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Cleo’s waiting for me by the bar. After ordering myself a drink, I follow her to a nearby table and wait patiently for her to explain herself after she downs her champagne in two gulps, letting out a heavy sigh.
“Did you tell Colt?”
“Tell him what exactly? That I saw—”
“It was a mistake, Scarlet. Did you tell him?”
“No. I was about to when you came barreling toward us.” Cleo sucks in a deep breath and let’s it out slowly, closing her eyes. “Why was it a mistake?”
“It just was.”
“Are you more upset that it happened or that you were caught?”
I already know the answer to my question. Cleo isn’t an idiot. She doesn’t do things without thinking them through. She’s a planner. Obsessive about the details. She weighs the pros and cons of everything.
Sleeping with Kane … it wasn’t a random thought. She didn’t slip up because she drank too much.
She wanted it to happen. She’s thought about it before. It might have even happened before.
The more I think about it, the less it would surprise me if that wasn’t the first time.
They’re polar opposites, and opposites attract. He could balance her out.
Cleo wouldn’t date someone like herself. She would look for someone who compliments her.
And Kane would do just that.
He’s a computer nerd, but he’s highly intelligent. Lowkey, whereas Cleo is high-strung.
“Cleo?”
She remains silent as she stares at her empty glass. I can almost see the wheels turning as the DJ calls for everyone to take their seats for dinner. The commotion around the room doesn’t stir Cleo’s attention. It’s not until I stand that she finally speaks.
“I don’t know.” Her words are barely above a whisper, but I can clearly hear the uncertainty in her voice.
I’ve never seen her this … confused. That doesn’t seem like the right word to describe her demeanor at the moment. She’s at a low I’ve never encountered before.
As if her confidence has been stripped and she has no—
Control!
That’s what the issue is. She can’t control the narrative here. People are going to talk. It’s not like the Max situation where neither of them are talking, keeping whatever happened between them a secret.
I caught them.
It’s not a secret.
“Listen, Cleo. Everything is going to be fine. You know I won’t say anything to anyone.”
“Not even Colt?” she asks, her eyes meeting mine, pleading with me.
“Not even Colt,” I assure her, though I’m not sure how I’m going to keep this a secret from him. “But you need to talk to Kane.”
She nods once before standing, running her hands down her dress, and straightening her shoulders. She appears confident and in control to anyone who doesn’t know her well. To me, I can see the nervous energy radiating off her as she makes her way across the room, taking a seat at the table next to Mya who greets her enthusiastically.
“She slept with Kane,” I hear him say from behind me.
Oh, thank God. I didn’t want to keep this from him.
