On the Record (Record #2)(71)

“Yeah, but you should get that dress.”

“I don’t want it.”

“But it’s like your meltdown dress. You need it.”

“Whatever,” Liz said, walking into the dressing room.

“So, who is the guy?” Victoria prodded after a couple silent seconds.

“It doesn’t matter.”

Liz took the dress off and put it back on the hanger before sliding back into her jeans and sweater. She was in and out of there in no time at all, but when she walked back out, Victoria was still in her dress.

“But really . . . you’re not going to tell me?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Um . . . it does.”

“Let’s just go,” Liz said, placing the dress on the return rack and folding her arms over her chest.

“You have been beating yourself up about this since October, and you’re not going to even talk about it with me now?” Victoria asked. She actually looked hurt.

Liz ran her hands over her face and tried to decide what to do. She had already confessed to Victoria, and her friend wasn’t judging her. In fact, the only thing she seemed perturbed about at all was the fact that Liz hadn’t told her sooner. Maybe she could trust Victoria.

It would be so nice to have someone to talk to about this. It wasn’t as if Brady were ever coming back into her life. The secret wasn’t even that important anymore. It was just something she had always kept at this point. But really, who was Victoria going to tell? Certainly not Hayden, and anyone she and Brady had been concerned about was long out of the picture.

“So . . . you remember last summer, not this past year but the year before that, how I told you I was seeing someone?” Liz offered.

“Yeah,” Victoria said eagerly.

“I called him that night Hayden and I argued. He picked me up and we went to his condo. We made out. I freaked out and he brought me home.”

“Holy shit! You’re sneaky.” Victoria jumped from one foot to the other. “This is so exciting! I’m usually the dirty one.”

Liz couldn’t help but laugh. What else could she do?

“How could you call him, go to his condo, and kiss, but not f**k? I’m astonished at your self-control!”

“I wanted to, but it didn’t feel right. It’s complicated,” Liz told her.

“Um . . . it’s not complicated. You insert his dick inside—”

“Whoa!” Liz said, holding her hand up. “You don’t have to give away Victoria’s secret.”

“Oh, ha ha! You’re so f**king original.” Victoria rolled her eyes. “So seriously, who is the guy?”

Liz sighed heavily. She couldn’t tell. She just couldn’t. Especially not out in public.

“Can we talk about this somewhere more private?” Liz pleaded.

Victoria clapped her hands together and dashed into the dressing room. A few minutes later, she had all of the dresses hanging haphazardly on the rack, with her selection and Liz’s black beaded dress in her hand. She paid for both through Liz’s protests and then quickly hurried Liz out of the boutique.

“Okay,” Victoria said when they were finally seated in her car.

“Let’s go home. It’s probably safer,” Liz said ominously. She didn’t trust Victoria not to drive them into a telephone pole.

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

Liz swallowed, her throat constricting the closer they got to home. She was warring with herself on what she could and couldn’t tell Victoria. She desperately wanted to confide in someone. It was making her crazy. She had held this in for a year and a half and she didn’t want to have to hide anymore. She didn’t want to reveal it to the entire populace or anything. In fact, that was the last thing she wanted.

She still valued Brady’s career and would do everything in her power to keep their relationship from hurting him. That was the reason she had left in the first place. If she didn’t believe in that, then she never would have left.

Victoria pulled into their driveway twenty minutes later and practically skipped to the front door. At least someone was enjoying this.

Once Liz was inside, she took a seat on the couch and tucked her feet up underneath her. While Victoria sat in the chair across from her, bouncing with anticipation, Liz picked at her nails. She didn’t even know where to begin or what to say. Maybe she shouldn’t say anything.

But the one thing she had learned about the entire situation was that secrets were heavy. Mentally, physically, emotionally—they exhausted her. And she had quite the secret tucked away in her heart.

“Well . . . we’re home and it’s safe,” Victoria offered. “I’m literally dying over here. I’ve been curious about this guy since you first told me about him, and to think you saw him in October.”

“It’s really not something to be excited about. There’s a reason I’ve been keeping it all secret,” Liz explained.

“I remember you saying that he asked you to keep it secret. Still shitty to me, if I do say so.”

Liz breathed out heavily. “I know why you think that, but it’s a necessary precaution. I just want you to promise me that you’re not going to tell anyone about this. I’m already kind of freaked out. I mean, I think I should tell Hayden about what happened, but God, I don’t even know how to do that. I don’t want him to hate me.”