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I’m about to excuse myself with the lamest excuse ever—bathroom break—so I can call Meg when Belle walks in. Maggie stiffens at my side, and I’m instantly on high alert.
Belle doesn’t notice us at first, or at least she pretends not to. As she draws closer to the counter her gaze swings our way, she smiles and gives us a little finger wave. Movement at her feet pulls my attention downwards, and I’m shocked to find Bosco at the end of a shiny black leather leash.
My brows dip, Belle’s far from a fan of his so what’s she doing with him? A quick survey of the store makes it clear Kida isn’t with them. I stare at the duo in confusion, then notice Bosco isn’t wearing his regular collar, but a fancy black number with a bowtie on it. I snort a laugh, trust Belle to dress up a dog.
“What’s so funny?” Maggie asks, still stiff as a board.
“The dog, he’s wearing a bowtie,” I say, pointing at Bosco.
“Oh. Maybe we should ask her to join us? It looks like she’s alone,” Maggie suggests.
I swing my head to stare at her. I can’t read her expression, but her posture is still rigid. “Nah, it’s okay. She probably has plans.”
“With who? Is she finally seeing someone?”
“I don’t know, maybe.”
“Why does she have that dog with her anyway? I thought she hated animals.”
I shrug. “Not sure. And she doesn’t hate anything, she just doesn’t like it when Bosco uses her shoes for chew toys.”
“Hmph,” Maggie huffs, her artificial blue eyes focused on Belle. Then a smile tugs at her lips, and she turns her attention back to me. She places a hand high on my thigh and snuggles in close to my side. “I actually saw her in here yesterday. She was surprisingly supportive of you and I reconnecting. I told her I wanted to clear the air between us, but she wouldn’t have it. Wasn’t that sweet of her? She could have treated me terribly for the way I acted.”
Well, that’s a crock of shit if I ever heard one. “Really, she was?” I ask, playing along.
Maggie nods, a blinding smile lighting her face. “She’s your best friend and she just wants you to be happy. I understand that now. I can’t believe I was jealous of her before. I guess I was just insecure, but I won’t let it come between us again. I promise.” She gives my thigh a little squeeze and rests her cheek on my shoulder.
I have no idea what part of all that I should respond to first. I shift on the seat, but Maggie just snuggles in closer, wrapping her free hand around my bicep. I curl my fingers around her wrist, pry her hand off me, and get to my feet. “Look Mags, I’m glad you’ve made your peace with Belle. But we aren’t getting back together.”
She tilts her head to the side, her eyes boring into me. “What are you talking about? That’s why you came here, so I could say sorry, and then we can move on, together.”
“No, I came because you said you wanted to apologize. That’s it. End of. And now, I’m leaving. Have a good life Mags; I hope you find happiness.”
I swear her eye twitches as she launches to her feet. “Why am I not good enough for you anymore? You said you loved me. Was it all a lie?”
Oh, my fucking god. All eyes turn to us. Their curious stares make my skin itch. I hate being the center of attention. I grit my teeth and lean into her, keeping my voice low I growl, “Don’t do that, Maggie. You walked away from me, not the other way around.”
“I wouldn’t have had to if you put that little slut you call your best friend in her place. But no, you wanted it all. The faithful girlfriend and yoursidepiece,” she sneers, throwing a savage glare Belle’s way.
My eyes widen.Fuck me.“What are you even talking about?”
“All right Miss Thang, you need to leave. Nobody disrespects my girls and gets to finish their coffee,” Perky interjects, stepping in between Maggie and me.
Maggie sniffles. “Sure, blame the victim.”
“Victim?” I bark. “Victim of what? You’re delusional.”
Literally everyone in the place is staring at us as Maggie wails then launches herself at me. Her fists pound against my chest and when I grab one of her wrists, she rakes the nails of her free hand down the side of my face.
“Fuck,” I grumble.
Before I can snatch up her free hand, Belle appears behind Maggie. She seizes her flailing arm, twisting it up behind her back until Maggie yelps in pain. Then she takes the wrist I’m holding and draws it up to meet the other. She jabs the tip of her pointed heel into the back of Maggie’s knees, dropping her to the ground where she forces her flat and straddles her back.
Maggie shrieks in outrage and thrashes uselessly in Belle’s hold.
“Zip ties, in my bag,” Belle says to me, gesturing with her chin toward her discarded purse.
I grab it and riffle through it. “You sure this isn’t Mary Poppin’s bag, how much shit do you need in here?” I grouse.
