With that, he winked and walked past me to the stairs.
That was good to know.
I couldn't even thank him for the warning, because by the time I'd really grasped what he was saying, he was gone.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Raven
"I don't know what I'm supposed to do." I ran my fingers through my hair and looked at my two best friends. "I have to meet him in thirty minutes and I can't help but feel like my family knows."
Lani bit the inside of her cheek. "It's just, like, a date, right? Why don't you just tell them?"
Camille flapped her hand at her. "You know why she doesn't can't tell him. How well would your sister respond to the idea of you bumping uglies with her best friend?"
"I don't really care," Lani said flatly.
This wasn't helping.
"I want to tell my family, but it's not that simple. I really don't want to hurt my brother." I dropped onto the sofa.
"So, stop fucking his best friend. Really, this entire situation could have been avoided if you'd kept your legs shut." Camille snorted.
That was her. Right to the point as always.
"Thanks for that stunning insight, Cam. It was life-changing. I'd not considered that myself." I picked a loose thread on the hem of my dress. "My mom has been texting me all day asking what I'm doing tonight because isn't it my night off? Did I want to go for dinner or drinks?"
"Let me guess." Lani smiled. "We're covering for you."
"No. I ignored her." I smacked my fingers against my chin. "All day long. So, she texted me more. And I ignored her more."
"That's the dumbest idea I've ever heard."
"And you're dating my brother." Camille reminded her.
Which brought me to a new point.
"Cam! Your best friend is dating your brother!" I bounced, spinning around.
"Uh...yes?"
"How did you feel when you found out?"
"Betrayed. I felt like my entire world was shattering beneath me. I was so angry for so long." She paused. "No, wait. That's how I felt after the last episode of The Walking Dead."
I had no idea how I tolerated her.
"It's an unfair comparison." Lani shifted. "Brett and I were best friends and had feelings for each other long before we fought and I ever came home. She was more on the side of us getting together than not."
"Yeah," Camille said. "But, if you'd gotten together behind my back, I probably would have been pretty pissed off. Like, I'm your best friend and you can't be honest with me over something kinda important?"
"So, the secret part would be what would piss you off?" I asked.
"I think so. You should trust your best friend to accept whatever you have to tell them, whether they like it or not. That's the point of friendship. Trust and respect. The second you do something that will affect them and you don't tell them, that respect no longer exists."
I groaned and leaned against the back of the sofa. "What have I done?"
"Do you want me to start from the top, or...?"
"You're no longer helping me, Camille."
"Of course, I'm not. Why are you surprised?"
"Cancel your date," Lani said, crossing her legs and tucking her feet beneath her thighs. "That's all you can do right now. I mean, it's a date, but it's not like you haven't already fucked the guy. And, by the way? I totally called that you wanted him."
"We both did," Camille muttered.
They really, really weren't helping.
"I don't think I can do this," I said softly. "I have these feelings for him-real feelings. An accidental fuck is one thing, but this is something else. I can't keep doing this without my brother knowing."
Lani tucked her hair behind her ear. "Then make a choice, Raven. You either cancel right now, or you kinda have to go. Or...just change your date."
"Change it?"
"I can get Brett down here in a few minutes...Call your brother...See how he reacts to you getting along."
"That's not a bad idea," I admitted.
"That's a terrible idea." Camille shook her head. "It sounds good in theory, but what if one of you slip up? You've hated each other so fiercely for so long that one wrong move, and it'll be obvious."
It was a terrible idea.
Everything was a terrible idea.
My life was going to shit and it was all my fault.
Actually, that wasn't true. I had a great life. I'd just made some poor decisions recently, and I needed to fix them. I wasn't this kind of person. I wasn't really secretive. Private, yes, but not secretive. None of what I was doing right now was me.
My friends were right, though. I had to cancel the date. If only so that I could sit here and figure out what I wanted to do about the whole situation. I'd been immature about the decisions I'd made, and now I needed to be the adult I was.