The Last Time by E. L. Todd Read Free Book Online Page A

texted Hazel instead of his ex, saying he had a great time in bed. When Hazel walked into their bedroom, women’s underwear was on the bed and the sheets were unmade.”
    Now I was speechless. “That’s pretty incriminating.”
    Sean wasn’t convinced so easily. “But it doesn’t sound like him. I know he used to be a playboy but I just can’t see him doing that to Hazel. They just moved in together.”
    “I’m having a hard time believing it too,” Scarlet said.
    Ryan shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s a difficult accusation to fight.”
    “Is she staying with you?” I asked.
    “Yeah. Cortland hasn’t been answering his phone and she had nowhere else to go,” Ryan said.
    “She can stay with us if it’s too cramped,” Scarlet offered.
    “Yeah,” Sean said. “We have room.”
    Ryan shook his head. “We don’t mind having her. She’s not a problem. Besides, she works long hours in the city. It would be a pain for her to commute.”
    “Poor Hazel,” I said.
    “She asked if we could go with her to the apartment so she can get the rest of her things,” Ryan said. “I said yes, obviously.”
    “I think we should break a few of his bones to teach him a lesson,” I said darkly.
    “I think we should talk to him first,” Sean said. “Flynn and I aren’t exactly close, but he doesn’t strike me as the cheating type.”
    Ryan shook his head slightly. “It would be easier to believe he’s innocent, but…I really don’t think he is. There’s not a single explanation I can think of to explain everything.”
    Scarlet gave him a firm look. “Don’t hurt him, Ryan.”
    “I’ll do what I want,” he snapped. “No one hurts my friend and gets away with it. And since she’s so important to Cortland, I have to step up and protect Hazel. Cortland isn’t here, but I’ll do right by him.”
    No one had an argument against that.
    “How’s she doing?” I asked.
    “She cried for a while when she first got to the apartment, but she’s been pretty quiet ever since. I invited her over but she didn’t want to come, saying she wanted to be alone,” Ryan said.
    “Has Flynn come by?” I asked.
    “No,” Ryan said. “He’d be stupid not to.”
    A quiet sadness fell on the room. Now we were all even more depressed than we used to be.
    “This sucks,” Sean said bluntly. “First, Monnique, and now Hazel. Can we just have a day in our lives when there’s no drama?”
    Scarlet shook her head. “Never going to happen.”
    “I hate to be insensitive to both Monnique and Hazel, but Mike’s getting married in a little over a week and we really need to have the bachelor party,” Ryan said.
    I couldn’t believe my wedding day was so soon. Cassandra and the girls worked their asses off to throw it together as soon as possible. It was quite an accomplishment. “I really don’t need one. There’s more important things going on right now.”
    “There’s nothing you can do for Monnique,” Scarlet said gently. “But I suspect Cortland won’t be able to make it, which is understandable. And there’s nothing you can do for Hazel either.”
    Cassandra rubbed my arm. “I want you to have a good time. This is your only bachelor party. Well—it better be the only one.” She gave me a playful look.
    I smirked then kissed her on the forehead. “It will be.”
    “Then it needs to happen this Saturday. We’ll hit the Rainbow Room and play poker at the plaza,” Sean said.
    “What about Cortland?” I asked.
    Sean shrugged. “We’ll have to do it without him. He’ll understand.”
    It still didn’t feel right without him here.
    Silence fell as no one spoke. I had the perfect life and the perfect girl on my arm. She was pregnant and carrying my child. Everything was going well, and my mom had a good chance of a successful surgery. Now I felt bad for Hazel and Monnique, who were both going through the most difficult times of their lives.
     
    Cassandra and I lay on the couch while we watched TV. Her