Page 109 of Let’s Be Real

I knew that laugh.

My feet stopped before my brain caught up.

Kelly was at the cart’s helm with a man beside her, his arm wrapped around her shoulders, his face turned into her hair.

Her blissed-out expression almost made me smile. After everything she’d been through, she deserved to find happiness.

Then the man faced forward, and my stomach bottomed out.

What the hell was she doing with Josh? All those tears, the nights locked in my guest room…and she’d taken him back?

The clatter my basket made when it slipped out of my hand jerked their heads in my direction.

Kelly’s eyes went wide. “Samantha, hi. I didn’t know you shopped here.”

My face was hot. My heart thundered in my chest like I’d run a hundred miles in five minutes. “Are you kidding me?”

Ducking out from under Josh’s meaty arm, she took one step toward me, both her hands raised. “It’s kind of a funny story. I’ve been meaning to call you, but—”

Josh hooked his arm around her waist, pulling her back against him. “She’s been busy.” He nodded toward my basket. “Better be careful you don’t trip over that.”

I ignored him, focusing on my sister. “You’re back together?”

Her smile was uncomfortable, but she made no move to step away from him. “We’re working through things. Once I listened to him, I understood where he was coming from, and I’ve been able to forgive him.”

“He cheated on you with your best friend.”

Josh smiled like we’d run into each other on a Sunday stroll, not the aftermath of a train wreck.

“Shhh. There’s no need to rehash things,” she said.

“He laughed at you behind your back,” I reminded her.

Josh smashed a kiss to the side of her head. “Lucky for me, my girl accepted my apology for being an idiot. All we needed was the outside interference getting out of our way.”

Kelly nodded mutely, and I was surprised at how disappointed in her I was.

At the same time, it was like seeing myself in a distorted mirror. She was doing the same thing I always did—folding herself up to fit beside a man who didn’t deserve her.

The realization was a gut punch. Suddenly, the basket of desperation at my feet seemed so utterly ridiculous I almost laughed.

This wasn’t the way. I didn’t want to be this person. I’d promised myself I wouldn’t do this again. Yet here I was, slipping back into old habits instead of opening my mouth to ask Nate what the hell was happening.

I…needed to take a breath and find the right words.

“Samantha?” Kelly’s voice quivered in a way I’d never heard. “Are you okay?”

I took one long look at her, then spun on my heels and walked out of the grocery store, my head high and a thousand thoughts whirring in my brain.

Originally, my plan had been to head to Nate’s after this, but I found myself pushing into my house instead. I had to think, and there was no way I would be good company to him. Not when I was this angry.

I wasn’t mad at him. This was all on me.

And…well, Kelly.

Josh too. God, was I angry at Josh. He could eat dirt, as far as I was concerned.

Slumped on the couch, I took my phone out and texted Nate.