What are you talking about?” Her fork drops onto her plate with a clank. “What about Mike?”

Then, to my horror, my throat suddenly feels tight, like I’m going to cry. I am seriously botching this up.

Concerned now, Katie leans toward me. “Andy?”

I blink hard and just say it. “Bryn told me that she and Mike kissed.”

Katie just stares at me, seeming to have trouble comprehending what I’ve just said. Then she leans back, as though she’s trying to distance herself from it. “They kissed?”

“Yes. Once.”

“Mike and Bryn kissed?”

I nod.

“What do you mean they kissed? What kind of a kiss?” she asks.

“A real kiss, Katie. I’m not talking about a friendly peck.”

“When did she say this happened?” she asks after a moment.

“It was after we got back from the Bahamas. Bryn’s car died at the grocery store, and Mike came to help her.”

“I remember that. Mike told me about that day. He told me he got Bryn’s car started for her.”

“I guess he left the kiss part out.”

Katie sits up straighter in her chair. “What exactly is Bryn claiming happened?”

I don’t like the way Katie is looking at me. Like maybe I’m making this up. “She said that once Mike got her car started, she gave him a hug to thank him. But he turned it into a kiss, and she said that she kissed him back. But then she pulled away and drove off, feeling badly, apparently.”

Katie shakes her head. “I’m sure she misread it. It was probably just a friendly kiss.”

“I don’t think so. Afterward, Mike called her and asked if he could see her.”

Katie opens her mouth to say something, but then closes it again.

“Bryn said she refused to see him, but apparently he calls her on the phone pretty regularly now.”

Katie’s eyes widen. “They talk on the phone?”

I nod. I’m no longer feeling choked up as my outrage returns. “During the day, when they’re both at work,” I explain. “Bryn said that he always calls her and not the other way around.”

“Why? What do they talk about?”

“They’ve discussed the fact that they have a physical attraction to each other, but they don’t want to hurt you. He also told her that he has cold feet about the wedding.”

“He told her that?” Katie asks as her eyes begin to mist over.

I nod, watching her as she tries not to lose it. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t sure whether or not to tell you any of this.”

“Have they slept together?”

“No,” I answer quickly. “Bryn said it was just one kiss and phone conversations. That’s it.”

Katie takes a deep breath. “Is it possible Bryn’s lying?”

I hesitate before answering. Bryn is many things, but I’ve never known her to lie. “I don’t think so,” I answer softly as I reach into my bag for a tissue and hand it to Katie.

She automatically takes it, but just holds it absently in her hand. “I don’t understand,” she whispers, slowly shaking her head.

I don’t know what to say. Saying I was sorry again seemed completely inadequate.

“They just kissed? Once?” she asks me.

I nod.

“He never told me that. He never mentions Bryn at all.” She finally realizes she has a tissue in her hand and reaches up to dab at her eyes. “I can’t believe he’s been calling her and telling her things he hasn’t told me. Why would he do that? Does he think he can’t talk to me?”

“If he really is terrified of getting married, he might be afraid to tell you.”

Katie takes a shaky breath, considering this. “And what about Bryn? I thought we were friends.”

“I don’t really have an explanation for Bryn other than that she’s lonely. He’s paying attention to her, and even though she knows it’s wrong, she just can’t help herself.” I want to add that if it weren’t for Bryn having something of a conscience it might have gotten a lot further by now.

“What if he wants to leave me?” she asks, looking like a lost child.

My heart sinks at her question. “What if you want to leave him?” I reply, feeling frustrated with her reaction.

That seems to startle her, as though it hadn’t occurred to her. Now I can’t help comparing Katie and Bryn to myself. Here they are, both anguishing over a man, hanging on to him despite his

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