~E~

 

"I love this dress. It's the one. I gotta try it on. Look at the detail on the front." Sarah points to the vintage cream dress she's currently in love with. It's only the tenth dress she's loved today. And, every dress was the one.

I smile as I watch her scamper to the dressing room, her excitement contagious.

I'm so happy for her. She's found someone, she's in love, and she's gushing over dresses like a little girl.

"To be in love. How sweet." Abbie laughs as she pretends to gag.

I nudge her with my shoulder. "Don't be hatin."

 "I know. I'm jealous as hell."

"Weren't you dating someone recently? The guy from speed dating, right?"

"Yep, but that ended after the third date."

"I'm sorry, Abs, what happened?"

"He brought me over to his parents' house for dinner without telling me."

I gasp, a few giggles escaping. "You've got to be kidding me."

"It gets worse. They're all vegan and dinner consisted of bean salad and some weird leafy veggies. To top it off, the grandfather kept farting and God the smell." Abbie rolls her eyes. "He was cute, but not that cute."

We fall into a fit of giggles as Sarah steps out of the dressing room.

Our laughter stops when we see how gorgeous Sarah looks.

"Sarah," I breathe. "You're stunning. The dress is perfect."

Sarah beams as she spins around us. "Isn't it? Do you think it's okay for this weekend?"

"Yes, it's perfect for a summer wedding." I say while Abby nods her head in agreement.

Her boyfriend's brother's wedding is this weekend and Zeke asked her to come. This'll be the second time she's met his family and I've never seen her so worked up before.

"They'll love you, S." Abbie says as she looks at a sequined purse. "I bet they already do."

"You guys are the best. Okay, it's final. I'm buying this sexy number."

"Let's hurry before she changes her mind. I'm ready to eat my hand." Abbie shuffles Sarah back to the dressing room.

We make it out of there ten minutes later, dress in hand, and we head to Sarah's car. We parked a few blocks away. All morning, we've been walking around the east side of Providence. We checked out three different dress boutiques along with a few other small shops before finally finding the dress.

I'm starving and my feet throb. I should've worn my sneakers instead of these damned sandals.

"Any word from Knox, yet?" Abbie asks, while Sarah darts me a knowing look. Sarah got the brunt of my melt down a couple of weeks ago. I had to, or rather she had to, peel me off her kitchen counter and tuck me in for the night on her couch.

Abbie, on the other hand, doesn't know the full story.

I shake my head. "No. I tried meeting him for coffee a couple of Saturdays ago and that didn't end well." I fill Abbie in on the latest.

"Wow, I'm surprised. He seemed like a nice one. Men never cease to amaze me."

We round the corner and Sarah gasps as she stops short.

"What the?" I crash into her as Abbie grabs my hand.

"Shh!" Sarah says as she grabs our arms and pull us both into a space between two small shops.

"What?" I mouth as Abbie darts Sarah a confused look.

"Look." Sarah points across the street to a coffee shop where I see Melissa and Knox standing in front of it looking pretty friendly.

What the fuck?

My stomach drops and my fists clench. My breathing grows heavy as Sarah grabs my hand and Abbie squeezes the one she's still holding.

“Oh my God! Is that who I think it is?” Abbie whispers.

"Is she cheating on Ben?" Sarah asks, having no idea who it is.

"That's Knox." I reply.

"What?" Sarah yelps.

"What is your fucking sister doing with Knox?" Abbie asks.

"I thought they didn't like him? He breaks those dumb rules." Sarah pulls her hand from mine. "I'm going over there."

I grab Sarah's elbow before she darts out. "No. Don't. Let's try to listen."

They both look at me as if I've lost my mind.

I cover my mouth with my finger but only the sound of their voices carries in the air. A minute later, they part ways, walking in opposite directions.

I stand there frozen, as my head tries to make sense of what I saw. Why would Knox and Melissa be meeting for coffee? Is she harassing him? Neither one of them looked mad.

A sudden thought hits me. What if he's been talking to her, or them rather, this entire time?

Maybe they're using him to tempt me. And he knows and is in on their plan? Or, maybe he doesn't know and is being played a fool by them.

I don't know, but whatever it is doesn't sit well with me. Butterflies swarm inside my stomach and my throat opens; my appetite for lunch is gone as breakfast works its way back up.

"Em, you okay?" Sarah asks, as she moves in front of me. She brushes my hair away from my face as she offers me a sad smile.

I shrug as Abbie moves next to Sarah. "I'm sure there's a reason to this madness. In my opinion, Knox is a saint."

I cross my arms. "What?"

"Anyone who can sit down and have coffee with your sister is a saint in my eyes."

I crack a smile as they both laugh.

"I just don't get why they would've had coffee together. Knox breaks the rules. Certainly, she's not talking about me dating him. Unless, it's all one big setup and he's in on it."

"I doubt that. What would he have to gain from that? If anything, they're using him and lying to him about it." Sarah grasps my arms. "Listen to me, Em. Don't read between the lines until you've got the full story."

I steady my breathing as I push the butterflies down. I know I should listen to Sarah but at this moment, I can't. My mind races with all of the possibilities, most of them having me see red.

Why can't my mom and sister leave me alone? Why do they have to meddle in everything?

"Em," Abbie rubs my shoulder. "Sarah's right. How about a good revenge plot against Melissa? It'll be fun to plan."

I smile, Abbie's humor is winning me over. "Yes, let's. Over lots of wine and carbs. And, chocolate, of course."

Sarah grins. "Let's go." We continue down the road to Sarah's car.

I know my friends are right. Get more details before you flip out. So, why can't I shake the feeling that something isn't right?

My stomach clenches. If they're messing with Knox in any way, there'll be hell to pay.

~K~

I steer my truck into the dark parking lot. The air is thick with heat, the humidity bearing down like a wet sponge. The last week of August stretches before me and I doubt the heat will let up.

The neon sign shines into my truck, Dave's Bar & Grill, lit up in different colors... It's a favorite bar of ours with decent food and a few pool tables. I'm meeting Jim here for a few drinks, in hopes of catching up.

With a few minutes to spare, I sit in my truck and scroll through my emails. A few from work, a couple from Jane, and one from Ron. My stomach flip flops when I see Emma's name on an email but when I click, I realize it's about an upcoming staff meeting.

Why do I care whether or not this woman gets in touch with me? I was the one who told her it was over, our time together a mistake.

Part of me regrets telling her anything, but when she asked to meet for coffee, I couldn't say no. I needed to see her.

I knew she wanted answers. We had an amazing weekend together and then I avoided her.

Quite frankly, our weekend scared the shit out of me. I needed to slow things down before I lost control.

I almost apologized, almost asked her to come home with me. I knew it was wrong. But, I wanted to anyway.

False hope isn't fair to her. She deserves better.

Now, a couple of more weeks have passed and I know it's over for good. She barely looks my way, we both avoid each other, and when we do happen to pass by the other, it's as if we can't get away fast enough.

What a fucking mess.

The kicker is I still can't get her out of my fucking head.

I still wish I could take her home with me. Repeat those amazing nights we had together.

My mind drifts to her sister. Our coffee meeting earlier was awkward.

She called me out of the blue last week, after snagging my number from her sister's phone. She was in need of some help and didn't know who else to call. Her husband has a secret cocaine addiction and he's getting worse. She'd never admit these issues to her mother or sister. She'd done her homework by researching me. I was impressed when she told me she'd read about my extensive training in substance abuse.

I told her I had to think about it. It wasn't that I didn't want to help. It felt weird to me, almost as if I was betraying Emma. I don't know why; maybe because of their difficult relationship. It also felt as if it were a possible conflict of interest. The whole situation made me uneasy.

What if Melissa was setting me up in some way? To get back at me for what happened with Emma?

After a couple of days, I decided I'd at least meet with her. If I couldn't help her, I had plenty of therapists I could refer her to.

Melissa was a different person than what I'd expected. She was genuine and showed me she loves her husband and wants to see him get better.

I ended up referring her to one of my colleagues I studied with during my doctorate training. He's great with addiction and he'll help the entire family. Melissa will need a strong support system to get her through this.

I promised her I wouldn't tell anyone about our meeting. I'm not allowed to anyway, but I reassured her. The last thing her mother needs to know is about her son in-law's cocaine addiction.

I jump when a car horn shrieks beside me. I look over to see Jim waving, a big smirk on his face.

I roll down the window as Jim hops out of his car.

"What's up, brother? Ready to get your ass kicked in pool?"

"Bring it." I grin, my thoughts forgotten. For now,

* * *

After a few beers and an obscene amount of boneless buffalo wings, Jim is kicking my ass in pool.

"And, she's in! The eight ball has landed." Jim shakes his ass in an attempt to be funny and I roll my eyes as I slap my stick down on the table.

"One day man, one day. I'll turn on your ass and be the new pool master."

"Ha, yeah right, man. Keep dreaming."

We put our pool sticks away and head back to our booth. A couple of fresh, frosty beers await us and I gulp down the first few sips without hesitation.

"So, what's up with you, bro? You've been a ghost lately."

"Eh, been busy with work. You know, life crap."

Jim nods before he takes a long pull from his beer. "Anything new or exciting going on? Something besides baby food and shitty diapers?"

I laugh. "Parenthood is fun, eh?"

"Yeah, if you enjoy wiping asses and cleaning puke. I'd say it's a grand ole time."

We clink beers as we chuckle.

"I saw Sharon." I blurt out.

"Really? Where?" Jim asks, his attention now peaked.

"At our local Chinese place. I was leaving as she was coming in."

"Shit," Jim says as he rubs a hand over his face. "How'd that go?"

"Awkward, to say the least. She threw her arms around me and I had to pry her off."

Jim shakes his head. "Typical. She's a stage five clinger."

I smirk. "That's for sure."

"Did she want to see you?"

"Of course she did. I told her hell no. There's no way I'm going down that road again."

Jim nods. "Good. I hope she's not in town too much longer. What about Ethan? Is he out yet?"

"Nope." I sip my beer as I think of my mother. She's distraught over the entire situation and I can't say I blame her. "The sentencing got pushed back. We're gonna try to get him into a sober house upon release. If he comes home, he'll slide right back down the addiction hole. He needs serious help."

"Are your mother and Jane holding up ok?"

"Yeah, day by day, man. That's all we can do. It'd be nice if my other two sisters helped out. Even my dad checks out of the situation. It's not fair."

"I hear ya. Life is not easy. Not in any way." I sigh as memories flood my brain. "Remember when we used to play ding dong ditch? Ah, the good ole days..."

I sip my beer as I remember running around with Jim until the street lights came on. What fun we had. Ethan and Jane were never too far behind us.

"Soon, your little ones will want to play that game."

Jim snorts. "I doubt it. Those two are glued to their damned tablets all of the time. I have to take it away to get them to go outside."

"We never wanted to come in." Jim and I clink beers once again as he nods his head.

Another round of beers are ordered. "Challenge you to a game of pool?" Jim asks while wagging his eyebrows.

"You're on."

I chug the last of my beer as the new ones arrive.

It's turning out to be a great night.

~E~

 

I drum my fingers on my kitchen table as I wait for my sister to answer. I've tried calling her three times in a row and each time I get her voicemail, my patience wanes.

"Hello?" Melissa snaps into the phone, right when I think voicemail will pick up.

"Hey." I bite my tongue while I think of how to start. We haven't spoken since the last time I kicked her out and I'll admit, I'm still bitter over it. All I want is an apology. Is that so hard to ask of her?

"What do you need, Emma? I figured you'd get the hint I was busy when I didn't answer the first three times you called."

I grit my teeth. Don't feed into it.

"I want to know why you met Knox for coffee."

"What?" Melissa gasps. Ah-ha! Caught red handed, bitch.

"You heard me."

"I... I... I never met with Knox for coffee."

"Don't lie to me, Melissa. I know you did."

"How do you know? Did Knox tell you?"

"It doesn't matter how I know. The point is, I do know. And, I want to know why."

"It's none of your business."

"Yes, it is my business! I'm sick and tired of you and Mom worming your way into my life, sticking your nose where it doesn't belong. You spy on me, keep things from me. I have every right to know why you were meeting up with him."

"It has nothing to do with you."

"It has everything to do with me."

"Emma, I need to go. Stop calling me with your trivial nonsense."

She hangs up and I drop the phone onto my desk, my cheeks flushing red.

What in the fuck is going on?

I stand and pace as my fists clench in and out. My breath comes out in spurts. I bite my lip hard, the taste of blood, metallic and warm, filling my mouth.

I need answers. If Melissa doesn't want to give them to me, then I'll find them myself.

A bead of sweat trickles down my back as I grit my teeth, my nostrils flaring.

I pick my phone back up and with shaky fingers, I call Knox.