She ignored my appreciation of Nick’s tempting smile as she reached a large round table much too big for us.
I scanned the area. “Let’s get a booth. We don’t need a table this big.”
“We’re fine here,” Grace said, pulling out a chair.
Aliya strutted over as if she were on a catwalk. Her hair—and other parts of her—joyfully bounced and caught the attention of every warm-blooded man with eyesight.
The wattage on Nick’s smile went full tilt. Obviously, he was one of those warm-blooded men who appreciated the performance. His deep voice raised just loud enough for Aliya to hear him over the music playing but not loud enough for us to discern what was being said.
She didn’t break stride but threw a knowing smirk over her shoulder. Then, her attention was entirely on us. Her performance was over.
Nick shook his head, still smiling. He put his hand over his heart, as if he’d just taken a hit, then turned to take the order of a gaggle of women at the end of the bar.
“Is there something going on there I need to know about?” I whispered.
“It’s their way of flirting,” Grace said.
Aliya flashed her a death stare. “I am not?—”
Grace perused the drink list. “You flirt as easily as you breathe.” A waitress took our drink orders: wine for Grace and me, and an old-fashioned for Aliya.
“So...” Grace checked her phone and then folded her hands on the table. “Onto the topic of the evening. What’s next for you and Aaron?”
Aliya rested her chin in her hand and eyed me.
I folded my hands in front of me, wanting my drink before we got into this topic. “I don’t know. I just found out he was divorcing me twenty-four hours ago. Do you want to give me a few minutes to digest that?”
They eyed each other. “Are you going to stay in Virginia—in the house?” Aliya asked.
“I don’t know. We haven’t gotten that far. We agreed to talk when I get back.”
“Do you want to stay in the house?” Aliya asked. “Because I know a lawyer and can get you the house if you want it.” She pulled out her phone and started typing. “I already told him I’d be calling. He has some free time tomorrow.”
I held up my hand. “Let me think about things first.”
“Honey, he’s had all the time he’s needed to get his affairs—” She cringed, her eyes darting to Grace and then to me. “Sorry, poor choice of words. But he’s had time to get his thoughts and papers in order. You haven’t. We need to play catch up.” The “we” in her statement did not go unnoticed, and while it was appreciated, it just made me more anxious. “You need to get copies of all your financial statements. You probably should’ve done that before you left,” she said, her eyes flashing with a plan of action. “We should run back to your place tomorrow. That asshole could be hiding everything from you as we speak.”
Grace held up a hand. “I think Kelcie needs some time to let this process. Maybe we could try to just support?—”
Aliya turned her phone over and put it back on the table, obviously ready to jump in the ring now. “No, she doesn’t have time for sulking. We need to do this now.”
“Fine.” She sat back. “But we’re calling my guy tomorrow. You can bitch me out now, but you will thank me later. I have Jorge on speed dial. Best in the state.”
“You have him on speed dial? A divorce lawyer?”
“I’m in real estate.” She shrugged a shoulder. “Of course I do.” She waved us off. “How do you think I get the best listings?”
We sat sipping our drinks, catching up on gossip, and talking about changes in town when it suddenly dawned on me what was going on. I checked my phone, put it face down in front of me…and waited.
The drinks arrived, and we thanked the server.
“Have you spoken with Shaw?” Aliya asked.
Grace took a sip of her wine, staring at the table.
“No. I have not spoken to him. I did talk to Wyatt. Maybe he called him off.”
“He’s very worried about you,” Grace said. “We all are.”
