Page 201 of Triplet Babies for my Ex's Best Friend

“You mean I got pushed out.”

I roll my eyes. “That isn't what happened.”

“Isn’t it?”

“No.”

I part my lips, about to yell back, but a scream interjects.

A sharp gasp, followed by a woman’s voice cutting through the ballroom. “Someone help! She fainted!”

The world changes instantly. I turn.

Addy is on the floor, and for one impossible second, the entire ballroom seems to lose sound. Only her. Green satin against polished marble. One hand curled near her body. Hair spilling across her face. Too still.

Then I’m on my knees beside her.

“Addy!”

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

Addy

The first thingI notice is the smell. Antiseptic. Sharp, cold, and aggressively clean. My second thought is that my mouth tastes like I licked a battery. My third thought is…

Oh, no. Did I die at the rich people plane party?

I peel my eyes open, and the world arrives in pieces. White ceiling, fluorescent light, a beige curtain, a beeping softly nearby.

My hand feels heavy, and when I glance down, there’s an IV taped to it.

Fantastic. I'm in a hospital.

Which means either my body has finally resigned from service or I did something mortifying in public.

Possibly both.

I try to sit up.

Bad idea.

The room tilts, my stomach rolls, and a groan crawls out of me before I can stop it.

“Easy.”

I turn my head, and there’s Ethan beside the bed, still in his tux, bow tie gone, shirt collar open, jacket draped over the back of the chair. His hair is messier than I’ve ever seen it. His face is locked down in that terrifying calm way thatmeans he's probably one emotional inconvenience away from commandeering the hospital.

“You’re here,” I whisper.

His eyes soften by exactly one degree, which, for Ethan, is practically a public breakdown. “Yes.”

“What happened?”

“You fainted.”

I close my eyes.

No.