the end, I’d failed.
Everyone.
We were at the mall the day my parents died because of me.
And Hadley was on the road, high and furiously trying to get away from me the day she’d hit that tree.
I vowed not to fail Rosalee.
Though, after listening to Trent accuse me of being the fraud I truly was, I was afraid I already had.
Beth grabbed my hand and guided me to the couch. “Start at the beginning. I want to hear everything Officer Domestic Abuse thinks he knows about you. God, I wish you’d kneed him in the balls.”
In hindsight, I wished I had too.
For fifteen minutes, I told her everything. My birthday party. Trent showing up looking just like his father. Being cornered outside. His speculations. My conversation with Caven, then cake, presents, and rushing out of the house.
When I finished, Beth nodded. “I’m only going to say this one more time. Trent Hunt is not a threat. He thinks he knows the truth—”
“He doesn’t think, Beth. He knows!”
She covered my mouth with her hand. “No. He thinks. In order to prove any of this, he’d have to wave his Son-of-Malcom-Lowe flag loud and proud. That is not a risk he can take. Not with his job. Not with his personal life. Not with anything. He and Caven have been trying to keep that shit under wraps for years. If he tells Caven, hell is going to break loose and he knows it. Otherwise, he would have done it today.” She dropped her hand and leaned in toward me. “I am telling you one last time: Do not worry about theoretical ramblings from a man who has way bigger skeletons in his own closet. My advice is to steer clear of Trent for, oh, say, forever. And never. Ever. Let Caven see your scar.”
A flicker of relief washed through me. Maybe she was right. Trent hadn’t said anything to Caven. And maybe he wouldn’t. Hell, maybe I even passed his little physical assault lie detector test.
But there was something else. I sucked in a deep breath and then told her everything.
“I slept with Caven. But I didn’t take my shirt off. He never saw my scar, I promise.”
She blinked.
Once.
Twice.
Thrice.
She swallowed hard. “Who do you want right now?”
“What?”
“Who do you want? Beth Watts, Attorney at Law or your best friend, Beth Watt-a-licious Watts.”
It was my turn to blink.
Once.
Twice.
Thrice.
“Which one doesn’t involve you yelling at me for sleeping with Caven?”
With a curt nod, she replied, “Watt-a-licious it is. Spill. I want all the dirty little secrets about you losing your virginity to a man who doesn’t even know your name.”
I shot her a glare. “It wasn’t my virginity.”
“Sorry to inform you, but Hadley and I voted years ago that ten seconds of just the tip when you were seventeen doesn’t count.”
“It wasn’t just the tip.”
“Oh, sorry, I forgot it was pencil dick Brad Harris. Just the eraser is more like it.”
Another round of blinking later, I curled my lip. “You know what? Give me Attorney Beth. I’m not in the mood for you.”
“Not a problem.” She shoved off the couch and leaned into my face. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
“I don’t know, okay? It just happened. I thought I was texting you, but I was actually texting him. And then he showed up at my door and kissed me. And the next thing I knew, we’d gone through two condoms from the apocalypse.” She arched an eyebrow, but I kept going. “He told me he could have handled the woman he’d met at the bar coming back. He was ready for her. But that he wasn’t prepared for me. Me, Beth. Me. Not Hadley. Me.”
“Jesus, Lo,” she murmured.
“And it wasn’t a one-time thing. He wanted to come over tonight. But then his brother showed up, so now, I don’t know when I’ll see him again. But today, he kept touching me and holding me and…I felt safe with him. A man who looked just like Malcom Lowe sat across from me, but I was with Caven, so I was safe. Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I truly felt safe in my own skin?”
She closed her eyes and groaned. “You’re making this really hard for me to be Attorney Beth. If he was any other guy, I’d be ecstatic for you. I’ve always wanted you to be happy. But he’s Caven.”
I knotted my hands in my lap. “You want to hear something crazy?”
“Too late for that. But sure, hit