“I love you plus one.”
His smile widened, revealing his perfect white teeth and charming dimples. Then he disappeared into the bathroom. Something didn’t feel right. Like my momma used to say, Always trust your gut, and for some reason, ever since I met Bryce, I hadn’t been doing that.
24
Karen
“Good night, my sweet boy,” I said flicking off the lights in Riley’s dinosaur-themed bedroom. He was all tuckered out after a night of just the two of us playing in the backyard, eating pizza, and watching his favorite movie, Harry and the Hendersons. It was a favorite of mine as a child too. Mark was still in Miami and wouldn’t be back this week. He said he had a plastic surgery conference to attend. I wasn’t sure if he actually did or he just didn’t want to be around me. We hadn’t been getting along so well after I urged him to take a vacation and questioned him about his kinship with Olivia. He had said he was too busy for a vacation and that he was just being nice to her, as she’s my friend and his client.
I closed Riley’s bedroom door and made my way to the kitchen, pouring myself a glass of red wine. The doorbell rang. I quickly set down my drink and ran to the front door before whoever was on the other side could ring it again.
I opened the door and there stood Shannon. Her eye makeup was halfway down her face. Her hair was disheveled. Her eyes were bloodshot and wet with tears.
“I had nowhere else to go.” She sniffled.
I didn’t even hesitate before inviting her in, guiding her into my house. Sure, we had been fighting, but fights were almost always temporary. She flicked off her shoes and collapsed into the couch.
“Let me get you some water.”
“I went to have dinner with Bryce tonight,” she said and then broke into a sob.
I filled two glasses with ice water in the kitchen and hurried back to Shannon before she fell completely apart on my couch. She quickly took a gulp, while I took a seat beside her on the couch.
“What happened?” I asked.
“I proposed to him,” she cried.
“You what?” I whipped my head toward her. Save the judgment, I reminded myself.
“I know. I’m a fucking idiot.” Shannon took another big gulp of water.
“No, you’re not. You’re just a woman with a broken heart.” I placed my hand on her knee.
“He said no, by the way.” She looked at me with a crumpled face.
“I figured that much.” I gave her my most sympathetic look.
“And he threatened me.” Shannon’s face turned from sadness to anger.
“He what?”
“Well, I think he threatened me. Told me to stay away from him and Crystal, and something about becoming a widower.” She set her glass down, folded her arms across her chest, and leaned back into the couch.
“Bryce is an asshole. Always has been,” I said, setting my glass down and matching her posture.
She turned her head toward me and let on a small smile. “You’re right, aren’t you?”
“Yes. He’s kind of slimy too.”
“He is slimy, isn’t he.”
I nodded and put my hand on hers. “You’re going to be just fine. Trust me. The men in our lives don’t define us. We define ourselves,” I said to her, but in a way, I was saying it to myself.
“But I lost my chairwoman position because I’m divorced,” she cried.
“You didn’t lose it because you were divorced. It was because you missed two meetings. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you right away. I wanted you to be happy and focus on the gala. I didn’t want it to interfere with your big night,” I said.
“Olivia said it was because my divorce got in the way, and that it was unanimous.” Shannon bit at her lower lip.
I let out a groan. “Don’t listen to Olivia. I voted against it, but it was in the bylaws. That’s how Olivia got the motion through.”
“Karen, I’m really sorry for the way I acted today. I’m so embarrassed by tonight, today, last night.” She lowered her head and shook it.
“It’s fine. Really it is. I understand. Life is hard and living in Buckhead is even harder. I’m here for you no matter how bitchy you get,” I said with a laugh.
She laughed too and immediately wrapped me in her arms for a tight hug. She was going to be okay.
My phone buzzed, and I picked it up from the coffee table. It was a text from Keisha.
Have you seen this?
“Oh, my fucking God,” I said out loud as my mouth dropped open.
Shannon looked at me with worried eyes. “What is it?”
I shook my head. “You don’t want to know.”
25
Jenny present Detective Sanford pulls his phone from his pocket and places it on the table. He clicks around and pulls up a saved video.
“One of my officers came across this.” He faces the screen toward me. “Can you tell me about it?”
I close my eyes, take a deep breath, and then reopen them. On the screen is a still image of Shannon. The video is titled Woman Commits Suicide*.
“Yes.” I nod.
26
Olivia
I took a seat at a table in a small cocktail bar on Peach Street and ordered two vodka martinis. Crystal had phoned earlier, asking me to meet, and I was more than happy to do so. I knew I had done well at the salon earlier, saying all the right things. These women would come around now and realize I wasn’t so bad after all. They should know that it’s just easier to have me on their side, and Crystal needed someone to take her under their wing. I was that person. Sure, my wing wasn’t big, white, and feathery like an angel’s. It was more like a bat’s—quick and dark with claws hiding beneath.
“Hey, how are you?” Crystal said, taking a seat and placing her purse on the back of her chair. She was underdressed again. I was wearing a little red cocktail dress, and she was wearing a jean jacket. Now that we were allies, it was something I could help her with. I refrained from looking her up and down and instead smiled.
“I’m good. I’m glad we could get together. I ordered you a vodka martini.”
“Oh, thank you. I’ve never had one. I’m more of a beer type of girl.”
I held the smile on my face. It was nearly impossible to not snarl. A ‘beer type of girl’? Something else I could teach her. The server set a vodka martini in front of both of us. I quickly took a sip.
“You’re going to love it.”
Crystal picked up her glass and held it to her lips. She was apprehensive, but she tipped the martini back anyway. Her face crumpled up as soon as it hit her tongue. She set the drink down, coughed, and tried to compose herself. “That’ll take some getting used to.”
“It’s rather sophisticated, so I guess it’s not for everyone. Do you want to order a beer instead?”
“Oh, no. This is fine. I’ve got to start fitting in somehow.” She laughed.
“No need to worry about that, Crystal. With me by your side, you’ll fit in just fine,” I said.
She took another sip but this time kept her composure. Maybe she was teachable, like a charity project of mine. Or a small pet.
“So, I asked you here tonight because I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” She dropped her chin in a sympathetic way.
“Oh, you mean because of Shannon’s behavior? She doesn’t faze me anymore. Shannon is a total mess, and she’s so obsessed with Bryce. It’s sad. I should be the one worried about you. How did her dinner go with him? Are you and Bryce okay? She didn’t do anything, did she?”
“No . . .” Crystal said awkwardly. “Not that. Bryce and I are fine. It seems their conversation was productive. I was talking about what happened between you and Dean at the gala.” She took another sip of her martini.
I waved my hand at her, dismissing her comment. “What, that? That was nothing. Dean had had a little too much to drink, and he was just upset about all the drama. He hates drama,” I explained.
Crystal crinkled up her face as if she were trying to understand what I was saying or make sense of it. She wasn’t the brightest crayon in the box, that was for sure. I took another sip of my martini and signaled the waiter for two more. I was going to need it to get through this conversation.
“You’re sure?” she asked.