Shock registered on her face. “I can’t believe it,” she said. “He told us he worked at a warehouse.”
“I’m sure that’s a lie too.”
X reappeared with a different diffuser, this one much more palatable. “Lavender and lemon,” he said in a pinched voice. “Conventional, but effective.”
“Thank you, sweetie.” Maude motioned for him to put it on the counter. “Give us a few more minutes.” He nodded and left, then she turned to Britt again. “Have you talked to him?”
“A little, right before I left. But I don’t ever want to see him again.” Tears spilled down her cheeks. “I thought... I thought...”
“You liked him a lot.”
“It’s more than that. Not that it matters what I feel anymore,” she said.
“Britt, it always matters how you feel.”
“Not to him.”
“Are you sure?” Maude asked. “I’ve seen how he looks at you. Cares about you—”
“It must have been an act.” She moved to get up from the table. “If you’re going to defend him—”
“Sit down, Brittany.”
Maude had never used such a curt tone with her before. Britt obeyed.
“Look, I understand that you’re hurting. But from what you’re telling me, you haven’t given him a chance to explain himself. And before you once again say that you don’t want to listen to him, I’m going to point out that you’re not being fair.”
“How can you say that? He was with another woman!”
“Or you jumped to a conclusion.”
Britt sat back, her arms crossed over her chest. “How would you know? You weren’t there.”
“Did you see him come in with her? Did he ignore you once he saw you? Or did he leave her and go straight to you?”
“How... how did you know that?”
Maude gave her a small smile. “I’ve been around the block a few times. The only way to find out the truth is to listen to him.”
Her phone buzzed in her purse. Britt didn’t make a move to answer it.
“Aren’t you going to get that?”
“It’s just Mom. Or Dad.” She explained the other disastrous event—that her mother had found out about her father being in town. “Oh, and apparently Mom has a boyfriend I didn’t know about. And Savannah’s mad at me, so I told her to find someone else to be her maid of honor.”
“Oh Britt, you didn’t.” Maude tapped her fingers on the wood table. “What a tangled web. Don’t you people ever talk to each other?” When the phone buzzed again, she shoved Britt’s pursetoward her. “You need to let your parents know where you are and that you’re all right. I’m sure they’re worried about you.”
“Fine.” She yanked open her bag and pulled out the phone. Hunter’s name popped up in the message list. Seven texts. Nothing from her father or mother, though.
“Call one of your parents,” Maude insisted. “Right now.”
She stared at Hunter’s name again, stunned that he had texted her so many times when she assumed he was busy with his girlfriend. Then, to appease Maude, she made the call. “Hello? Yes, I’m all right. I’m at Maude’s.”
Chapter 23
Daniel put his phone in his pocket, nearly falling to his knees with relief after Brittany told him she was okay. She hung up right after telling him she was at Maude’s, barring him from asking any other questions.
“Who was that?” Amy demanded.
