I drag a hand down my face and groan loud enough for the whole damn bar to hear. “You four are actually evil. You know that, right? Actual villains. I should’ve known the second Tessa got that look on her face.”
Tessa just bats her lashes at me, innocent as hell. “So?” she asks. “You in or what?”
I stare at them for a long second, then let out a dramatic, suffering sigh and throw my arms out wide like I’m surrendering to my fate. “Fine,” I say loudly. “You evil little matchmakers win. Set me up. Throw your sacrificial lambs at me. I’ll go on your stupid dates.”
Hadley grins like she just won the lottery.
“But,” I add, pointing a finger at all four of them, “when this blows up in your faces and I end up more single and more dramatic than I already am, I’m blaming every single one of you.”
Tessa’s smile turns downright wicked. “Deal.”
I grab my beer and take a long drink, already regretting every life choice that led me to this moment. “What’s in it for y’all?”
The four girls look at each other, then back at me with matching evil little smiles.
Tessa is the one who answers. “Bragging rights,” she says first.
Then Hadley jumps in. “And the losers have to do whatever the winner wants for one full week.”
I narrow my eyes. “Define ‘whatever.’”
Scarlett shrugs, calm as ever. “Within reason. Could be cleaning her house, buying her drinks every night she comes to Perdition, doing her chores for club events… whatever she feels like making them do.”
Erica grins. “Basically, the winner becomes Queen for a Week. The other three are her little bitches.”
I stare at them, then let out a loud, dramatic groan and drop my head back like I’m in physical pain. “You four are actually deranged,” I say to the ceiling. “You know that, right? This is some evil, twisted, old lady mafia shit.”
Hadley just pats my arm like she’s comforting a toddler. “So?” she asks, eyes sparkling. “You still in?”
I lift my head and look at all four of them again, already knowing I’m about to regret this. “Yeah,” I mutter. “I’m in. But when this whole thing goes sideways and I’m still single and miserable, I’m telling everyone it was your fault.”
Tessa’s smile turns downright wicked. “Deal.”
She sticks her hand out. I look at it for a second, then slap my much bigger hand into hers and shake on it. “God help me,” I say loudly. “I just made a deal with the devil. Four devils.”
Hadley laughs and throws an arm around my shoulders. “Relax, Tiny. We’re gonna find you the perfect girl.”
I take a long drink of my beer and mutter under my breath. “Yeah… that’s what I’m afraid of.”
THREE
LUCY
I’mat the front desk sorting through a stack of patient forms when the door to the back hallway opens. Scarlett walks out with a clipboard in one hand and a large iced coffee in the other. She heads straight for me and sets both down on the counter like she plans to stay for a while. “Hey,” she says, leaning her hip against the desk. “You look like you got about two hours of sleep. Rough night?”
I glance up and give her a small smile. “Just studying late. I’ve got a test coming up.”
Scarlett raises an eyebrow, clearly not convinced. “Uh-huh. And how’s the studying going when you’re this tired?”
“Terrible,” I admit with a quiet laugh.
She grins and nudges the large iced coffee toward me. “Figured. That’s why I brought you this. Extra shot of espresso. Don’t argue, just drink it.”
My chest warms at the gesture. Scarlett always notices things like that. I take the cup and sip it gratefully, the cold sweetness cutting through the fog in my head.
She watches me for a second, then her voice drops a little. “You’ve been quiet the last couple days. The heavy kind of quiet. Everything okay at home?”
I hesitate, glancing around to make sure no one’s close enough to hear. “It’s fine. Just… the usual.”
