Cruel Legacy (Cruel 3)

“No, really, to what do I owe the pleasure?” Then I frowned, thinking of all the reasons Lark normally showed up on my doorstep. She had a habit of sleeping over at one of the crew’s places when she was going through a breakup. “Are you okay? Do I need to hurt someone? Is it Thomas?”

“No, no,” she said quickly. “I’m fine. It’s not about me. Not exactly. It’s about the crew.”

“What about the crew?”

She sighed. “You know what’s going on. We haven’t hung out all together in forever. I feel like I never see any of you. And that’s coming from me.”

“Sure. We’re going through a patch.”

“I was going to let it go,” Lark said, “but I want to call a meeting.”

I snorted. “Like when we were in high school?”

“Yes.”

“Lark…”

“We’re meeting at Rowe’s place tomorrow night.”

“You know that I love you, but I don’t have any interest in seeing Lewis or Katherine. And is she even back from her honeymoon?”

“She got back this morning, and this is exactly the reason you will be there, Penn Kensington.”

I shook my head in disagreement. “There’s no guarantee that I won’t punch Lewis in his smug face…again.”

“You can control yourself for one evening. We need to talk.”

“I’m not going.”

Her green eyes were filled with sorrow. “If you don’t show up, then you’re throwing away decades of friendship. And I think you’re better than that.”

Then she leaned down and petted Totle once more before disappearing back into the elevator, her message delivered.

I cursed at her disappearing back. Just what I did not want to deal with right now. Yes, I had known Lewis and Katherine practically my entire life. Yes, we had more secrets than most people and a sense of jaded loyalty that hadn’t been shaken in over a decade. But we weren’t kids anymore. I didn’t have to deal with their bullshit, especially after what Lewis had done.

My hands clenched into tight balls. Just thinking of him made me want to put my fist through the wall. He’d taken what was mine for sport. If he’d ever had real feelings for Natalie, that file I’d found had changed everything. And I wouldn’t let him hurt her. Not even for our friendship.

I tried to clear away the haze of anger that threatened to overcome me. This wasn’t what I wanted to bring to this date with Natalie. She already knew my thoughts on the topic. And she wasn’t ready to talk about it again yet.

“Fuck,” I grumbled and then went back into my bedroom to finish getting dressed. I’d deal with the crew later.

My car idled outside of Natalie’s new apartment building, and she came rushing out in a hurry, her sleek black jacket still unbuttoned. My jaw nearly hit the ground.

“Holy shit,” I groaned as a smile caught on her lips.

“Sorry I’m late. Jane insisted on makeovers after shopping.”

My eyes rounded in wonder as I took her in. When I’d told her to go shopping, I hadn’t really known what to expect. This whole lesson thing was a shot in the dark for me. I knew what it meant to be Upper East Side, but I’d never really had to train someone. But the clothes…I loved her in her bohemian style, but this was an all-new Natalie. Gorgeous and sophisticated. Her green dress was fitted perfectly to her figure and cut in a straight A-line. The jacket molded to her shape, clearly very in style and very expensive. Her silvery hair fell down in loose curls, and her makeup was soft, accenting her already-stunning features with a pink lipstick that made me want to kiss it off her hot mouth.

“You look incredible.”

“Thank you,” she said with a laugh. “I’d hope so after four hours at the spa.”

I pulled the door open for her and let her shift into the backseat. I took the seat next to her and couldn’t seem to stop staring. I’d known she was going to be different with new clothing, but I hadn’t anticipated this. How well she fit. How she seemed to carry herself in a completely different way in these clothes.

And even though she looked so much more like the girls I’d grown up with, that silver hair still captivated me. Showing that she was different. She was still my Natalie.

I fingered a curly strand. “I love what you did with it.”

“God, Jane wanted to dye it blonde.”

I nearly choked. “She what?”

“Yeah, I told her no. That I wouldn’t concede that to this mission.” She fidgeted in her seat as if she was uncomfortable talking about it. Which didn’t seem like Natalie at all.

“Oh yeah? Well, don’t dye it. I love it.”

She grinned, a swift, sly thing. “I know you do.”

“Cocky?”

“Hey, I’m learning from the best.”

I chuckled, eyeing the way she tried to hide some unease behind that smile. I wouldn’t have seen it if I didn’t know her, but I did know her. And I’d said no masks in private. What was she hiding?