Chapter 30
“Is being left alone too much to ask?” ~ Paisley
Paisley
I open the door to discover Maya, Nova, Chloe, and Sophia on my doorstep.
“Will it help if I order you to leave?”
Chloe snorts. “You’re cute.”
She pushes her way inside. Sophia, Nova, and Maya follow her. Maya squeezes my hand as she passes.
“Who told you?” I ask once they’ve made themselves comfortable in my living room.
“Blossom phoned me,” Nova says.
“And Dakota phoned me,” Chloe says.
I groan. “So, basically, every person on the island knows Eli dumped me. Great.”
“Dakota said there was a loud shouting match and items were thrown,” Chloe claims.
I cross my arms over my chest and glare at her. “No items were thrown. ”
Although, now I’m thinking about it, I kind of wish I’d thrown something at Eli’s big, fat head. It would have been better than running off with tears in my eyes like some lame heroine in one of Maya’s romance novels.
“Bummer.” Sophia frowns. “Assholes should get what they deserve.”
“He’s going to be alone for the rest of his life. That’s his just desserts,” Maya says.
“As much as I’d enjoy imagining Eli alone and lonely in his old age, it’s never going to happen. He’s a billionaire. Eventually, someone will snap him up.”
And they can have him. Eli is dead to me. I never should have let him convince me he isn’t an asshole. He had me fooled. And, if there’s one thing I hate, it’s being fooled.
Chloe taps her chin. “Could we sabotage his wealth somehow?”
Nova frowns at her. “You can’t prank his wealth away.”
Chloe smiles. “But we could prank him. Rumor has it he’s afraid of Viking the otter.”
“Viking is adorable,” Maya says. “How can anyone be afraid of him?”
“Eli claims Viking bit him.” I roll my eyes. “He barely had a scuff on his shoes.”
I should have known then to stay away from him. Anyone who can get angry with an innocent little creature, who’s adorable to boot, should be avoided. Lesson learned.
No more spending time with Eli. No more early morning coffees at the brewery while everyone else is still asleep. No more surprise trips. No more dates where Eli spends the entire time teasing me with what he’ll do to me later. And no more nights spent in his arms.
“I’m going to die alone.”
Nova rushes to me and engulfs me in a hug. “You’re not going to die alone.”
Maya rubs a hand up and down my back. “This is just a bump in the road. Eli will realize his mistake and come crawling back.”
I step away from them. “No. There will be no reconciliation with Eli. And you’re not going to spend the day convincing me otherwise.”
“Good.” Sophia rubs her hands together. “We can get to the fun portion of our evening. We can—”
“figure out how to prank Eli,” Chloe interrupts to say.
“No. We are not pranking Eli.”
Chloe sticks out her bottom lip. “Why not?”
“There’s no sense in pranking him anyway,” Nova says before I can explain my aversion to spending time in jail – again. “According to Blossom, Eli’s leaving today and he won’t be back for at least a few weeks.”
My stomach cramps. He’s leaving. He dumped me and is leaving? He doesn’t even want to try and reconcile? He’s avoiding me as if he’s disgusted with me?
I place a hand on my stomach and force those thoughts away. I don’t want to reconcile with Eli. He’s a First Class Douchebag who couldn’t even be bothered to listen to my side of the story .
I can’t be with a man who won’t listen to me. I spent my childhood with a stepfather and mother who didn’t care about my thoughts or feelings. I won’t spend a lifetime with a partner who does the same.
“If we’re not pranking him, can we at least get drunk?” Chloe asks.
“I’m pregnant,” Maya says.
“Breastfeeding,” Nova adds.
“All the more for us.” Chloe walks toward the door.
“Have a good time,” I holler after her.
She points at me. “You’re coming with.”
“No, I am not. I am not going to Mermaid Karaoke and singing my heart out.”
She shrugs. “Summer’s over. Mermaid Karaoke is done anyway.”
“And I am not going to Rumrunner and drinking shots of whiskey all night.”
“But Rumrunner and Bootlegger are the only bars in Smuggler’s Rest,” she pouts.
“We could go to the resort,” Sophia suggests. “Or to Smuggler’s Cove. ”
“No way.” Nova shakes her head. “I’m not getting banned from the restaurant because you three got drunk and rowdy at the bar.”
“I didn’t say anything about getting rowdy,” Chloe says.
Nova rolls her eyes. “It’s implied.”
“Fine. We’ll go to the resort.” Chloe motions to the door. “Let’s load up! ”
Not happening. “I’m not going to the resort.”
Chloe huffs. “What’s the problem now? We won’t get banned from there. Nova’s baby daddy owns the place.”
Nova glares at her. “Stop referring to Hudson as my baby daddy.”
“Why? Is he not Iliana’s dad?” Chloe feigns confusion. She’s lying. She’s also being a good friend. She’s trying to take my mind off of Eli. It’s sweet. But it’s not going to work.
“I don’t feel like going anywhere,” I say before collapsing in a chair. “Go have fun. I’ll see you later.”
“She’s cute,” Sophia says. “She actually thinks we’ll leave her alone.”
I don’t. But it was worth a try.
“No worries. I’ll grab the supplies.” Chloe flounces out of my house.
“Supplies?” I ask the room but no one will meet my gaze. Not a good sign with my friends who aren’t exactly known for their ability to follow the rules.
“You sit there.” Nova pats my shoulder. “We’ll take care of everything.”
Scarier words have never been spoken.
“I’ll get the glasses.” Sophia hurries to the kitchen.
“Don’t forget plates,” Maya hollers after her. She pats her belly. “Mini Caleb’s hungry.”
“Mini Caleb?” Nova asks. “You know you’re having a boy?”
Maya shakes her head. “No idea but there’s no way Caleb’s super powered genes haven’t overpowered mine. ”
Nova nods. “I know what you mean. Iliana is a girl but she’s all Hudson. She points to stuff and grunts at it.”
“I’m back,” Chloe sings as she barges into the house.
And there goes any hope I had of my friends leaving me to suffer on my own. Chloe has snacks and drinks. She’ll never leave now.
I bet I could construct a wild child signal. I could flash it in the air whenever Chloe gets out of control and Lucas would rush in to snatch her away. It’s an idea worth considering.
Chloe slams a bottle of whiskey on the table. “It’s truth or drink time.”
I groan. There’s no way I’m surviving this night unscathed. I should probably phone Blossom and tell her I’ll be in late tomorrow.
Nova pats my arm. “Don’t worry. I already told Blossom you won’t be in tomorrow.”
Damn. There went my last excuse to get out of this situation. Oh, wait. I have another idea.
“But Nova and Maya can’t play truth or drink.”
Chloe smirks. “Yes, they can. If they have to drink, they have to drink a glass of prune juice.”
Nova moans. “I hate prune juice. Hudson made me drink it all the time when I was pregnant since it’s good for hydration.”
“Don’t tell Caleb. I have no interest in downing gallons of prune juice. It’s disgusting.” Maya makes a face.
“Any more excuses?” Sophia asks as she sets out plates and glasses.
“I believe the game is truth or dare. Not truth or drink. ”
She shakes her head. “Lame. I expected more of you.”
Chloe sets a charcuterie board on the table. My mouth actually waters at the sight of the various cheeses and meats and nuts.
“Did you make this?”
“Don’t sound so surprised. I can cook.”
Sophia barks out a laugh. “No, you can’t.”
Chloe huffs. “Fine. Natalia helped me. She’s a whizz in the kitchen. She doesn’t take after me.”
Maya fills up a plate with meats and cheeses and hands it to me. “Eat. You’re going to need it.”
My stomach rumbles at the scent of food. I can’t remember when I last ate. Probably breakfast. Oh, wait. I didn’t have breakfast since Eli normally brings me a muffin in the morning. But not this morning. This morning he…
I stuff a piece of Gouda in my mouth and force those thoughts away. No more thinking about Eli the First Degree Jerk.
Chloe pours whiskey into three shot glasses and hands one to me. “You’re first.”
I sigh. Of course, I am. I don’t fight her. I’ve resigned myself to the hangover I’ll be feeling for at least two days after tonight.
“Ask your question.”
Sophia opens her mouth but Chloe shoves her palm in her face. “Me first.” She smirks at me. “Did Eli have a big dick?”
And so, it begins. I down the shot.
“Darn,” Chloe pouts in disappointment but Sophia elbows her .
“Do you want her passed out drunk or do you want to know how big Eli is?”
Chloe blinks. “Why can’t I want both things?”
I narrow my eyes on Sophia. “You want me passed out drunk?”
“I want you to forget about Eli and what happened today for a little while. And, since you have a brain that never stops thinking, there’s only one way for you to forget what happened.”
Huh. Her motives are actually kind of sweet.
“Nova.” Chloe hands her a glass of prune juice. “You’re next.”
“I get to ask a question this time,” Sophia says and Nova groans. “Did you or did you not know you could escape the chalet the night you got ‘locked in’ with Hudson and created Iliana?”
“I hope you have extra toilet paper in the house,” Nova mutters as she drinks the glass of prune juice.
I bark out a laugh. I didn’t think it would be possible to laugh today. But I should have known better. I should have known my friends wouldn’t let me sit alone in my house with my broken heart. They never let me down. I can always count on them.
No matter what happens in life. I have them.