The Life That Mattered (Life #1)(37)

“Sorry.” Graham exhaled, dropping his gaze to his feet. “I didn’t mean to snap at you. Maybe I’m feeling my own wedding stress too.”

“Go home. Take Lila to dinner. Remember all the reasons you begged me to make her give you a chance.” Boy oh boy … did he ever beg—promises of treating her like royalty, a priceless piece of art, making it his life’s goal to make sure she was always happy. Of course, all of this came after I told him she would never change her mind about him, no matter how many good words I put in on his behalf. My lack of confidence in his wooing capabilities seemed to feed his cause.

However, even if I didn’t say it to his financially generous face, I had every reason to be mad at him for treating Lila like a property that he was on the verge of purchasing. Newsflash, women didn’t have to wear pantyhose anymore or fight for their right to vote. We sure as hell didn’t have to give up our careers just because a guy put a ring on our finger. I didn’t care if he ran for president. His life and career would never be more important than hers.

He straightened his scarf. “I didn’t beg you. I didn’t need your help.”

I gasped, head jerking back. He knew that was bullshit.

Graham waved his hand as if to avert my reaction or attack I started to mount in my head.

“Anyway … she did buy some new lingerie. I suppose dinner would be a fair trade.”

I laced my fingers behind my neck to keep from wrapping them around his neck. “Screw you, Graham Porter. I’m taking my friend back. If dinner requires her to dress in silk and spread her legs for you, then you don’t deserve her. Go buy yourself a whore for the night.”

“Jesus, Evelyn … I’m kidding.” He held up his hands in surrender.

Rubbing my lips together, I shrugged. “So am I.”

“Really?” He narrowed his eyes. “Because it didn’t sound like you were kidding.”

“Were you kidding, Graham? Really?”

There it was … the crux of our friendship. He was marrying my best friend, and my instinct to protect her was fierce. He begged me for help, whether he cared to admit it or not. So I begged Lila to give him a chance. And now they were getting married. I felt like their happiness would always fall back on me, the glue that stuck them together. Unfortunately, I felt stuck in the middle, wondering if I messed up.

He slid on his gloves and smirked. “Of course, I’m kidding. I don’t ask her to spread her legs. I usually just bend her over a chair.”

No. No. NO! He did not say that.

Honestly … I had no comeback to that, but I hoped I could get the awful image it evoked to vanish from my head and never return.

“I didn’t come here to talk about Lila.”

I returned to my cleaning tasks. “I can’t talk sports. My mind isn’t there right now.”

“Ronin saved a man’s life today.”

“What?” I glanced over my shoulder, not sure I heard him correctly.

“We were waiting for a table at the lodge. An older guy behind us collapsed. Stopped breathing. Ronin did CPR until the ambulance arrived. I think he saved the guy.”

“He’s a paramedic.”

Graham gave me an eye roll. “I know. It was just weird to see him in action. He didn’t hesitate. But then he couldn’t stay for lunch. Said he didn’t feel well. Have you heard from him? He didn’t exactly look well either.”

“No … I haven’t.” I plucked my phone from the opposite counter. No missed calls. No texts from Ronin.

“I’m sure he’s fine. Probably just the effects of the adrenaline. I just thought I’d mention it before heading back to Denver. And in spite of what you think, I also just wanted to say hi to my best friend.”

My head inched side to side. “I’m not your best friend. Heath, Eric, Wade … they’re your best buds. I’m just your cupid.”

“Heath, Eric, and Wade are functional idiots. You are my best friend. And it has nothing to do with Lila. We were friends before Lila would even look at me, and we will be friends when both Lila and Ronin leave us for better human beings.”

“Fuck you.” I chuckled as he pulled me in for one last hug.

“I’m nearly married. Our fucking days are over, Evie. Sorry.”

I giggled. Somehow, we made it. After the epic mistake of thinking we could be more than friends, we managed to persevere. The fact that we immediately joked about it, like the “oops” that it was, was what held our friendship together. And maybe … just maybe our drunken intimacy actually cemented our friendship forever. We knew every detail about each other. No secrets. All had been bared.





CHAPTER ELEVEN





After several failed attempts at contacting Ronin, I skipped out early and left Sophie to close up shop. When I arrived home, Ronin’s Outback wasn’t parked in the drive, so I headed straight to his place.

“Roe?” I whispered, tiptoeing into his bedroom. He rarely slept at his place. Yet, there he was in the dark, curled into a fetal position on the mattress, still on the floor.

“Go home, babe. I don’t want you to get sick,” he said in a strained voice.

“I want to help.” I sat on the edge of the mattress, the light from the hallway giving me a slight glimpse of his twisted face.