Faked and Fumbled by Gina Azzi

Author:Gina Azzi [Azzi, Gina]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781954470521
Publisher: Gina Azzi

Fourteen

Lunch is mildly awkward, with Faye and Beckett carrying the conversation. Preston occasionally chimes in, and Cohen keeps the chat on safe topics.

Anna and Brooks are silent. I’m so uncomfortable, I can barely eat. There’s a phantom ache in my chest. A pull in my abdomen. A nervous energy that wraps around my fingers and pinches between my shoulder blades. It’s strange to feel separate from the group I considered family for many years.

Luckily, as Cohen and Beckett clear the table, Faye gestures to the booze. “Drinks?”

“Fuck, please,” Preston says, moving to grab a bottle of tequila and a bottle of gin. “Pick your poison, friends.”

“Um, I don’t know,” Anna says nervously, glancing at me. “Maybe we should talk first?”

“Trust me, talking will be easier with some alcohol in our systems,” Preston points out.

“Agreed,” I add, standing and moving toward Preston. “Margaritas?”

“Done.” He winks at me.

We move to the kitchen island and work in unison, squeezing limes and salting glass rims, to whip up a batch of margaritas. At the table, Faye pulls out a pack of Uno cards. I appreciate my friends trying to make this interaction normal, but the sooner I talk to Anna and Brooks, the better this trip will be.

It’s going to be the toughest night, the most painful conversation. But once it’s in my rearview mirror, I can enjoy the remainder of the trip with my friends and Cohen.

My eyes dart to Cohen, chatting amicably with Beck as he loads the dishwasher. God, I don’t deserve him. With his backup and a strong margarita, I’m ready to take on Anna and Brooks and put the shit between us to rest.

The group assembles around the table as we play a round of Uno. Beckett wins and takes a long pull of his margarita. “We ready to hash it out?” he asks, glancing around the table.

Anna sighs and straightens in her chair. “Raia, I’m sorry.”

Underneath the table, Cohen laces my hand with his. He gives a little squeeze for reassurance. I grip his fingers in return. My stomach is coiled, and I feel nauseous. A chill washes over my limbs, plunging me back to the awful moment when I learned that Brooks and Anna were dating. To seeing the picture Anna posted on social media that flipped my world upside down. To the pain of her betrayal, on top of the hurt of Brooks’s rejection.

“You blindsided me,” I tell Anna. My tone is clipped. My eyes dart to Brooks who is watching me curiously, his expression blank. How have I never noticed, until now, how inexpressive he is? How flat and aloof he can be? His ability to selectively engage or shut down another person is hurtful.

I used to think I was special. That I was the one person who could get through to Brooks and relate to him. That I earned his smiles and his laughter when he met everyone else with flat eyes and a simple smirk.

Now, that position is reserved for Anna.

A part of it aches but another part realizes, truly recognizes, that I’m better off.

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