I'm Not Charlotte Lucas(31)

“He seemed more bored than anything else. But then again, it was a charity function.”

Beth sighed. Then she sat bolt upright so fast I jumped back in my seat. “Naomi Price is dating Rhett Myers. Liam Connell recently broke up with Naomi Price.” She paused, her eyes sweeping over me. “You have Liam’s phone number.”

I nodded, following her train of information, but a warning bell rang in my head. “These things are all true.”

She held my gaze, fire in her brown eyes. “You can get me in touch with Rhett Myers.”

“No, I can’t,” I argued. Some people utilized connections easily, but I was not one of those people. Calling Liam to ask him for a favor sounded as appealing to me as getting a root canal.

“What? Why not? Liam clearly has a thing for you. I saw the way he watched you when you came downstairs for your date.”

“Yeah, concerned. He was probably wondering what he had done to deserve taking the crackpot to the ball who had recently run over his brother with her car.”

Beth shook her head. “No, he likes you. He had that glowy, satisfied look when you came into the room, and he pretended to forget giving your phone back until you called it.” Her nose wrinkled. “How did you get the phone back anyway?”

Would she know if I lied? Yes. Yes, she would. “I drove to his house and picked it up.”

Beth smiled triumphantly. “And did he invite you in?”

I stared at her.

“I’ll take that as a yes. When you were in his house getting your things back, did he make any moves?”

I immediately thought of his arm around the back of the sofa, his soft, warm chuckle penetrating my nerves. He’d flirted, of course. But what man didn’t? Flirting didn’t actually mean anything. He had a girlfriend.

“He did, didn’t he?” Beth asked in awe. She appraised me, and I found myself wondering the same thing she was likely thinking: what the heck did a guy like Liam see in me?

I shook my head. This was all Beth conjecture: not fact. “You’re getting off topic here,” I said.

“True. What it boils down to is that you need to stay friends with this guy.”

Sometimes she was exhausting in her optimism and her unceasing planning. There was a lot on my plate right now. I couldn’t add another thing, let alone try to keep two men interested in me. “I just agreed to start dating Andy.”

She rolled her eyes, flopping back on the couch like she was dealing with an errant toddler. “I didn’t say date the man, Charlie. Stay friends with him. For the first time in my life, I have an in with Rhett Myers. You can’t let this go easily, at least not without trying!”

She was crazy. My best friend was certifiably crazy. I mean, she was straight-up gorgeous, so of course she had a shot with any guy she wanted, but Rhett Myers was an insanely famous movie star, and the connection I had to him was tenuous at best.

“You’re forgetting a major thing here.”

“What?” she asked, lifting her forlorn head from the back of my worn sofa.

“Rhett Myers is dating Naomi Price.”

Beth’s lips quirked into a saucy smile. “Not if I can help it.”





Chapter Thirteen


The computer screen blurred, overtaken by the image in my mind of Andy reaching across the table, taking my hand in his, and convincing me to become his girlfriend. Accepting him had been the best move, right?

I needed to get myself together. My manager might be on his lunch break, but that was all the more reason for me not to mentally check out. I scanned the tellers at the counter, but they seemed to be handling the customers well. Focusing on the schedule spread out on my computer screen, I stared at the names swimming before me.

Why could my mind not settle on the matter at hand?

A buzz in the top drawer of my desk drew my attention, and I glanced around before pulling my phone from the drawer. My heart did a bit of a skip, and I swiftly commanded it to calm the heck down.

Liam: How did it go last night?

What were we, gabbing girlfriends? I’d never had a guy friend check in with me after a date before. But, then again, I hadn’t had a whole lot of close guy friends in my life either. Or dates. I’d always been too hyper-focused on work, school, Beth, and my family.

Me: About as well as it could have.

Liam: It’s like you’re trying to be cryptic or something.

Me: What? Me? Never!

I chuckled at my own joke and glanced up when the door opened. The phone buzzed again, but I slid it into my pocket and rose to approach the man stepping inside.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Henrie,” I said, greeting him at the door. He sported his USS Maryland hat in support of his father’s service. “How can we help you today?”

“Just want to get a crisp five-dollar bill.”

“Are you celebrating another birthday?” I asked, leading Mr. Henrie straight to the teller station. Luckily, there was no line, and Marissa’s window was empty.

Mr. Henrie’s pale eyes twinkled, and a smile creased his wrinkled skin. “My granddaughter turns eight next week. I’ve got to get her card in the mail.” He leaned close, lowering his voice. “Nearly forgot, actually. Glad I set my phone to remind me, or she’d be getting her card a week late.”

“What did people do before smartphones?” I asked.