Scandalous by Missy Johnson Page B

her.
    “Honestly? I’m not sure. There is some shit going on with us and I know he is the first person she would call…” My voice trails off. I can’t bring myself to finish the sentence.
    “Hold on.” She disappears for a moment before coming back, a phone in her hand.
    “What are you doing?” I ask her, alarmed.
    “Calling Coop.” She says it so simply, like it’s the most natural thing in the world. I wait anxiously as she dials his number and holds the phone against her ear. “Hey,” she says, her voice sugary sweet. “I thought maybe I could come over tonight and we could get some dinner. No? Where are you? Oh, sure. Well, I’ll see you then. I love you.”
    She presses end, her lips tight as she raises her head. Her eyes meet mine and I know it’s not good news.
    “He’s at a cabin up at Steenport on the lake. If she’s with him, that’s where we’ll find them.” She grabs her purse and my eyes widen.
    “We?” I shake my head. “No, Mia, I can’t let you come.”
    “Either I come or you don’t get the address. I get that you’re worried about Beth or whatever, but this affects me too.” She glares at me, almost daring me to answer.
    I groan and give in. “Fine. Let’s get going then.”
    ***
    Steenport is about two hours out of the city. The drive has been quiet, with both of us lost in our own thoughts as I drive through the mountains. If it weren’t under these circumstances, I’d be marveling at how beautiful the drive is.
    We’re almost there when Mia turns to me. “What are you planning on saying if she is there?”
    Her question catches me off guard because I have no fucking idea. I hadn’t thought that far ahead. What am I going to say? It depends on what she knows. I have no idea how fucked in all this I am, but I’m pretty sure I’ll have a lot of apologizing to do. Suddenly, giving in so easily to Mia coming doesn’t seem like such a good idea. What I need is for Beth to take the time to listen to me, and knowing I dragged Mia into all this isn’t going to help me. Fuck .
    “Roman?” Mia pushes.
    “I have no idea,” I mumble.
    “Really? You’ve had the last two hours to think about it,” she laughs. She points to a sign indicating a side road. “Turn up here, then follow the track down to the water. It’s the second or third cabin on the right. I’ll know it when I see it.”
    “What are you going to say to Coop?” I fire back.
    Her expression darkens. She frowns as she stares out the window.
    “I’m sick of him always running to help her.” She shoots me an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, but I am. No matter what I do, it’s like she’ll always come first, you know?”
    I understand what she’s saying, and I feel bad that there’s nothing I can say to make her feel better. Hell, I wish Beth would stop turning to Coop every time things got hard between us, but I can’t deny he’s her friend. I don’t envy the position Mia is in.
    “Do you think a lot of it is he feels guilty for not being there for her after the attack?” I ask delicately.
    “I know that has a lot to do with it.” She shakes her head and laughs. “God, I’m an awful person. I feel bad about what happened to her, and I understand why he’d feel that way…it just doesn’t make it any easier to handle.”
    I turn left and follow the road down to the lake, letting her words sink in. This is the deepest our conversations have ever gotten. It feels strange to be in the same situation as someone but to be able to see it from a different angle. Beth and Coop are close. That’s it. If I fight their friendship, I’ll lose her. It’s that simple.
    I hope Mia realizes that too.
     
    I pull in behind Coop’s car and turn off the motor. My heart is racing because I have no idea of the situation I’m facing once we knock on that door, or the repercussions I’ll have to deal with for going to Mia.
    “Let’s do this,” I say, my voice sounding much more confident that I am. I