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Emma’s hands shoot up in the air, a sad laugh bubbling from her chest. “Yes! His screensaver was even a photo of just the two of them.” She shakes her head, ducking out from underneath my arm and walking to the large mirror of the bathroom. “There were alotof red flags with him.”
“Is it safe to assume there won’t be a second date?” I ask, walking up next to her. I blot around my red lipstick, making sure none of it has smeared as I talked.
Emma meets my eyes through the mirror. The look she’s giving me tells me she isn’t amused by my question. “I left halfway through the first one. I didn’t even give the guy a chance to give me an orgasm. Fred did a great job at it when I got home.”
Margo walks up to Emma’s other side. “Your new dildo’s name isFred?” She doesn’t bother to hide the amusement in her face.
I smile, trying not to let my laugh escape my throat. “God, Emma. Why do you give your sex toys the worst names?”
Emma rolls her eyes at the both of us, pulling a tube of lip gloss from her purse. She swipes it across her lips, completely unbothered by Margo’s and my teasing. “Fred is a strong name. Plus, I’m limited on names for my toys. My vibrators and dildos can’t have the same names as guys I’ve dated. You know what I haven’t dated? A Fred.”
I can’t hold back my laugh any longer. It echoes off the stonewalls of the extravagant bathroom. “I’ve really missed you, Emma,” I say with affection. It feels good to be back with both of them. To be laughing and teasing and poking fun at Emma’s lack of a filter.
She turns, tapping the end of her tube of lip gloss against my nose. “You didn’t have to miss me, bitch. I’ve been here trying to get your attention, and you were ignoring me—for a man!” She gasps as if that’s the worst thing I could do.
“I’m sorry,” I say, really meaning it. A lot has been going on, and in that, I’ve lost touch with the two people who matter most to me in this world. I won’t let it happen again.
She shrugs, pulling me in for a hug. “I forgive you—only because I might forget about you, too, if a hot billionaire was sweeping me off my feet.”
Margo joins in on the group hug, and we remain in the embrace for a while. My arms wrap around them tightly. I hadn’t realized how much I missed them until now.
“You have our full permission to go silent when you find yourself a man, Emma,” Margo says against my hair.
Emma pulls away. “A nice,richman, Margo. Who doesn’t have his mother as his lock screen. Don’t forget all the details.”
Margo laughs. “Yes. A rich man.”
“Maybe older, too. An age-gap love affair seems to have worked out better for the two of you.”
Margo and I share a conspiring look. Although nothing about Archer’s and my marriage is conventional, I still very much see the appeal of being with someone who is older—even if it isn’t real.
“Should we go back out there?” I ask, knowing Archer and I probably need to mingle with everyone together.
Margo nods as Emma grabs her purse from the counter. “We probably should,” Margo answers, reaching to pull the bathroom door open. “We need to look for Pippa. You need to get to know her better, Winnie. You’ll love her. She and Emma togetherare hilarious.”
“Sounds dangerous,” I tease, following them out the door.
We’ve almost made it back to the guys when Emma immediately turns around and stops in front of me. She holds up a finger, a serious look on her face. “Don’t think you got out of telling us all of the details about how you ended up married. Me and Margo are your best friends, and I’ll be pissed if you told a gossip column more about your life than you told me. So later, be prepared to tell us every last detail.”
I nod. “I’ll tell you everything,” I lie, knowing I won’t tell them anything near the truth. But I will tell them what we’ve told everyone else and even give her made-up details I haven’t given anyone else.
“I just know you have some good stories about how Archer is in bed.”
I laugh, trying to hide the blush that creeps on my cheeks.
Now, that’s something I wish I knew.
CHAPTER 22
ARCHER
I’d keptup polite conversation with Beck and others who had stopped by for small talk, but I hadn’t realized how tight my body had gone with Winnie’s absence until she returned with her friends. The moment I saw her—and noticed how happy and carefree she looked—I took my first deep breath since the moment she left.
When her friends had dragged her away from us, she’d looked nervous and almost scared. Now, there’s a slight flush to her cheeks, almost as if she’s been laughing. Maybe she has been. She has a smile on her face, one I know isn’t fake at all.
I stare a little too long, waiting for her eyes to meet mine. The moment she looks at me, I can’t help but let the corners of my mouth turn up in relief and maybe a little bit of awe that she’s mine.
“We’ve returned your wife to you in one piece,” the friend who I now know as Emma jokes. She holds her hand out, waiting for me to take it. “My name’s Emma, but I’m sure you know that already.”
