Free Keeping Secrets in Seattle by Brooke Moss Page B

back to Alicia. “Who doesn’t like black? Black is slimming, right?”
    “Good thing.” Rose whispered into her mimosa.
    Marissa examined me with a grin. “Will you be bringing a date to the wedding?”
    I silently thanked God that I had a boyfriend. “Yes.”
    Alicia blinked in surprise. “Who?”
    “His name is Landon. We’ve been seeing each other for a few weeks.” I popped a stray grape into my mouth.
    Alicia’s mouth twitched. “Wow. That’s great, Violet. Does he, you know, have tattoos and stuff?”
    Rose frowned at me. “Should make for some interesting wedding photos.”
    I took a bite of my bacon and chewed it slowly, trying to think of a good response to that.
    Kate looked up from her BlackBerry and announced, “You can’t let just anybody in your wedding party. These pictures will be on your wall forever.”
    Alicia nodded. “True. I wanted to have my cousin in the wedding party, but—”
    “Naomi?” Marissa barked. “Ugh. She’s fat.”
    “Well, I wanted you girls first, of course,” Alicia said.
    Rose propped her chin on her hand. “You told me she would stick out like a hippo amongst swans.”
    Alicia glanced at me, her cheeks turning pink. “I didn’t think she was a good fit.”
    And…there was the girl I knew was inside of Alicia. It was clear by the way she shifted in her seat that I was starting to see the bitch underneath her super sweet candy shell.
    “Are there going to be any hot groomsmen in your wedding?” Kate asked, pushing her plate back.
    Rose grinned wickedly. “I second that.”
    Alicia laughed. “Well, Gabe’s friend, Lyle, is married. But Greg is single. Or at least I think he is.”
    “Is he cute?” Shawn called, fingering her licorice braids.
    “Sort of.” Alicia brushed her hair off her bony shoulder. “Not as cute as Gabriel, though.”
    All the girls nodded like obedient robots. “Not many men are,” Marissa pointed out, flashing her giant teeth.
    That’s for sure, I thought, looking down at my discarded bacon, forcing myself to picture Landon’s tousled faux-hawk and shining eyes. I needed to focus on the now. And Landon was the now.
    “And then, of course, there is Cam.”
    “Cam, who?” Marissa asked.
    Alicia’s gaze landed on me. “Cameron Hakes.”
    I saw a flash of light in my peripheral vision, and it felt like I’d been punched in the gut. I swallowed down the lump in my throat and squeezed my eyes shut. She couldn’t have mentioned another name that would have conjured up such a violent reaction. There was only one person on God’s green earth I hated so much it coursed through my veins with my blood, and that was Gabe’s other best friend, Cameron Hakes.
    “Tell us about him,” Rose squealed. “Is he rich?”
    Alicia’s eyes shifted back to her friend. “He’s very good looking. Blond, muscular, works as a sports writer in San Diego now. We flew there a few months ago to see him. He’s great.”
    I was going to be sick. Right here on the expensive linens.
    Kate sat up straight in her chair. “Is he available?”
    Again, Alicia looked at me from the corner of her eye. “He sure is.”
    I wanted to yell and scream my warning to the girls, Stay away from Cameron Hakes, he’s a monster. But my ability to form words eluded me. There were too many people around, too many sets of ears to hear what I wanted to tell them about Cameron. These girls had no idea what they were messing with. Flirting with Cameron was like flirting with a rattlesnake. Utterly and completely dangerous.
    “Good,” Rose said before downing the rest of her mimosa. “Nothing perks a wedding up like a groomsman to flirt with.”
    The floor swayed beneath my chair. I’d spent ten years working to get over that name, to forget that person, to wipe any and all memories involving him out of my brain altogether. Yet no matter what I did, no matter how independent I was, and no matter how strong I pretended to be, nothing could erase what had transpired