Free Use Somebody by Riley Jean Page A

“Don’t forget, after we do this, don’t wash your hair for twenty-four hours. And you do have a hydrating shampoo and conditioner, I assume?”
    “Um, I don’t know.”
    “Dang, girl! You have to take care of those curls! Follow me.” Without giving me much of a choice, she grabbed me by the wrist and led me further down the aisle towards the rest of the hair care products. She picked out a new shampoo and conditioner for me, as well as a hot oil treatment and some kind of mousse with “volumizing” on the label. I stared at it with barely concealed contempt. My hair already had too much volume. Why in the world would I need more?
    Carrying all the items in my arms, I began to feel overwhelmed. I should have stopped at the manicure. It was all a little too high maintenance for my taste, not to mention expensive. I still had a car to save up for.
    “Okay, look,” I said, dumping some items back on a random shelf. “This is all a bit much. I’m just going to get the dye today. Maybe aft…” Something caught my eye at the end of the aisle. Wait, was that…? I leaned to the side and squinted. “Gwen?”
    Startled, she turned towards us. Her dark eyes went wide with alarm behind her glasses.
    “Scarlett?” her voice was a tad off-pitch. Then she took in the girls standing next to me. “Kiki? Summer?”
    “Gwen!” the girls shouted and stampeded towards their coworker at full speed, sandwiching her in a giant hug.
    Gwen was noticeably less enthusiastic about running into us. She normally didn’t see anyone outside of work, except for her boyfriend. It started in high school after they began dating and took exclusivity to a whole new level. She stopped hanging out with us on weekends, and even quit the debate team so they could spend every possible minute together. She said real love made sacrifices. And I was happy for her.
    That all changed when she turned down her scholarship to Harvard Law.
    Anyone who knew Gwen knew Harvard had been her lifelong dream, and she worked her ass off to earn the four-point-three GPA that got her accepted. So we were all shell-shocked when our smart, driven friend gave it all up to stay close to her boyfriend and turn townie.
    Now the only thing Gwen wanted out of life was to marry Hunter and have his babies.
    Even so, a late night run-in at the drug store shouldn’t have made her look like this, like she was ready to bolt.
    “You okay, Gwen?” I asked, assessing.
    “I’m fine,” she said through clenched teeth. Apparently we had switched roles tonight.
    “Where are you going with that gigantic tub of ice cream?” Kiki asked.
    “You should totally join us,” offered Summer, hands clasped in front of her. “We’re going to my house to dye Scar’s hair. And I have a ton of cookie dough, we can make pazookies!”
    “Oooh, pazookies!” Kiki agreed. “Whadduya say Gwen? Come with us!”
    Gwen’s eyes started to shimmer. Bewildered, I followed her gaze to where a couple walked by holding hands. It freaked me the hell out. In all the years I’d known her, I’d never seen her emotional before. Not once.
    Empathy. Sadness. I recognized the emotions, but they were watered-down versions of what they should have been. With this wall in place, I couldn’t feel them to the extent they deserved. The only sensation I was able to register was anger.
    It hit me like a bolt of lightning. “What did that asshole do now?” I practically seethed.
    Let me clarify that I had never said anything negative about Gwen’s boyfriend before. Ever. Certainly never called him names. I didn’t entirely agree with all aspects of their relationship, but to admit this to someone as obsessive as Gwen equated to friendship suicide.
    Summer and Kiki gasped and looked between me and Gwen. Either they were curious about whether or not my assumption was correct, or scared to see what Gwen was about to unleash because of what I said.
    I didn’t care. If that bastard made my friend cry, I