"That my mom and best friend are lunatics."
"Well, it must take one to know one because you'd have to be crazy to not see that Greg wants to get a taste of you."
"Why do you have to be such a perv? Look, would it make you feel better if I told you I promised Mom I would talk to him?"
"I already told you, I'm not judging you either way. Do what you feel is right." She tossed the piece of chocolate on the bed, still unwrapped.
"All right, spill it then. If you don't really care about my supposed problem with Greg, what else is bothering you?" Olivia liked to tease that she knew me better than I knew myself, but after years of friendship, I could read her like a book.
She looked up from staring at the unwrapped chocolate sitting on the pillow. Whatever was on her mind must be serious because Olivia wasn't the type to dance around a subject. "Spill what?" Her feigned innocence was as transparent as a plate-glass window.
"Nice try. I know when you're hiding something."
"Fine, whore. While you were talking to your mom, I went back to the restaurant to have a drink with someone."
"After dinner? Who? The only people you know are—oh wait. Holy crap in a Dixie cup. You mean Tony."
She shot me a look of uncertainty that was so out of character for her that it floored me. "Is that wrong?"
My heart ached for Olivia. I loved her so dearly, but her track record with guys had always mystified me. Just when I thought she was ready to settle down into a relationship that lasted more than a couple dates, she'd dump the guy. As a bystander, I never had a vested interest in any of her relationships. I supported her as any friend would. But this was Tony. Sure, he drove me batty, but he was still my brother, which meant I loved him unconditionally and I didn't want to see him get hurt.
"It's only wrong if you're toying with him," I answered. I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Honestly, I would love to see Olivia throw away all her hang-ups about relationships and give Tony a real chance, but I knew that was never going to happen. "I don't want to see him shredded." My answer was harsh but had to be said.
I expected her to retaliate with a typical snarky reply, but she shocked me again. "I'm not toying with him, and I don't want to hurt him. Hell, I don't know why I said yes for once. Maybe I felt like throwing him a bone." Her shoulders sagged as she sank into the pillows.
I had no idea what had happened to my hard-as-nails friend. The one who never seemed to care if the guy's feelings were hurt as long as he left without a word. "Oh my god. You like him."
She turned her head to look at me.
"You like him a lot," I repeated. "Don't you?"
"Don't get your happy panties on just yet. I don't not like him. That's where we're starting." Olivia could say what she wanted, but I could see it written all over her face. Tony had finally managed to weasel his way beneath her defenses.
"Does he know you don't not like him?" I asked, using her words.
"All Tony knows is we had a drink together. That's all he's going to know for now, and I would appreciate it if you kept it that way." She pulled a pillow from behind her head and chucked it at my head.
"Fine, but when you announce your engagement I'm definitely the maid of honor, right?" I laughed as she flipped me off.
"Don't even joke about that. Just because I opened the door for him doesn't mean he's in yet. Like I've said before, I want to make sure this won't lead to something that ruins our friendship."
I was relieved to hear Olivia stating the same concerns I had. It meant she was at least looking at Tony as something other than a one-night stand. "Liv, you should know that nothing is ever going to change our friendship. I don't want to see you get hurt any more than I do Tony. I love you both."
"I love you too. Just keep quiet for now," she muttered, climbing on the bed with me. We lay back on the king-sized bed, studying the texture of the popcorn ceiling. The silence stretched on for several minutes. "What am I going to do, Nic?" Olivia asked, finally breaking the silence.
I reached over and linked my pinkie with hers. "It's time you finally followed your heart."
Chapter 14
Normally I shared a hotel room with Michelle during the tour stops, but she switched rooms with Olivia after our dinner earlier that evening. We continued talking about our man woes late into the night, polishing off all my chocolates and two slices of cake we ordered from room service. Olivia didn't seem at all shocked when I told her the details of my mom's ambush about Greg. Maybe they were right and my head was the only one stuck in the sand.
Neither Olivia nor I came up with an easy solution that didn't involve me confronting Greg. The volume on the TV was low, playing one mindless infomercial after another. I was convinced I needed the Bacon Bowl. Eventually, we fell into a sugar coma, somewhere between the amazing expanding hose and the latest fitness workout that was sure to help me shed fifty pounds in ninety days.
I woke up the next morning in an all too familiar position—Olivia's hand lying across my face. For someone who hated displays of affection, she had no problem invading my personal space anytime we shared the same bed. I was tempted to bite her, but I tossed her hand to the side instead, waking her up.
"Are you trying to hold my hand?" she asked without opening her eyes.
I snorted, reaching for the hair tie I'd left on the nightstand table. "You're the one who was trying to get fresh with me," I said, stretching. I pulled my hair up into a messy bun and yanked open the heavy curtains. Olivia groaned, pulling a pillow up over her face to block the sun that was streaming through the window. Last night our binge eating seemed harmless, but glancing around at the remnants scattered about the floor, we had clearly overdone it. "You need to get up, bum," I told her. "Mom wants us all to meet for brunch in an hour."