I shifted in my seat and faced her. “Of course I would, but why do you ask?”

She sighed and looked at me quickly before returning her gaze to the road ahead of us. “I’m… I just…” she stuttered.

“C’mon, spit it out, we don’t have all day.”

“I’m worried about you, that’s all. Brody’s back in town, which you know and Grayson and I already had a fight about him - ”

“Why would you be fighting about Brody?” I asked, interrupting her.

“Well,” she hesitated briefly, but I wasn’t sure why, “for some stupid reason Grayson decided to tell Brody and his…his… bed buddy that they could stay with us this week. When I found out, I lost my shit and threatened to withhold my goodies from Grayson unless he fixed it.”

I stared at Huntley, my mouth open. “Your goodies?”

“Yeah,” Huntley replied, blushing. “No sex.”

An unladylike giggle burst free from my mouth and I laughed. “You threatened to take away sex all because Brody was going to stay with you?”

“Not just Brody,” Huntley defended. “He brought his sex toy with…” her words trailed off as realization flashed in my eyes. My brief laughter died and I felt my heart sink. Brody had really moved on. Deep down I knew it, I saw it with my own eyes once but I never thought I’d have to face it again. “Shit,” Huntley muttered. “I’m sorry Demi.”

I shook my head, struggling with the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that had been hovering over me all day. “You didn’t have to do that,” I said quietly. “You should’ve let them stay with you.”

Huntley’s eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of their sockets. “Have you completely lost your mind?”

“No, but it would’ve been the right thing to do considering he’s Grayson’s best friend.”

“Well that’s too bad because you’re my best friend and after what he did to you he can go sleep in a lice infested bush.”

I chuckled but it was an empty sound. “You’ll have to let go some time,” I said. “He wasn’t the only one at fault.” I stopped myself before I brought up the fact that I was hiding something from Brody, something that would undoubtedly change everything.

“I don’t care,” Huntley retorted. “I don’t want a stranger around my son and I sure as hell don’t want that woman near us, or you. It’s a good thing Grayson knows what’s good for him, because I hear Brody and his attachment are now staying at the hotel in town.”

I went quiet. I had no idea what to say because thinking about Brody with someone else was hard enough. I didn’t need to talk about it too.

“I should’ve kept quite,” Huntley sighed. “I’m sorry. I know you’ll tell me if something’s wrong and you know I’ll be there the whole time if you need me.”

“I know. Can we maybe talk about something else though? Like where you think Grayson is taking you for your honeymoon.”

Huntley’s face lit up and our previous conversation evaporated as she got talking about their honeymoon.

“I think we might be going somewhere exotic,” she said. “Grayson says I must pack as little clothes as possible.”

“That has nothing to with an exotic location and everything to do with spending your entire honeymoon in a bed.”

A blush crept up Huntley’s neck and settled in the apples of her cheeks, causing me to laugh. “Don’t be modest now,” I said, smiling. “I lived with you remember?”

“How could I forget,” Huntley giggled. “You reminded me on several occasions how loud I am.”

“You know I believe he’s doing something wrong if you’re not screaming.”

Huntley squirmed and I stifled a laugh. “Oh my God, you’re totally thinking about having sex with Grayson right now aren’t you?”

Huntley ducked her head but not before I saw her cheeks redden further. I muttered “lucky bitch” under my breath. Unfortunately Huntley heard.

“Maybe Jeff can help you out with that,” she teased. I felt my face warm and tried to act nonchalant. But the truth was, when it came to Jeff Carter, I was anything but nonchalant.

“Not this again,” I whined, pretending to be annoyed. I was happy to talk about Jeff. He’d become the perfect distraction and kept my dark, unhappy memories at bay.

“Just admit that you like him and we won’t talk about him anymore.”

“I’m not admitting to anything,” I replied, crossing my arms across my chest. “Besides, I don’t think Jeff see’s me that way. We’re just good -”

“Friends,” Huntley parroted, finishing my sentence for me.

“We’ve had this discussion before,” I said, feeling slightly exasperated.

“I know, I know, but I think there’s more to it than you’ve told me and I’m just trying to figure the two of you out.”

Of course she was right and I felt guilty that there were some things she didn’t know about my relationship with Jeff. Or more importantly how it all started.

Huntley spoke before I could think about it too hard. I looked up in time to see that we had arrived back in Breckinridge, and had already stopped outside my house.

“When I’ve figured it out I’ll let you know,” I commented.

“Thanks for today,” Huntley said after a few minutes of silence. “I had fun.”

“Me too and thank you for my gorgeous dress.”

“I’m happy to do it for you, Dem. I love you like a sister and I’m really glad that you’re going to be the one up there with me.”

She sniffled and I handed her a tissue. “Sorry,” she said, wiping her nose. “I’ve been feeling emotional lately.”

“It’s fine, no one would blame you. You’re allowed to be a total mess this close the wedding. It’s practically a requirement.”

Huntley laughed lightly and bent over the middle console of her Jeep to give me a hug. I squeezed her tight. “I have a favor to ask,” Huntley said as she pulled away. “I was hoping you’d be able to look after Hunter one night this week before the wedding. I have something special planned for Grayson.”

“Of course, I’d love to keep him for the night. You don’t even have to ask. Just show up.”

“You’re the best,” Huntley sniffled again and I couldn’t help but wonder what the hell was wrong with her. It was more than just pre-wedding emotions but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I said goodbye and made my way inside. When I opened the door Coco started yapping and jumped up against my legs. “Poor baby,” I cooed. “I’m sorry I left you alone today. I missed you.” I bent down and picked the chocolate bundle up, laughing when she licked my face. I kicked off my shoes and walked into the kitchen where I fed Coco and poured myself a glass of Chardonnay. It was perfect for the summer heat. I plugged my phone into my docking station and listened as the sweet sound of my favorite female country singers filled the room. Jana Kramer sang about calling the love of her life ‘Whiskey’ and the Dixie Chicks crooned about cowboys. I was so absorbed in the music that I didn’t even hear my doorbell ring, or the door open. I turned around to refill my glass and found Jeff watching me, his mouth tipped up into that half grin.