“Our cousin,” Hope said. “And Mom is forcing Christina to put her in the wedding.”
“I’m only doing it to make my mom happy. And Chantel is not going to be happy when she finds out that she’s last.” Her smile was a little evil, and I laughed.
“She’s that bad, huh?” I asked.
“Horrible. Stuck-up and has always thought she is too good. I was shocked that she even said yes. The only reason I’d asked her was because I thought she’d say no and it would make my mom happy.”
My phone’s message tone I had set just for Griffin went off in my purse, so I pulled it out.
Griffin: I know we have plans tomorrow, but I can’t make it now.
I frowned.
Me: Can I ask why?
“What’s wrong?” Christina asked.
I looked up. “Griffin. He’s been acting strange since Wednesday.” Since the day we’d slept together.
I had gone to the doctor right away and gotten tested. When I’d told him, he’d barely said two words to me.
I was worried that I had scared him with my pregnancy joke or that he thought I was mad at him.
I had been a little irritated that we had forgotten protection, but the frustration was at both of us and the situation. I had tried to show him that I wasn’t mad.
I couldn’t figure out what had happened between him leaving his office and me coming back to the bar.
I had considered that he’d told Caleb and Blake what happened, and they had given him crap about it. But there was no way Blake would know something like that and not make even one joke about it to me. Besides, neither of them had given me curious looks or anything like they had been let in on a secret.
No, I was ninety-nine percent sure Griffin hadn’t said anything.
Which left me back where I’d started. Griffin had been acting odd, and now, he was canceling on me. And the plans were his idea.
Griffin: Troy needs help with something.
“And now, Griffin is canceling our plans tomorrow, so he can hang out with Troy,” I told Christina. I met her eyes. “He’s not lying to me, is he?”
Hope looked confused. “You and Griffin are dating?”
I shook my head. “No. We’re really good friends.”
“Oh. Okay.”
“Hope, will you hand me my phone?” Christina asked.
Hope moved some stuff around on the sofa, grabbed Christina’s phone, and handed it to her.
She started typing.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Asking Troy if he has any plans on Saturday. We’ll see if he brings up Griffin’s name.”
“Good idea,” I said and started tapping my foot.
Thankfully, Troy answered right away.
Christina looked at her phone. “He says that he and Griffin do have plans.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn’t lied to me.
Christina’s phone beeped again.
“Oh.”
“Oh? Oh what?” I pressed her.
“He said that Griffin asked him if he wanted to do anything. Troy was going to tell him no because he had a rough week at work, but Griffin insisted. Then, he said, The things I do for friends.”
Christina and Hope both watched me. I supposed to see what kind of reaction I would have.
I opened up my message thread with Griffin. I was mad and upset. He had never blown me off before. But I didn’t want him to know I had checked up on him. Not because he’d be mad, but because I didn’t want him to know I cared so much since he obviously didn’t care that much back.
I had to wonder if this was the beginning of the end of our friendship.
Me: Have fun.
“What did you say?” Christina asked.
I shrugged. “I told him to have fun.”
She looked at me like I was crazy. “If you canceled plans on me like that and begged April or someone else to hang out with you, I’d be pissed.”
“Oh, I’m pissed. I just don’t want him to know.”
“Why?” Hope asked.
“Because revenge is never as much fun if the other person knows it’s coming.”
Christina laughed. “Ooh. What were you going to go and do tomorrow?”
“Go shopping.”
“Shopping? No wonder Griffin canceled.”
“It was his idea,” I defended myself. “I was going to go and use my gift card for lingerie.”
“Are you sure you two are just friends?” Hope asked.
“A single guy helping his best girl friend in a lingerie shop is an excellent way to attract women,” I fibbed. It wasn’t the real reason he had wanted to come with me, but it was true. When women saw a guy doting on his partner, they thought it was sweet. When they found out he was the single friend, they thought it was hot.
“Ah,” Hope said.
“Maybe I’ll go shopping with you tomorrow instead,” Christina said. “And maybe I’ll send Troy some pics while we’re there with some beautiful shoppers in the background, and maybe he’ll show Griffin everything he’s missing.”
I laughed. “I like the way you think.”
Meanwhile, I would share a couple of pictures of my own. I was going to make sure Griffin knew what he was missing.
Twenty-Three
Griffin
“Should we go get something to eat?” Troy asked me.
“Sure.” It wasn’t like we had anything else to do.
I had come over to Troy and Christina’s place an hour or so ago, and so far, Troy and I had sat on his couch and played video games.
“Aren’t you hungry?” Troy asked me.
I shrugged. “Not really.”
The guilt I felt about lying to Madeline had made me lose my appetite. I should have just told her the truth. That I thought we were getting too close and that it wasn’t a good idea. Instead, I had made up a story that Troy needed help with something.
He didn’t need help with anything. So far, we’d done nothing productive.
“Well, I’m starving. It’s almost one, so I say we get out of here.”
“Okay. Let me hit the head first.”
I was in the middle of washing my hands when I heard Troy speaking to someone else.
“Ooh, I think you should get that one.”
I walked out of the bathroom to see him holding his phone in front of him.
“Model it for me,” he said with a grin.
“Who are you talking to? I sure hope that’s Christina,” I joked.
He flashed me the screen for a second. “Christina and Madeline.”
Upon hearing Madeline’s name, I walked around the back of the couch, so I could see over Troy’s shoulder.
Christina was holding up two baby-doll lingerie sets, which probably meant that Madeline was holding the phone.
“White or black?” Christina asked.
“Both,” Troy answered.
“Sorry, no can do. They’re not cheap, and I want to buy some other stuff. So, you have to pick one.”
“Hmm…surprise me.”
Christina didn’t look impressed. She looked up and over her phone. “What do you think, Madeline?”