Looking for Trouble (Jackson: Girls' Night Out 1)
Alex pulled open the bathroom drawers but found nothing. Finally, the ambulance squawked to a stop in front of the house and the bathroom became controlled chaos as the paramedics checked and poked and prodded before loading her onto a stretcher. She shook her head in vague protest.
“I’ll meet you there,” Alex said as Shane climbed into the ambulance with her.
For the first time in his life, Alex had been stopped from leaving, and he was thankful. If he’d left, the guilt would’ve kept him from ever coming back.
* * *
“GIRLS’ NIGHT OUT!” Lauren shouted as she pushed her way into Sophie’s house.
“That’s not funny,” Sophie said.
“It’s not supposed to be funny. It’s Sunday. We have a date, remember?” Lauren waved her hand and Isabelle popped inside, too.
Sophie groaned, but Lauren was unsympathetic. “She already knows what happened, so you don’t have to worry about telling her.”
Was that supposed to be a relief? “I am not going out with you two.”
“Why not?”
“Because, one, I don’t feel like it, for obvious reasons. And two, you can’t be seen with the town slut.”
Isabelle smiled. “Are you kidding? That’s exactly who I need to be seen with. If a rumor spreads that I’m a slut, maybe I’ll get a date this decade.”
“Yes,” Lauren agreed. “And it’ll really cement my identity as the bitch who entranced the gullible widower of a truly nice woman.”
“God,” Sophie groaned. “Don’t make me laugh. I’m too miserable. I’ll
probably break something if I try.”
Lauren pointed toward the hall. “Go get dressed. We’ll wait. And put on some makeup. You look like you’ve been crying all day.”
“Shit.” Sophie felt her composure begin to crumble. She pressed a hand to her eyes.
“Oh, sweetie,” Lauren sighed. She tugged Sophie down to the couch and wrapped her arms around her. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You don’t have to hide.”
“I know,” she said, even though she didn’t know. She’d done lots of things wrong for lots of years. Alex had helpfully pointed that out.
“Listen, you’re going to have to get this over with. People are going to whisper. Better to meet it head-on with your best friends right next to you. The longer you hide in here, the harder it will be.”
“I should go see my dad,” she mumbled.
Isabelle offered a disapproving snort. “It’s almost seven. You’re not going out to your dad’s tonight.”
She was right. Sophie had been putting it off in half-hour increments, and now the whole day was gone, wasted hiding under blankets on her couch. She’d wanted to go see her dad, but she hadn’t known what she would say. There were a hundred things. A thousand. And none of them were right.
“It was so awful. You guys have no idea.”
“I was there, remember? It was awful, but do you know who people were talking about when it was over? Not you. Her. I’m not going to patronize you and tell you no one was excited about your involvement, but most people felt bad for you, Sophie.”
Was that true? She’d felt like Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter, standing there while the whole town judged her a whore.
Lauren nudged her. “Go wash your face and brush your hair and get dressed.”
Isabelle nudged her other side. “We’re not taking no for answer. You need to get out. Isn’t that what you always tell me, even when I really, really don’t want to go?”
Sophie groaned. “I’m not up for flirting with men tonight.”
“Oh, please,” Lauren said. “This has nothing to do with men. We won’t even look at them. We’ll growl if they come near. This is just about us.”